Aleppo Butter
Foaming melted butter stirred off the heat with Aleppo pepper until it turns brick red, for spooning warm over eggs, yogurt, and vegetables.
Why you'll love Aleppo Butter
Aleppo butter is the warm, red butter spooned over Turkish eggs, and it may be the simplest sauce in the kitchen: butter, melted until it foams, and Aleppo pepper stirred in off the heat. The pepper blooms in the hot butter and turns it a deep brick red, with a mild, fruity, gently warm flavor.
Taking the pan off the heat before the pepper goes in is the whole technique. Chile flakes scorch quickly in very hot fat and turn bitter, and the butter holds enough heat to bloom them gently. The red color comes from the chile's own pigments, which dissolve in fat, so you can watch the flavor move into the butter.
This is the butter on the Turkish Eggs with Garlic Yogurt, at the same proportions. It is just as good over a bowl of yogurt, roasted carrots or cauliflower, fish, or lamb.
Quick overview: This Aleppo Butter takes 2 min of hands-on time and about 5 min in all and makes 4 servings, each 1 tablespoon. You'll need a saucepan.
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter
- 2 tsp Aleppo pepper Label: Aleppo pepper, and salt if any, with no oil
Instructions
- Melt the butter: Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. It will bubble as its water cooks off, then rise in a white foam, which takes 2 to 3 minutes.
- Take it off the heat: As soon as the butter foams, take the pan off the heat. Butter at this point is hot enough to bloom the pepper, and adding it now keeps the flakes from scorching.
- Bloom the pepper: Stir in the Aleppo pepper. The butter will sizzle gently and turn deep red within a few seconds as the chile's color and flavor dissolve into the fat.
- Spoon it warm: Let it stand for a minute, then spoon it over eggs, yogurt, or vegetables while it is still warm and liquid. Stir as you spoon, since the pepper settles to the bottom. Turkish Eggs for four takes about 3 tablespoons.
Storage and leftovers
Pour any leftover Aleppo butter into a small jar and refrigerate it for up to 1 week. It sets firm.
To use it, warm it over low heat in a small saucepan just until it melts, without letting it bubble again, so the pepper stays bright.
Variations
- Brown butter: Keep the butter over the heat after it foams, swirling, for 1 to 2 minutes more, until the milk solids turn golden and smell nutty. Take it off the heat and stir in the pepper.
- With dried mint: Stir 1/2 teaspoon dried mint into the butter with the Aleppo pepper for a cooler, herbal note over yogurt and eggs.
- Ghee: Use ghee in place of the butter. Ghee is clarified butter, so it heats without darkening and keeps longer in the refrigerator.
- Paprika and pepper flakes: Use 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika and a pinch of red pepper flakes for each 1 1/2 teaspoons of Aleppo pepper, as the Turkish Eggs suggests.
Notes and tips
- Check the Aleppo pepper label: It should list Aleppo pepper, and salt if any, with no oil. Good Aleppo pepper is a deep, bright red, in coarse, soft flakes.
- Salted or unsalted: Either works. With unsalted butter, a pinch of salt over the finished dish brings out the pepper.
- Use a small pan: A small saucepan keeps a little butter deep enough to foam evenly, and it is easy to pour from.
- Look for pul biber: Turkish pul biber, a similar mild red chile flake, works the same way and is often sold in Turkish and Middle Eastern markets.
Nutrition and mindful eating
- Butter is a real fat, and a spoonful over eggs or vegetables makes a simple plate rich and satisfying.
- The red pigments in Aleppo pepper are carotenoids, which dissolve in fat, so blooming the pepper in butter carries its color and flavor through the whole dish.
- Aleppo pepper brings gentle warmth with fruity, slightly salty notes, so a small amount gives a lot of flavor.
- As you eat, notice how the warm red butter mixes into the cool yogurt and runny yolk, and how its mild heat builds slowly, then check in later in the morning whether a breakfast finished with it carried you to lunch.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this Aleppo Butter? Start here, with the questions people ask most.
What is Aleppo pepper?
A mild, fruity chile flake from Syria and Turkey, named for the city of Aleppo. It has a gentle heat and a slightly salty, almost raisin-like flavor, and it is sold in spice shops and online.
My butter turned dark and bitter. What happened?
The butter was too hot when the pepper went in, or it stayed on the heat. Take the pan off the heat as soon as the butter foams, then add the pepper.
Can I make it ahead?
Yes. It keeps a week in the refrigerator. Rewarm it gently over low heat just until melted.
What else can I spoon it over?
Plain Greek yogurt, fried or soft-boiled eggs, roasted carrots or cauliflower, grilled fish, lamb kofta, or a bowl of soup.
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