No, this is not something that I left in the oven too long. It was a planned, deliberate action that rendered some beautiful red peppers into this charred, unrecognizable thing. I love roasted red peppers. They are wonderful with just a splash of balsamic vinegar and some extra virgin olive oil. They are equally wonderful with some minced garlic and an olive bath. Whether you add them to an antipasto, a salad, a panini, or a plain old sandwich, roasted red peppers are sublime. I am not talking about those things you buy in a jar that have been inebriated in cheap vinegar. I am talking about the kind you pay $8-$10 a pound for in a specialty shop or, far better, the ones you make yourself.
Summer is the ideal time to indulge your taste for this simple, yet delicious, food. Red peppers are plentiful in the markets and so less costly. You can also do them outside on the grill, thus eliminating the charred odor indoors as well as any pans you might need to roast them in indoors.
This is simplicity at its apex. Here is the "recipe."
- Take as many beautiful red peppers as you desire
- Turn your grill on high
- Place the red peppers on the grill
- Close the cover
- Stay close by, but I'd start with about 8 minutes, then check them; they should be nicely charred on one side
- Turn them over with tongs and repeat; leave them on until they look like the photo above
- Take the peppers off the grill with tongs and put them in either a paper bag which you fold over or in a bowl which you cover in plastic wrap
- Leave them alone for 20 minutes.
Now all you have to do is carefully pull the charred skin off the peppers and use a butter knife to scrape away any seeds. Under no circumstances should you rinse the seeds or skin off with water. That would wash away the beautiful taste you've just created.
All that's left is to slice them and decide how you're going to enjoy them. I carmelized some Vidalia onions and used them with some grilled sausage on freshly baked baguettes (no, I didn't make the bread this time). They are positively addictive and really no trouble at all. I had one pot to wash.
