The “ñora” is a red, round pepper of the “ball” variety, which is normally dried in the sun and used ground in countless dishes and products throughout all our territory, but especially on the east coast.

It is a versatile ingredient of Spanish cuisine that provides a distinctive color and flavor- a little sweet with an intense aroma, but without being spicy (although there are two varieties- so watch out).

Also you can grind the dry ñora with other ingredients like garlic in order to add it to a “sofrito” (vegetable sauce), the basis of many stews.

The ñora pepper can be served fried as a side dish, but above all they are used for the production of paprika powder, an indispensable ingredient for the preparation of various dishes like Galician octopus, “chorizos” and other sausages, “patatas bravas” and rice dishes, like Paella. Also you can grind the dry ñora with other ingredients like garlic in order to add it to a “sofrito” (vegetable sauce), the basis of many stews.

It’s also very common to use whole dried ñoras by soaking them in hot water for 10-15 minutes to re-hydrate them. After that you can add it to a “sofrito” and it’ll be delicious.

It’s not easy to find them outside Spain but you can get them on amazon like these whole dried ñoras

If you are visiting Malaga or live here and want to learn more about this and other Paella ingredients and spanish food in general we would love you to join our Paella Cooking Class.