Barbecue Roasted Red Peppers

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I’m feeling a tad guilty again. While yesterday’s post about roasted garlic got a lot of you excited, it turns out this dish raised a few issues. First, DivaLisa is extremely allergic to garlic. Although she was too polite to say this, I’m pretty sure a close-up of her culinary nemesis caused her more discomfort than is warranted on a Monday morning.

Second, Dana McCauley pointed out that firing up the grill just to roast a head of garlic is wasteful. She’s got a brilliant method for pan-braised garlic that she swears is easier on energy consumption and better tasting to boot. I’m going to bookmark her technique for future reference. After all, I won’t always have the grill fired up for something else.

The “something else” in question was roasted red peppers. I adore them. Tossed into salads, pureed into soups, ground into dips…

A while ago my friend Janie asked how to roast peppers, and although I distinctly remember answering her, I can’t find anything in the blog archives. So, here’s a recipe for roasted red peppers that has no garlic, won’t waste resources and answers Janie’s question.

If you already make and consume these wonderful vegetables (I know, they’re technically a fruit because they have seeds) what dishes do you use them with? Or are roasted peppers too time-consuming for you?

Grill Roasted Red Peppers
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

  • Whole red peppers, washed (this works with green, orange and yellow peppers)

Instructions

  1. Heat the grill to medium. (You can also do this in your oven under the broiler.)
  2. Place peppers directly on a lightly greased grill. Close the lid and grill, turning every 5 minutes or so, until the peppers are charred on all sides.
  3. Wrap peppers in a paper bag or place them in a bowl covered with plastic wrap. Let sit to allow the steam to loosen the skin. [Update: Dana McCauley says: “I place the hot, grilled peppers in a bowl and cover it tightly with foil. Once the peppers are cooled to room temp, I remove the foil and the peels have usually almost literally sweated off.” Thanks, Dana!]
  4. When the peppers have cooled enough to handle, peel the skin off. Remove the stem and seeds.