Kitchen Basics: How To Roast Red Peppers

Instead of paying a premium for store-bought, learn how to roast red peppers yourself!  It’s easy and there are SO many delicious ways to use your roasted peppers!

Jarred roasted red peppers are one of those things I often don’t have on hand when I need them.  Can you relate?  It’s the same story with several other things, which is why I developed the very best recipes for items like tahini paste, marzipan/almond paste, teriyaki sauce, Chinese black bean sauce and hoisin sauce.  Not only can I whip them up whenever I need them, they taste about a gazillion times better than the store-bought stuff!

But back to roasted peppers.  Does anything beat the flavor of fresh peppers that have been charred and blackened in the oven? Roasted peppers are one of those things that make the culinary world go round.  If you’ve added them here and there to spruce up your dishes you know exactly what I mean.

How Do You Use Roasted Red Peppers?

Lots of ways!  Add them to your pasta salads, potato salads, tossed salads.  Add them to your sandwiches, place them on bruschetta or add them to a pasta dish..  Make a roasted red pepper aioli or add them to your next batch of hummus.  Make a roasted red pepper pesto with the usual ingredients (pine nuts, basil, garlic, Parmesan, etc) and enjoy it on crackers or tossed in pasta.  Puree them with some almonds and cream and chicken stock for a delicious pasta sauce.  Or puree them with some cream cheese for a cracker and veggie spread.   Add them to a tapenade, on pizza or flatbread.  Fold them into omelets or frittatas.  Add them to a potato hash or your favorite chicken casserole.  The sky’s the limit!

Here are just a few recipe examples featuring roasted red peppers:

Ropa Vieja

Portuguese Potato Hash with Linquica, Peppers & Olives

BEST Macaroni Salad

Roasting your own peppers is the perfect way to put a bumper crop of peppers to use or to take advantage of those grocery store sales.

This method for roasting bell peppers works for most kinds of peppers.  All peppers vary in their thickness of skin and flesh and so roasting times will vary, you’ll need to check on them.  But other peppers that work well for roasting are Poblanos, Anaheims, Hatch-style chiles, paprika chiles, jalapenos and pimientos.

Let’s get started!

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Cut the peppers in half and remove the stems, seeds and membranes.

Lay the peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet, cut side down.  Parchment paper is considered safe up to 400 degrees without the risk of scorching, but I often push the limits to 450 degrees.  If you want to remove all risk, use foil.

Roast the red peppers for 15-20 minutes or until the skins are very dark and have collapsed.

There’s no need to rotate or turn the peppers.

Once the skins are blackened remove the peppers from the oven.

At this point most people recommend placing the roasted peppers in a paper bag to steam for about 10 minutes to help loosen the skin.  I’ve never found that to be necessary, but I guess it depends on how stubborn your particular peppers are.  Simply let the peppers cool for a few minutes until comfortable enough to handle and then peel the skins off and discard them.  They’ll slip off easily.

You can slice or dice the peppers in advance or store them in halves.  Stored in the fridge in an airtight container they’ll keep for up to about a week.  If you store them covered in oil in the fridge they’ll keep for at least 2 weeks.  For longer storage you can freeze them in ziplock bags.

Enjoy your freshly roasted peppers!

How To Roast Red Peppers

Kimberly Killebrew

This method works great for most kinds of peppers including Poblanos, Anaheims, Hatch-style chiles, paprika chiles, jalapenos and pimientos; though depending on the peppers, some skins are a little more difficult to remove. If the type of pepper has a thinner skin and flesh, check more often to prevent scorching.

Print Recipe

4.8 from 44 votes

Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 30 mins

Course condiment, Side Dish

Ingredients

  

• Bell peppers or other peppers of your choice (see note in description box above)
• A foil-lined baking sheet

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Cut the peppers in half and remove the stems, seeds and membranes.

  Lay the peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet, cut side down. Roast the red peppers for 15-20 minutes or until the skins are very dark and have collapsed. (There is no need to rotate or turn the peppers.) Once the skins are blackened remove the peppers from the oven.
• At this point most people recommend placing the roasted peppers in a paper bag to steam for about 10 minutes to help loosen the skin. I've never found that to be necessary, but I guess it depends on how stubborn your particular peppers are! Simply let the peppers cool for a few minutes until comfortable enough to handle and then peel the skins off and discard them.
• You can slice or dice the peppers in advance or store them in halves. Stored in the fridge in an airtight container they'll keep for up to about a week. If you store them covered in oil in the fridge they'll keep for at least 2 weeks. For longer storage you can freeze them in ziplock bags.

Keyword How to Roast Red Peppers

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