Espelette Pepper

Where it comes from

Piment d’Espelette comes from Capsicum annuum peppers grown in just ten communes around the village of Espelette in the French Basque country. The peppers were brought from the New World in the 16th century and adopted into Basque cooking as a milder alternative to imported black pepper. Each autumn, the villages of Espelette and Itxassou drape long strings of drying red peppers across whitewashed walls in a famous regional sight.

Flavor & pairing

Piment d’Espelette is gently hot (around 4,000 Scoville), with a soft fruity sweetness and a faint smoky depth from the drying process. It pairs with eggs, sheep’s milk cheese, jambon de Bayonne, tuna, sweet bell peppers, and onion.

How it’s used

Piperade — Basque scrambled eggs with peppers and onion — finishes with a heavy dust of Espelette. Bayonne ham is cured with a coating of it. Basque cooks use it as the default table condiment in place of black pepper. French chefs across the country reach for it where a mild fruity heat is wanted. Modern bartenders rim glasses with Espelette salt.

Trade history

Piment d’Espelette holds AOC and PDO status, the same protection as Champagne or Roquefort.