Roasted Red Pepper

There is nothing like the deep sweet flavor that is created by roasting a red pepper, and I would have to say the aroma of peppers over a fire would have to be one of my favorites. Many times I will use my gas grill to roast peppers, but if the weather is questionable or if I just need one for a dish, I prepare them in the house on the burner of my stove. This is a simple and safe method which also leaves the house smelling fabulous.

Start by making sure there are no stickers on your peppers. Using long tongs place a pepper stem down in the center of your burner over high heat. Watch carefully for blisters to form and the skin to turn black. Rotate the pepper making sure to thoroughly char all sides.

Remove from the stove and allow to cool. Once cooled cut the top off of the pepper and cut the pepper down one side to open flat.

Using your knife remove the ribs and scrape any seeds from the pepper.

Turn the pepper fillet over and remove the charred skin by scraping with your knife.

Peppers are also easy to preserve.  If I come across a good deal I usually will get a few and freeze them. After roasting and cleaning, I stack the whole pepper fillets and slide them into a freezer bag. When I am ready to use some, I remove the stack from the bag, cut off the amount I need, and replace the rest in the freezer. You can also pack peppers in jars with olive oil for keeping. Be sure the peppers are complete covered with oil.