Burlap & Barrel Black Urfa Chili

In southeastern Turkey, you'll find black Urfa chili (or its uncured red variety) on almost every table. It's delicious on kebabs and other grilled meats and veggies, cooked into stews and chilis, in salad dressings, sprinkled on fluffy scrambled eggs, and even mixed into brownies and other chocolate desserts for a little extra depth and a hint of heat.

After being cured, the black Urfa chili is packed with salt and a little sunflower seed oil to preserve its natural texture and flavor and prevent it from drying out. 

• Origin: Urfa, Turkey
• Aliases: Urfa biber, isot
• Process: Cured in the sun and stone-ground
• Ingredients: Urfa Chili, Sunflower Oil, Salt
• Tasting notes: Raisin • Espresso • Summer Night

COOKING

• Season kebabs and chilis for a rich spiciness
• Top off baba ghanoush and hummus
• Add to chocolate and fruit-based sweets like hot chocolate and brownies

Meet the Farmer: Bekir Bey is a chili pepper farmer just outside the city of Urfa, and he was out picking peppers today in blazing 104-degree heat. He and his family cultivate about 12 acres of chili peppers, almost all of which will be cut up, fermented and ground into the famous black Urfa chili flakes. They spend about 10 months of the year planning, planting, tending, watering and harvesting these very special chili peppers. The combination of pepper variety (same as an Aleppo/silk chili), sandy soil, hot dry climate and very particular fermentation method all come together to create a pepper unlike any other in the world.