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I grew up near Munich, Germany and remember that I would love to eat my Doener by adding pepper flakes. I am pretty sure they were not the typical red pepper flakes you may put on pizza but I am not having any luck at finding the specific seasoning.

Does anyone have an idea?

Thanks!

Benjamin Kuykendall
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user95601
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3 Answers3

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Especially in Germany go to your next friendly turkish grocer and ask for „pul biber“.

jmk
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    Which is known in other areas as "Aleppo pepper", and has been more difficult to find for a few years. (if it's truly from Aleppo, I suspect the Syrian civil war is part of the problem) – Joe Sep 19 '21 at 02:07
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    I believe the name is used for the cultivar, and not as a designation of origin, and that it is grown outside of Syria too - it is used in Turkish döner because it's popular in Turkey :) Anyway, I don't think most people can taste the difference in cultivars once the spice is dried and mixed into a döner, so a different red cultivar with a similar heat level, using the same processing technique, should be practically indistinguishable. – rumtscho Sep 20 '21 at 10:19
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jmk is correct in identifying the spice as pul biber.

Looking at the ingredient lists, some are just crushed (Aleppo) pepper, 5-10% salt and a bit of vegetable oil. Other brands sometimes include more spices like paprika. The main supplier in my area in Germany uses the former.

If you can get whole Aleppo peppers, you can crush them and add a bit of salt. Crushed ones are often already salted and oiled and can go directly onto your dish - that’s pul biber.

Stephie
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Here in Canada and I expect in a lot of other countries as well, recent Syrian refugees as well as Lebanese immigrants have been here long enough to raise the capital to open stores where "Aleppo pepper" is available. The stores run by previous generations of Palestinian refugees could probably provide something similar as well.

Al Maki
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