Paprika

Food · Vegetable · Food, Typed Supps

Ground dried peppers, carrying a lot more color-giving antioxidant per gram than the fresh pepper it came from.

Stage by stage

Intake (Pigments released by heat & chewing): Cooking and chewing release paprika’s carotenoid pigments from the dried pepper.
Stomach (Digested with the meal): Paprika moves through digestion along with the rest of the food.
Small intestine (Carotenoids absorbed with fat): Carotenoids need dietary fat to pack into micelles and absorb well.
Bloodstream & tissues (Vitamin A & antioxidant activity): Absorbed carotenoids convert to vitamin A as needed and act as antioxidants in tissues.

Timing

Cook it into a dish with some oil so its carotenoid pigments absorb well.

Time to effect

Days to weeks: Regular intake gradually builds blood carotenoid levels.

Allergens

None of the fourteen major allergens. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.

Eating patterns

Fits: Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Gluten-free. Depends on the product: Low-FODMAP.

Satiety

Not scored: the satiety index is measured on 240 kcal servings, and nobody eats a 240 kcal serving of this. The question does not apply rather than the answer being unknown.

Environmental footprint

0.5 kg CO2e and 108 litres of freshwater per kg, matched to "Other vegetables" in Poore & Nemecek (2018), Science 360.

Cost band

Pricey — roughly £18 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.

Key nutrients

Nutrition per 100g

Calories: 313.3
Protein: 14.1g
Carbohydrate: 19.1g
of which sugars: 10.3g
Fat: 12.9g
of which saturated: 1.9g
Fibre: 34.9g
Sodium: 68mg

Food vs. supplement

Paprika is unusually carotenoid-dense for a spice, but a teaspoon delivers only a small fraction of its per-100g values — regular use across meals matters more than any single dish.

Kitchen tip

Bloom paprika briefly in warm oil before adding other ingredients to help release its fat-soluble pigments and flavor.

Common myth

"Paprika is basically just for color, with no real nutritional value." In reality: Because it’s concentrated dried pepper, paprika is unusually dense in provitamin-A carotenoids and vitamin E by weight — small amounts per dish, but meaningful with regular use.