Stop Buying Fancy Fire-Roasted Peppers And Make Them Instead

The secret between good food and great food is really not a secret at all. It’s something that good home cooks and chefs alike know—it’s the finishing touch. You might ask yourself what does that mean?

The finishing touch is what you add to a simple piece of grilled meat, poultry or fish to make it really special. This can be a sauce like Romesco sauce—think grilled asparagus which are good on their own but they’re great with Romesco sauce. Or it could be as simple as a healthy dollop of bright basil and Parmesan-rich pesto on top of a piece of grilled fish or even a boneless skinless chicken breast. Or my 1-Minute OMG Sauce that I make all summer long.

But it can also be something a little more substantial and equally easy to keep in the fridge for dressing up whatever you cook or grill, like fire-roasted peppers. I make fire-roasted peppers all year-long because they literally can be used for sandwiches, appetizers, as an ingredient in pastas and frittatas, and sub as a vegetable while acting like a condiment on the dinner plate. They also add gorgeous color at the same time and we all know that we eat with our eyes before we taste the food.

The easiest way to make fire-roasted peppers is to throw them on [the grill] whole while preheating your outdoor grill. It’s a great way to make good use of the time and the heat while your grill is getting up to temperature. I use red, yellow and/or orange peppers so that my peppers are multi-colored but you could use all of one color.

It couldn’t be simpler. Give them a rinse and remove any stickers from the outside. Turn all the burners of your grill on high and place them on the cooking grates over high direct heat. This direct heat will char the skins and begin to cook the insides. Make sure you don’t overcook them or they will be a little mushy. Take them off the grill when they give a little and are no longer ridgid, and the skin is uniformly charred. Once they steam in a closed container and collapse on themselves, the peppers will be sweet, soft and silky.

The beauty of roasting the peppers while you’re preheating the grill is that as you cook your food, the peppers steam and finish cooking. This last step also loosens their skin so that it’s easy to remove. If you’ve ever bought a jar of fancy roasted red peppers this is essentially the same thing. I like to take the flavor one step further and marinate them in a red-wine vinaigrette to give them even more punch.

After I remove the skins and the seeds, I marinate them in an easy red-wine “vinaigrette.” For the peppers, I use 50% vinegar and 50% olive oil and just enough Dijon mustard to emulsify the mixture; add a pinch of salt and some herbs if you like. Once the peppers are cleaned, I place them in a glass Mason jar, pour the vinaigrette over them and presto, a pantry staple in your refrigerator that will make all your favorite foods taste even better.

You’ll quickly find your favorite way to use them. I like to serve them with fresh mozzarella, prosciutto and a crispy baguette for a delicious anti-pasta. Or, layer them on sandwiches, cut them in long strips to add to frittatas, serve them sliced thin on the side of grilled sausages, grilled chicken and grilled steak. Next time you grill a skirt steak, serve a tangle of fire-roasted peppers with it so you can have a little bit of the peppers with each bite. (A tangle of fire-roasted peppers is simply peppers that have been julienned or cut in long thin strips.)

They’re also terrific—even if they’re not authentic—in a taco. If this doesn’t become your favorite new condiment I don’t know what will.

Once you get the hang of it, you won’t even need a recipe but I have one below for you to follow as a guideline. I also like to make extra, put them in mason jars and then take them as a hostess gift. In my experience, it’s a welcome change from flowers or wine, and never goes to waste.

Fire-Roasted Peppers

_{Makes 2 cups or 1 pint Mason Jar}

_{Grilling Method: Direct/Medium-High Heat}

4 red, orange and yellow peppers

¼ cup red-wine vinegar

¼ cup olive oil

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste (about 2 grinds)

A pinch of thyme, or other favorite herbs to taste

Rinse and dry peppers. Remove any produce stickers or labels.

Place peppers directly on the cooking grate over medium high heat. Turn occasionally until skin blackens and blisters all over and skin is charred. I like to do this when I am preheating the grill and have all my burners turned on high.

Meanwhile, combine vinegar, olive oil, mustard, salt and pepper, and thyme or other herbs if using. Mix well.

After 7-10 minutes—depending on the size of the peppers and the heat of your grill—remove peppers from grill with tongs and place in sealed plastic or glass container until cool enough to touch, about 20 minutes. Take out of container and remove skin and seeds; tear into large pieces or cut into strips.

Place peppers in a glass jar and pour vinaigrette over. Store in the refrigerator for a week.