Peperoni cruschi are Basilicata’s great obsession: sweet Senise peppers left to dry in the sun until they turn leathery and deep red, then flash-fried in extra virgin olive oil so they puff into glass-crisp, ruby shards. Zafaran’ Crusck is Pennella’s take on that tradition, packed at the source in Senise and sealed in a pouch that keeps every piece whole until the moment you open it.
This is not a hot pepper. There is no burn here at all — only the concentrated sweetness of sun-dried Senise pepper and a faint, clean smokiness from the fry. The pieces are thin enough to shatter between your fingers, which is exactly how they are meant to be used: crushed by hand over the plate at the last second, never simmered. Crumble them over pasta with toasted breadcrumbs, break them across burrata, or set the pouch on an antipasto board and let the table do the work.
🌶️ Sweet, never hot – the deep, raisined sweetness of sun-dried Senise pepper with no heat at all
✨ Delicate crunch – thin, glassy pieces that shatter rather than chew
🌿 Faint smoke & green oil – a whisper of the olive oil they were fried in
🍝 Crushed by hand over pasta — the classic pairing, with toasted breadcrumbs and a thread of EVOO
🧀 Broken over burrata, stracciatella, or fresh mozzarella
🫒 On an antipasto board with salumi, olives, and grissini
🍳 Scattered over eggs, white beans, or roasted vegetables for crunch
5 x 100 g pouches