On Wed, 07 Jul 2010 20:46:56 -0700, isw > wrote:
>>
>> > Sweet paprika is primarilly for color... any mild paprika will work...
>> > no one can tell where paprika peppers were grown in a cooked dish
>> > anyway... most paprika is a blend.

>
>I would be interested to know the exact brand(s) for which you can tell
>a difference. I can distinguish between "sweet" (i.e. not much taste to
>speak of), "smoked", and "hot".
>
>If there are brands that are superior, I'd like to know about them; I've
>never been satisfied with the taste of my paprikashes.

Paprikas, including imports, are a blend of whatever is seasonally
available. The way to tell one flavor from another is to taste the
paprika straight from the container, and side by side, no ones taste
perception memory can compare after time passes... ones sensory
perception can remember smells but not taste, not anymore than
remembering color tones. Yes, one can discern heat levels to a point
(the heat is typically from a blending with a hotter pepper) but when
cooked in a dish no one can tell one paprika from another. Paprika is
a crop, it's never the same harvest to harvest, year to year. And
once ground all capsicums deteriorate rapidly, so even if you're lucky
enough to purchase freshly ground it won't taste nearly the same a
couple months later. Those who claim to be able to distinguish
different nuances in paprikas in cooked dishes are those who are most
familiar with artificial flavorings... and even those differ lot to
lot. Just like ground meat unless you grind it yourself there is no
way to know what's in any ground spice. Paprika can be blended with
lesser/cheaper peppers... a good way to use up the salvagable portions
of red bells rotting in the field. Other than grow your own the best
you can do is buy from a reputable source... and then taste as you go
adding more as needed, same as cooking with any seasoning. I'd not
buy any hot paprika, when I want heat I add a bit of cayenne... I can
always add heat but I can't take it out... when I buy paprika I always
buy sweet (same as I always buy mild chili powder) I want to be able
to taste it before it's been contaminated. And just because it's
imported doesn't make it better, that's only a way to justify higher
price. There aren't many spices in the US that aren't imported but
capsicums are native to the Americas so I'd choose those first.