Crushed Red Pepper

Crushed Red Pepper contain both the dried flesh of the pepper and the seeds. Both are cured and lightly toasted to create a smoky and spicy pepper flake. These pepper flakes provide a medium all-purpose heat – use on pizza, pasta, baked potatoes, macaroni and cheese, soups, salads, grilled meats, tacos and nearly everything else.

A little history lesson on Crushed Red Peppers:
When we think of Crushed Red Peppers, we think of Italian cuisine. However, if you’ve ever visited northern Italy, you most likely have never came across Red Pepper Flakes making their way onto slices of pizza, and you won’t find them added into the sauce either. It is believed that Crushed Red Pepper on pizza and pasta can be traced to the late 1800s in southern Italy, where the people of this region enjoyed adding a bit of spicy heat to their dishes. Researchers who have studied early South Italian immigration to America have found that it was common for these early immigrants to grow hot peppers in their backyard gardens, so adding them to their home made pizza seems quite logical.