Served alongside your favorite cut of meat, or served on their own with crusty Italian bread, these Roasted Peppers are a must for your spring menu!
“Because the beginning of a thing is so vitally important, it is often best to work in reverse. When setting out upon a project, decide first upon your destination, and then work your way backward. Indeed, the beginning of a thing is so vitally important that you cannot risk not doing it last. It touches, influences, and ultimately shapes all that comes after it, it is the very foundation of all that proceeds from it. For this reason, it is the greatest human tragedy that we do not live in reverse.”
I bring this up because upon perusing my spice cabinet, I remembered a conversation I had with my niece about a year or so ago. We were talking about cooking, and she was explaining how she often feels overwhelmed at the prospect, asking me simply “Where do you even begin?”
I make it no secret that my preferred cuisine is a sort of ‘Pan Mediterranean’ melting pot, stretching from the Iberian Peninsula to the coast of Asia Minor, and so naturally I replied: “Start with learning how to make grilled peppers.”
In just a few variations of this simple dish, one can more or less get a ‘feel’ for the Mediterranean Basin’s rustic flavor profile. How each culture bordering ‘Our Sea’ utilizes the common pepper can be viewed as a window into their larger culinary world, from the blistered tomato and pepper salad of Moroccan ‘chakchuka,’ to the Greek version of sweet peppers topped with garlic infused yogurt, to the countless Italian and Spanish variations on the dish, which can range from simply topping blistered padróns in coarse salt and oil, to elaborate main courses.
In each case, however, the basic premise remains the same whether you’re prepping the blistering hot Pimientos de Padrón from Spain, or the pleasantly sweet Italian Friggitello, also called the ‘Tuscan Pepper.’ Start off, naturally, by grilling the peppers, and for today’s sweet red peppers I roasted them right on the stovetop until they received a nice char as pictured below, and then set them aside to cool.
Once cooled, I scraped off the char with a knife. You don’t want to be ‘too’ through here, you just want to remove ‘most’ of the char, otherwise, you risk overworking the peppers. Then slice the peppers into strips and remove the seeds. After that’s done, heat a large cast iron frying pan, and while the pan is heating up slice a large sweet onion, and then set the slices in the frying pan until they char slightly. Then combine the onion, peppers, and raisins in a large bowl and toss until they are nicely combined.
Then add the garlic, basil leaves, the seasonings listed below, along with a generous bit of olive oil, and toss again. And just like that, you’ve got the perfect pairing for any antipasto or the perfect side to virtually any Mediterranean entrée.
Roasted Peppers
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Ingredients
- 4 - 5 red sweet peppers
- 1 large sweet onion - sliced
- 5 cloves garlic - finely chopped
- 10 - 12 fresh basil leaves - chopped
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Roast the peppers whole to a nice char and set aside to cool.
- When the peppers are cooled scrape the char off the pepper and remove the seeds and tender ribs of the peppers, then slice into long strips.
- Heat a large cast-iron frying pan and place the sliced onion into the pan and grill to a nice char on the onions.
- Place the onions into a medium sized bowl and add the sliced peppers and raisins and toss.
- Add the chopped garlic, basil leaves, seasonings and olive oil and toss.
- Taste to approve the seasonings.
- Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
Enjoy with Love!
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Angie@Angie's Recipes says
Simple yet wonderful!
Pam says
Love roasted peppers and these look perfect! Thanks for the recipe, Catherine and have a wonderful day! xoxo
Claudia says
One of my all time favorite sandwiches is roasted or fried peppers. Love them with eggs, love them plain. I dont do onions since I am allergic to them but I bet they are wonderful as my family would love them. They are all big onion fans here , sigh.
Hope you had an enjoyable weekend and I sure would love to try some peppers roasted on my bread! YUM!
Carlee says
Your peppers look amazing! It is crazy how much roasting changes the pepper's flavor and texture. I want to dig in!
Reesa Lewandowski says
Oh we love roasting peppers, especially when we start harvesting them in the summer! I am going to save this recipe!
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
Roasted peppers are so versatile and works marvelous with any recipe. I have tasted these only from a jar and was looking forward to making some of my own. Thanks for the recipe!
Veena Azmanov says
Wow, this ROASTED PEPPERS really impresses! I like that it can be cook quickly and easily. This is perfect for me. I definitely want to try this, and I'm sure it's very tasty. Thank you for sharing this great recipe! So YUMMY!!!
Michelle says
I love the sweet element of the addition of raisins, such an easy and healthy recipe that I can eat daily.
Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says
I certainly love roasted peppers and that was the way my mamma used to make them. When peppers were in season she would make a huge panful and we'd eat on them with our dinner. They are delicious hot or cold and your recipe looks just like I remember them.
swathi says
You upgraded the simple roasted peppers, with lot flavors. I can eat this just a side dish, or even put it on a bread and eat as sandwich. Next time when I buy peppers I am going to try this.
Tatiana says
I would never think of adding raising in roasted peppers . It must give the dish an exotic taste and texture. I really like the idea!