How to Roast a Pepper
I did this to my unsuspecting pepper on purpose. You should do it too.
Roasting a pepper is easy-peasy if you have a gas stove like me. You can also do it in an oven if you don’t, and instructions for that will be at the bottom of this entry. If you do have a gas stove, the instructions are pretty much “burn the crap out of the pepper, scrape the gross stuff off, eat.” Want a few more details?
1. Put the pepper directly over a high flame. Have some tongs ready.
2. Watch as it starts to char a little. This is good! And fun.
3. Turn the pepper with the tongs as the skin blackens. Don’t grab the pepper by its stem, tempting as it is, because it may break off as the pepper gets tender.
4. Don’t forget the bottom.
5. Make sure every part is charred, but don’t go too crazy. This is as roasted as you can get before actually burning the flesh inside.
6. Wrap in foil and let sit for 15 minutes until cool enough to handle. The steam created in the foil helps the skin slip off easier, so don’t skip this step! You can also put it in a ziplock
7. Use a knife to cut a circle around the the stem. Pull on the stem to remove the seeds. If the pepper is still piping hot at this point, steam will shoot out and burn you!
8. Pour out water that has settled inside the pepper. Use your fingers to slip the skin off. Resist the urge to run it under water. I know it’s messy this way, but it’ll taste better if you simply rub the pepper with your fingers or a paper towel to remove the skin - you want to keep the juices and even a few flecks of char for flavor!
9. Slice the pepper into four slabs.
If you’re doing this in an oven, turn your oven on broil. Brush peppers lightly with a high-heat oil and place under the broiler, watching for the skin to blacken. Turn peppers until fully roasted and then follow instructions from step 6 on.
So what now? Eat it! Roasted peppers are delicious on sandwiches, blended into hummus, tossed onto pizzas, added to soups, mixed into salads, stirred into pasta sauce… I usually roast sweet bell peppers but the spicy ones can also be prepared this way. Go nuts. Eat peppers.
28 comments March 18th, 2007
