Making Italian roasted peppers in your home oven is a very simple recipe; they are called peperoni arrostiti. They are much better than canned roasted peppers because they do not need white vinegar to be preserved. You can taste the sweetness of their flesh which remains firm and chunky, and the skin is easily removed. I seasoned them with garlic, extra virgin olive oil, and basil and served them on an antipasto platter, as Italian appetizers on bruschetta or as a side dish to meat or cheese. They are also suitable for a vegan or vegetarian meal.
In the Roman markets during the Summer, you find these large scarlet red peppers shaded with green and purple stripes, absolutely beautiful.
They are called peperoni di Pontercorvo, a town in the province of Frosinone near Rome. They start to appear in June and will last for the summer.
The variation of colors is a beautiful feature; they create an Italian style rainbow on your dinner table.
Their sweet, slightly tangy flavor is unique and only needs a few ingredients to complement it. That is why I prefer to roast them myself.
The ones stored in jars need vinegar to prevent bacteria growth. It is convenient to have a jar in the pantry, but the vinegar breaks the natural sweetness of the peppers.
To have the best flavor, I prefer to roast them at home.
These roasted red peppers are widely used in Italian cuisine. For more Italian recipes with peppers, you can check chicken with peppers, stuffed peppers, grilled vegetables, baked ratatouille and Giambotta Italian vegetable stew.
If you want to preserve the peppers before the end of summer, make red pepper jelly and serve it with cheese during the winter.
Ingredients
- Red peppers: When you buy peppers, check each one carefully to ensure they are nice and firm everywhere with no damage to the flesh. You can also use bell peppers and green or yellow peppers.
This recipe uses only four ingredients for the seasoning:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh basil: you can also use oregano
- Fresh garlic
- A pinch of salt
Instructions
- Rinse the peppers and place them in a very hot oven, under the grill or on an open flame.
- Once the skin on the top of the pepper is burned, turn them around and put them back in the oven
Hint: You can cover the pan with aluminum foil or baking sheet, but there is no need to grease it.
- Keep turning them until all sides of the peppers are burned
- Place the warm peppers in a paper bag. Do not use a plastic bag otherwise, they will keep cooking in their steam
Hint: The skin has to burn uniformly; otherwise, you will not be able to remove it from the flesh
- Keep the bag closed until they cool down. Their own steam will help to separate the skin from the flesh
- Once cold, you can easily remove the charred skin from the peppers
Hint: The inside of the peppers will be very hot, do not clean them until they are cold
- Remove the seeds, cut them into long strips
- Place the sliced peppers in a large bowl and season with salt, extra virgin olive oil, and basil
Hint: you could roast the peppers cut into slices and the seeds removed; however, by roasting them whole, the flesh remains chunkier and firm
How to serve them
These Italian roasted peppers are perfect for serving as an easy appetizer at buffets and dinner parties.
They can be made one day in advance, so the flavors have time to combine.
Let them rest for a couple of hours before serving them.
They can be served cold or at room temperature, so you can arrange them on a buffet table before your guests arrive.
These peppers are great for barbecue meat, like the Picanha barbecue, or barbecue chicken breast.
For a vegetarian meal, you can put them on pizza, homemade focaccia, serve them with a cheese platter or in a pasta salad.
Sweet roasted peppers and cheese are the best combinations to have.
This delicious recipe is also included in the challenge: 7 Vegetarian Side-dishes for a Stress-free Party
Storage
They can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days.
Top tips
- When you buy peppers, check each one carefully to ensure they are nice and firm everywhere with no damage to the flesh.
- You can also use bell peppers and green or yellow peppers.
- You can cover the pan with aluminum foil, but there is no need to grease it.
- The skin has to burn uniformly; otherwise, you will not be able to remove it from the flesh
- You could roast the peppers cut into slices and the seeds removed; however, by roasting the whole pepper, the flesh remains chunkier and firm
- The inside of the peppers will be very hot, do not clean them until they are cold
Top tips for peeling the peppers
- The best way to cook red peppers in your kitchen oven is to roast them at high temperature, under the grill or on an open fire.
- The raw skin of the peppers is very hard to break down during digestion, which is why it is best to remove it from the flesh.
- You should aim at burning the skin off while roasting, leaving the flesh almost uncooked. That is why the heat of the oven should be intense.
- Make sure the skin is burned everywhere, as it is hard to peel it off if it is not burned.
- Once the skin is removed from the charred peppers, their flesh will remain firm, sweet, and luscious
FAQ
No, generally, Italians roast sweet peppers and season them with simple ingredients to serve them as side dishes or antipasto
We call our sweet peppers Peperoni (only one p) and the hot peppers Pepperoncini. We also have small green peppers we fry and they are called Friarielli, from Naple.
You can, but it is better to remove it as the skin of the peppers is hard to digest. Once you roast the peppers, the skin is easily removed
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📋 Italian Roasted Peppers
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 red peppers
- 4 cloves peeled garlic cloves
- 10 fresh basil leaves
- 4 teaspoon olive oil extra virgin
- 1 dash salt
Instructions
- Rince the peppers and put them in an oven pan on top of an aluminum foil or a baking sheet. You don't need to oil it4 red peppers
- Turn the grill on in the oven and set the pan at the highest level making sure the peppers don’t touch the elements of the grill. Leave the door open and let the grill burn the skin of the peppers as in the picture below.
- Turn the peppers around until all the skin is burned. Make sure the skin is burned everywhere as it is hard to peel it off if it is not burned. But don't cook them too long as the flesh should remain firm.
- Place the peppers in a paper bag and close it
- Let the peppers cool down completely. Once cold, take the skin off. It will peel easily
- Remove seeds and cut in slices
- Add garlic, basil, salt and olive oil4 cloves peeled garlic cloves, 10 fresh basil leaves, 4 teaspoon olive oil, 1 dash salt
- Mix and let it rest for at least 1 hour before serving
Video
Notes
- When you buy them check carefully each pepper to make sure they are nice and firm everywhere with no damage to the flesh.
- You should aim at burning the skin off, and leaving the flesh almost uncooked, that is why the heat should be intense.
- Make sure the skin is burned everywhere as it is hard to peel it off if it is not burned.
- The inside of the peppers will be very hot, do not clean them until they are cold
Nutrition
Marie | Yay! For Food
Roasted peppers are so flavourful, versatile and easy to prepare! I love using them in sandwiches or blending it into soups!
Natalie
Roasted peppers are one of my fav fall veggies. I absolutely LOVE this salad. Sooo sooo good!
Amy | The Cook Report
I love roasted peppers, this is a great useful recipe to have on hand!
Corina Blum
These look gorgeous and roasted peppers are so versatile! Great for so many recipes.
Danielle
I just love roasted peppers, and they have so many uses too. Yum!