Crushed Red Pepper

Crushed red pepper is a condiment consisting of dried and crushed (as opposed to ground) red chili peppers. Not only are these red flakes festive in appearance, but they liven up recipes and bland foods. The lighter-colored seeds mixed in with the dried red flesh of the peppers add a serious kick of heat.

Crushed red peppers are also known as red pepper flakes or “pizza pepper” and have become a must in every kitchen. Crushed red pepper shakers have become as standard as salt and pepper on tables at Italian restaurants and especially pizza parlors in the United States.

The most commonly used pepper for crushed red pepper flakes is the cayenne pepper. The majority of red pepper flakes will be a mix of peppers, with cayenne taking up the majority of the share. If you notice that there are different colors to the chili flakes in the bottle that’s your first clue there is more than one dried chili in the bottle. Others that may be in the mix: Serrano chilies, jalapeños, ancho (dried poblano), and even the no-heat bell pepper may be added. In fact, most popular store brands will have three or four different varieties of chilies in them. The makeup will change, depending on which brand or company you end up purchasing.

It depends on the chilies used in the mix, but with cayenne being a typical staple, you’ll get a heat somewhere in the 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville heat unit range. That’s 6 to 10 times hotter than a normal jalapeño on the Scoville scale. Depending on the quantity of cayenne used and the other chilies in mix, the heat unit range for typical commercial hot pepper flakes can be lower, too – 15,000 to 30,000 SHU is often the case.

Crushed red pepper flakes are used in pickling, chowders, gumbos, spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce and sausage. They are also great in cream and cheese sauces, omelets and marinades. Use about a ½ tsp. to equal the power of one small dried chile.