Just add paprika

Everything tastes better in red.

A chicken curry recipe from the Sri Lankan culinary expert O Tama Carey. Credit: Adam Liaw

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Paprika is a beloved spice that may be gentle in flavour but delivers a mighty wallop of colour. The vibrant red of a paprika dish is its calling card in Hungarian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Mexican... actually, so many cuisines we'd be hard-pressed to list them all.

Even without its signature red hue, this pantry staple brings a sweet earthiness to dishes that are missed when absent. How 'sweet' depends on the kind of paprika you buy.

All paprika is basically ground from dried capsicum annum, which includes everything from sweet red capsicums to fiery chillies. Most supermarket versions are labelled either sweet paprika, which gives a dish a subtle sweetness and plenty of colour; or hot paprika, which is made from dried chillies and adds pungency and true heat to your dish.

You'll also find smoked paprika on the shelf, which is made by drying the peppers over smoking wood, usually oak. Smoked paprika (or picante pimentón if you happen to be purchasing from a Spanish deli) has a pungent, smoky flavour that is very difficult to replicate and easily missed from a dish. So if a recipe asks for smoked paprika, do your best to find smoked!

Whatever way you decide to paprika, be generous. After all, the bigger the paprika, the brighter the dish, the better the life. Hmmm, we're sure that must be a wise old saying somewhere...

Mother lode

While many other proteins feature in paprikash style, chicken is the most popular. Credit: Adam Liaw

Hungary is well-known for its love of paprika (they may know something about its many longevity health benefits) and chicken paprikash showcases this union perfectly. There aren't many dishes that call for two tablespoons of spice, but this one insists on it.

Vermillion bucks

This fragrant, baked curry is packed with flavour from a traditional Sri Lankan red curry powder. Credit: Jiwon Kim

Paprika is prized for its colour and is often used to add a touch of drama to a curry blend. This vermilion-hued chicken curry from Sri Lanka is a case in point.

Extra lift

Onion, capsicum and chilli are blended together to make a silky, flavoursome sauce, then garnished with a homemade smoky paprika oil for an elegant finish. Credit: Jiwon Kim

Any dish that asks for tomatoes or capsicum will benefit from a dash of paprika. Adam Liaw makes a simple tomato and capsicum penne shine with a smoky paprika finish.

First served

The Middle-Eastern version of eggs for breakfast involves baking the eggs in a earthy paprika tomato sauce, spiced lightly with chilli and capsicum. Credit: Bondi Harvest

One of the greatest breakfast dishes of all time features two kinds of paprika and every kind of goodness. Shakshuka is never a dish you make once.

Corba everything

It's hearty, it's versatile, it's loved, loved, loved. Credit: Adam Liaw

Čorba is the soup claimed as its own by everyone from Türkiye to Algeria to Serbia. Once you try it you'll understand why everyone wants to own it.

Well spread

Liptauer is made from a soft cheese mixed with paprika, butter caraway seeds and finely chopped onions. Credit: Kitti Gould

What do you get when you mix white and red? A perfectly pink liptauer - the spread that goes with everything.

Shanklish very much

This is a quick-and-easy version of shanklish made using feta.

Shanklish is a Middle Eastern cheese that goes particularly well with smoked paprika... actually, all cheese goes well with paprika. Sprinkle it liberally on your next cheese board.

Red, red rice

The name risotto alla paprica refers to the capsicum in the dish, rather than paprika. But rest assured, there's plenty of the spice used in the dish as well. Credit: Paola Bacchia

Naturally, if something is good, the Italians are onto it. Paprika is widely used in the cooking of Trieste, but also finds its way into many seafood dishes across the country. Here risotto alla paprica gets fired up in the best possible way.

Barbie punch

With punchy flavours made with simple pantry ingredients, these pork skewers are the perfect dish to bring to your next barbecue. Credit: Jiwon Kim

Paprika is excellent with pork, as these pork, pineapple and paprika skewers demonstrate. Prepare to punch up your next barbecue.

Good lashings

Dive straight into winter with a happy heart. Credit: Chris Middleton

Think paprika, think . Hungary's heartwarming stew is made toastier with a heaped tablespoon of hot paprika. Feel free to add extra if it's been a particularly long day.

Spanish flair

Spanish paprika chicken is a classic family dinner bake. Credit: Brett Stevens

This Spanish dinner favourite is an easy introduction to the power of paprika. A sprinkle or two over a standard chicken bake does wonders for both colour and flavour.