While Middle Eastern cuisine continues to gain in popularity in the US, Turkish cuisine remains relatively unknown and certainly under appreciated.  But if you’re searching for authentic Turkish flavor you’ll absolutely love our Maras Pepper.

Also known as Marash Pepper or Turkish Red Pepper this is as common on Turkish dinner tables as black pepper is in our country. Maras Pepper is especially popular on meat dishes such as kebobs, chicken, goat, ground lamb, meatballs, kofte and on egg dishes such as menemen. We also like to use this in rice pilaf dishes, soups, vinaigrettes, pasta sauce and sprinkled on our morning eggs.

Native to Southeastern Turkey the Maras chile is named after Maras a small town in this region (now known as Kahramanmaras). Unlike chiles grown in Mexico or South America that are dried until they become shriveled and almost crisp, Maras chiles are placed on large tarps where they are sun-dried, de-stemmed, seeded and ground into a crushed flake while still retaining much of their moisture. These chiles are naturally wet and are best known for their oily texture and moist appearance.  

The flavor profile of crushed Maras pepper is similar to Aleppo pepper. The aroma is of dried fruit, while the taste is slightly acidic with hints of deep earthy flavors. A medium hot chile these come in at about a 1,000-2,500 on the Scoville heat unit scale.

Helpful hint – You should keep your Maras pepper as moist as possible for maximum flavor. Use an air tight container that can be sealed tightly or try storing in your refrigerator in between uses.  