Ran out of cayenne or discovered you don’t have any while cooking? Here’s the top replacement for cayenne pepper in your dishes.
Preparing a dish that requires cayenne but you don’t have it? There are several alternatives that work well as a replacement.
Cayenne is a spice made from ground cayenne peppers, which are moderately spicy red chili peppers (though some blends might include other varieties). Just a small amount provides the ideal level of heat for meats, fish, curries, stews, and more.
You’re most likely to find ground cayenne powder in various recipes. Don’t have it available? Here are several substitutes for ground cayenne pepper.
Top Ground Cayenne Pepper Replacement
1. Red pepper flakes
The best alternative to cayenne pepper? Red pepper flakes. They have a coarser texture compared to ground cayenne but provide significant heat. If you seek the same spiciness as cayenne, you might need to use a bit more. Start with a 1:1 substitution.
2. Hot paprika
Another excellent cayenne pepper alternative? Hot paprika. If you lack cayenne, you may also be out of hot paprika. Nevertheless, the spicy variant of paprika serves well as a replacement. Avoid using regular sweet paprika here: it lacks heat. Use an equal measure of hot paprika, then adjust according to your taste.
3. Hot sauce
Cayenne pepper primarily contributes heat rather than flavor. Thus, hot sauce can substitute some of the heat that cayenne provides! Just be aware that certain hot sauces possess very unique flavors. We wouldn’t recommend adding Frank’s Red Hot to a Moroccan-style stew that calls for cayenne. Therefore, ensure the hot sauce type aligns with the dish’s cuisine.
4. Hot paprika
If you have it available, hot paprika also serves as a replacement for cayenne pepper! It’s slightly milder, so you can use twice the amount of hot paprika than the recipe specifies for cayenne.