Espelette Pepper substitute

Best substitute

Aleppo Pepper (pul biber)

Use the same amount as the espelette pepper you are replacing

Best for finishing sprinkle on eggs, fish and vegetables

Close match

Aleppo pepper is the best substitute for Espelette pepper, used 1:1, because it has the same mild fruity heat and the same coarse flake. Fine Korean gochugaru also works 1:1 and is very close in heat. If you only have jars of ground spice, use 1 teaspoon sweet paprika plus a scant 1/8 teaspoon cayenne for every teaspoon of Espelette. What you cannot do is swap cayenne 1:1, since cayenne is roughly ten times hotter and will wreck the dish.

Other espelette pepper substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Gochugaru (fine grind)
Close match
Use the same amount
Korean chili powder sits almost exactly where Espelette does on heat, and it shares the fruity, sun-dried sweetness.
What changes
The difference is a faint smoky-dried edge that Espelette does not have, so a sauce made with gochugaru tastes a shade deeper and less floral. Use the fine grind for sprinkling and the coarse flakes for stews.
Best for
finishing sprinkle, rubs and marinades, braises and stews, eggs and potatoes
Widely available and cheap, which matters because Espelette is expensive. Do not substitute gochujang, which is a fermented paste and a completely different ingredient.
3Sweet Paprika plus Cayenne
Different taste
Use 1 teaspoon sweet paprika plus a scant ⅛ teaspoon cayenne for every 1 teaspoon Espelette
The pantry rebuild.
What changes
Sweet paprika supplies the red color, the mild sweetness and most of the volume; the pinch of cayenne supplies the low heat. What you lose is the fruity top note, so the result tastes correct but flat, more like seasoned color than a chili with character.
Best for
spice rubs, stews and braises where the powder is cooked in, sauces, sausage and terrine seasoning
Measure the cayenne, do not eyeball it. Hungarian or Spanish sweet paprika both work. This is a better swap in a cooked dish than as a finishing sprinkle, where the missing aroma is obvious.
4Hot Paprika
Different taste
Use the same amount
One jar, no arithmetic, and it lands in roughly the right heat range.
What changes
It is less fruity and slightly more bitter than Espelette, and depending on the brand it can taste dusty rather than bright, so a dish seasoned with it is noticeably less aromatic even though the heat is right.
Best for
cooked sauces, rubs, potato and egg dishes, quick weeknight substitution
Taste your jar first, since hot paprika heat varies a lot by brand. If it tastes harsh, use three quarters hot paprika and one quarter sweet paprika.
5Ground Guajillo or Ancho Chili
Different taste
Use the same amount
Both are mild, red and genuinely fruity, so they cover Espelette's job better than most people expect.
What changes
Guajillo is tangier and more dried-berry; ancho is sweeter, darker and more raisin-and-prune, which pushes the dish toward Mexican rather than Basque. Either way the color comes out a little deeper and browner.
Best for
rubs and marinades, braises, bean and lentil dishes, sauces
Ancho is dark enough to change the color of a pale dish like piperade or aioli, so use guajillo if appearance matters.
6Smoked Paprika plus a Pinch of Cayenne
Different taste
Use ¾ the amount of smoked paprika, plus a scant ⅛ teaspoon cayenne for every teaspoon of espelette pepper
Worth listing because it suits Basque and Spanish recipes that already have smoked notes from ham or chorizo.
What changes
The tradeoff is real: Espelette is not smoky, and smoked paprika is aggressively so, so the dish will taste of pimenton rather than of fresh chili. Use less than you think.
Best for
bean stews, pork and chorizo dishes, rubs for grilled meat, potato dishes
The least faithful option on this list but a good one in the right dish. Do not use it in a delicate dish such as an omelette or a fish crudo.

What is Espelette Pepper?

Espelette Pepper is Piment d'Espelette is a coarse brick-red chili powder made from Gorria peppers grown and dried around the village of Espelette in the French Basque Country, and it is mild and fruity rather than fiery, closer in heat to a gentle jalapeno than to cayenne.

Cooking tips

Espelette is a finishing spice more than a cooking spice. Its appeal is a fresh, almost fruity aroma that long simmering flattens, so sprinkle it over the dish at the end and hold back a pinch for the plate.
It is mild enough that you use it by the teaspoon, not the pinch. If your recipe says two teaspoons and you reach for cayenne at the same volume, you will make the dish inedible; cayenne is several times hotter, so scale down to about a tenth.
The classic Basque uses tell you what the powder is for: piperade, axoa, chicken basquaise, over scrambled eggs, on a plate of cured ham, or stirred into mayonnaise. In all of those it is doing gentle warmth and aroma, not heat.
Ground chili loses its aroma fast and goes from brick red to dull brown. Store Espelette or any substitute in a sealed jar away from the stove and light, and replace it once the color fades, because a faded jar tastes of nothing but dust.
If your recipe already contains a lot of sweet paprika and calls for Espelette on top, the simplest fix is to add a little more paprika plus a measured pinch of cayenne rather than buying a new jar. If the Espelette is going on top of a finished dish, buy Aleppo or gochugaru instead, since the aroma is the whole reason it is there.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave Espelette pepper out?

Often yes. If it appears alongside paprika, garlic and onion in a stew, leaving it out costs you a little warmth and aroma and the dish still works. Where you should not skip it is a recipe where it is the only chili, such as piperade or a simple plate of eggs, because then it is the seasoning that makes the dish Basque rather than just buttery. In that case a pinch of Aleppo or hot paprika is much better than nothing.

How hot is Espelette pepper?

Mild. It is commonly cited at around 4,000 Scoville units, which puts it in the same range as a mild jalapeno and far below cayenne or chile de arbol. The point of Espelette is aroma and gentle warmth, so if a dish made with it tastes hot, something has gone wrong with your substitution.

Is Espelette pepper the same as paprika?

No, though they look alike in the jar. Paprika is made from sweet peppers and normally has no meaningful heat, while Espelette has a low but real chili warmth and a distinctly fruity, floral aroma. Paprika plus a small measured pinch of cayenne is the standard way to approximate it, and it gets you most of the way there without the aroma.

Is Aleppo pepper really a good enough swap?

Yes, it is the swap most cooks reach for and the closest one available. The heat level, the coarse texture and the fruity character all line up. Aleppo is a touch sweeter and, in oil-cured versions, saltier. If you want the Espelette experience without the Espelette price, buy Aleppo and stop worrying about it.

Can I use fresh chili instead of Espelette powder?

Not well. Espelette powder is dried and concentrated, so its flavor is raisiny and toasty, while a fresh mild chili is grassy and watery by comparison. If fresh chili is all you have, use a mild red one such as a Fresno, finely chopped, and cook it with the onions rather than sprinkling it on at the end, and accept that the dish will taste greener and less aromatic.

Related substitutes

More spices & herbs substitutes

Espelette Pepper substitute

Other espelette pepper substitutes

2Gochugaru (fine grind)

3Sweet Paprika plus Cayenne

4Hot Paprika

5Ground Guajillo or Ancho Chili

6Smoked Paprika plus a Pinch of Cayenne