Roasted Peppers

Roasted Peppers have always seemed to be somewhat of a treat or luxury for people other than me. I have never liked the taste of red peppers. Green peppers are delicious, but I cannot explain why the red (and even sometimes orange and yellow) turn me off. I don't even like dishes made with red peppers in it, because the flavor permeates the entire meal. Red peppers are probably second on my yuck list of food. Surpassed only by coconuts. Blech....

You very rarely ever see roasted green pepper. Whether in jars or fresh from an Italian deli, you only see the red. Sometimes you may see some green mixed in with the red, but never green alone. As much as I dislike the flavor of red pepper, I love green peppers. One day I realized I had 3 peppers that were close to rotting. Instead of tossing them, I decided I would finally attempt to make roasted peppers.

Most of the recipes Ive seen suggest roasting the pepper whole. Like I said, my peppers were close to spoiling, so there were some soft spots I wanted to cut out. I decided to slice the soft spots out and cut the core out. I wound up with 4 shells of pepper. To make the second step of the process easier, I lined my cookie sheet with foil and then laid my pepper pieces down, skin side up. I liberally sprayed the pieces with cooking oil and popped them in the oven. With my oven preheated to 400, I let them roast for about 45 minutes. Once they started showing the tell tale black marks on their skin, I pulled them out of the oven.

One would assume that the actual baking or roasting would be enough. I was surprised to find out there is actually a steaming process involved. Next, scoop all your peppers to the center of your piece of foil and carefully fold up the sides to create an airtight pocket. Let your pepper pocket sit until it is cool enough to handle with bare hands. This allows the peppers to steam in their own heat. Once the peppers can easily be handled you can go a step further and peel the skins. I did not peel mine, but I guess I am not a true roasted pepper connoisseur since I have never been able to eat them. Most vegetables pack a vitamin and nutrient power punch in their skins, so I see no reason to remove them. If you do want to remove them, most recipes I've read state that you can simply grasp the corner and peel them off. If you do remove the skins, do yourself a favor and save them in your veggie scrap bag for broth!

Once cooled, you can store these peppers in a sealed glass jar in the fridge. The time they will last varies depending upon which recipe you go by. Some said a week, while others said they will last up to 6 months. I doubt you will be able to let them last that long, because they are so tasty! If you want to store then for an extended period of time, I would suggest using something that will be airtight, like a mason jar.