Roasted red and yellow peppers
Sometimes recipes call for roasted red peppers, and I rarely have a jar of those around. So I tried to roast them in the oven–broiled them, really–and it worked pretty well. I have not tried to broil eggplant (baingan) for bharta, but there’s no reason it shouldn’t work as well. Here’s how. All you need are peppers (bell peppers/capsicums, or other large peppers) and some oil spray.
- Preheat the broiler (if you don’t have a gas range). If you have a gas range, skip to step 2.
- Wash the peppers and pat dry.
- Coat with oil.
- Now, you have two options. One, roast over a gas burner, turning as the skin blackens. Two, place peppers on a foil-lined baking sheet and put under the broiler.
- When the skin starts to blacken, turn the pepper so another side can start charring/broiling. IMPORTANT: Use tongs!
- When the skin is fully blackened, put the peppers in a bowl and cover tightly with cling wrap. The steam loosens the skin.
- Move peppers to a colander. Place colander over a clean bowl.
- When the peppers are cool, cut gently with a sharp knife around the top stem and pull out gently. Discard the stem.
- Pull away the skin of the pepper and discard.
- Cut open the pepper lengthwise on one side and scoop out any remaining seeds–gently. Discard the seeds.
- Add the peppers to the juice in the clean bowl under the colander.
- Use the pepper as required or store in oil in the fridge for 2-3 days. The oil will acquire a pepper flavor, by the way, and can also be used in other recipes.
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