What Are Capers? Sizes, Salt-Packed vs. Brined, and How to Use Them
Capers are the unopened flower buds of the caper bush, a scrubby Mediterranean plant that grows out of rock walls and dry hillsides. Picked by hand before they bloom, they are bitter and inedible raw; curing in salt or brine turns them into the small, briny, faintly mustard-like buds that make a piccata, a puttanesca or a tartar sauce taste like itself. Here is what they are, how they are graded, which kind to buy, and how to use them.
Where capers come from
The caper bush, Capparis spinosa, grows wild around the Mediterranean, from Spain and Morocco to Italy, Greece and Turkey, and thrives in poor, stony soil and full sun. It flowers through the summer, and each bud has to be picked by hand at the right size, every few days, which is why good capers are never cheap. Spain, Morocco and Turkey grow much of the world’s supply. The Italian islands of Pantelleria and Salina grow the most celebrated, and capers from Pantelleria carry a protected designation, IGP.
What do capers taste like?
Salty and sour first, from the cure; then green, peppery and a little mustardy, from the bud itself; and in the best ones, something floral at the end. The mustard note is no coincidence. Curing releases the same family of compounds that gives mustard and horseradish their bite. A spoonful of capers does the work of salt, acid and aromatics at once, which is why so many Mediterranean sauces lean on them.
Caper sizes, from nonpareil up
Capers are sold by size, graded by diameter. The smallest are the most prized: firm and delicate, best left whole. Larger capers are softer and more pronounced in flavor, better chopped into sauces or fried. Grades vary a little by country, but the traditional French scale runs roughly like this.
| Grade | Diameter | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Nonpareil | Up to 7 mm | Whole, in pan sauces and over fish |
| Surfine | 7 to 8 mm | Everyday cooking |
| Capucine | 8 to 9 mm | Salads and potato salad |
| Capote | 9 to 11 mm | Chopped into dressings and sauces |
| Fine and larger | 11 mm and up | Frying, salsa verde, tapenade |
Salt-packed or brined?
Brined capers are packed in a salt-and-vinegar brine. They are tangy, ready to use, and the kind most kitchens keep. Salt-packed capers are cured in dry sea salt alone; they keep a firmer texture and a more floral flavor, and many Italian cooks prefer them, but they must be rinsed and soaked for 10 to 20 minutes before use or they will oversalt the dish. Either way, taste a caper before you season, because capers bring their own salt.
Triana’s Mediterranean capers are Spanish capers from an Andalusian olive house, with a firm bite and a bright, briny flavor. Drain them, and rinse them only if the dish is already salty.
Caper berries
A caper berry is what a caper becomes if it is left on the bush: the flower opens and falls, and an olive-sized fruit forms on a long stem, full of tiny seeds. Caper berries are cured the same way as capers but are milder, with a gentle crunch. Serve them whole, stem and all, beside a martini, on an antipasto plate or with smoked fish. They are a garnish rather than a substitute for capers in a sauce; for the drinks side of the table, see our guide to martini olives.
How to cook with capers
- Pan sauces. Capers, lemon and butter are the heart of a piccata. Try our chicken piccata with lemon and Mediterranean capers or crispy chicken cutlets with caper-lemon butter.
- Pasta. With tomatoes, olives and anchovy in a puttanesca, or with tuna and toasted breadcrumbs in our Sicilian tuna pasta.
- Green sauces. Chopped into salsa verde with parsley, lemon and olive oil, as in our soft eggs with caper-parsley salsa verde.
- Fish. Crisp branzino with lemon salt and fried capers, or olive oil–poached cod with lemon and capers.
- Vegetables and beans. A French potato salad with capers and mustard, roasted cauliflower with capers, raisins and pine nuts, or white bean bruschetta with rosemary and capers.
How to fry capers
Drain the capers and pat them very dry. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat and add the capers carefully, since any water will spit. Fry for 30 to 60 seconds, until they open like small flowers and turn crisp, then lift them onto paper. Scatter over fish, eggs, salads, pasta or roast vegetables.
How to store capers
Unopened jars keep for a year or more in a cupboard. Once open, refrigerate the jar and keep the capers covered by their brine, and they will last for months. Salt-packed capers keep at room temperature in their salt for a very long time.
Questions
Are capers olives? No. Olives are the fruit of a tree; capers are the flower buds of a shrub. They share a brine and a cuisine, which is why they are often confused.
What can I use instead of capers? Chopped green olives with a squeeze of lemon are the closest substitute.
Do you have to rinse capers? Always rinse salt-packed capers. Brined capers can go straight from the jar into most dishes; rinse them if you want less salt or vinegar.
Are caper berries the same as capers? No. Capers are the buds; caper berries are the fruit that follows the flower.
Shop Triana Mediterranean capers, or see The European Edit, where capers join fleur de sel, French mustards and fruit preserves, with 25 ways to use them.