My mother-in-law has the great habit of roasting and freezing red bell peppers. She often gifts me with bags of frozen peppers and I cannot tell you how much that has changed my life!
First of all, roasted bell peppers freeze beautifully - they keep their taste and texture like you would not believe. Secondly, they defrost very quickly, which means a lot to me! And finally, they are an incredibly versatile vegetable that has the power to add tons of flavor and beautiful color to any dish.
Here is what I do to have roasted bell peppers at any season:
I start by rinsing as many peppers as I want to roast:
I pat them dry and place them on a baking sheet that has been lined with aluminum foil:
Then I roast them at 450F, turning occasionally, until the peppers look charred and are fork tender. That will take about 30-45 minutes.
I transfer roasted peppers to a bowl:
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap (that steamy environment will will make peeling the skin out of the peppers much easier):
When peppers are cool, I peel their skin and remove their seeds:
All done:
I label freezer bags:
Fill them with about 2 to 4 peppers:
And freeze them for up to 3 month or more.
When I need them, I either transfer them from the freezer to the refrigerator or to the kitchen counter top, and use it when it is defrosted. Or, if on a hurry, I immerse the freezer bags in hot water until the peppers are defrosted (that takes 10 to 15 minutes):
I will come back soon with a couple of ideas on how to use your roasted bell peppers.
The first one is a lovely appetizer that is a great alternative to the typical tomato+mozzarella+basil combo. This is my new favorite!
And the second one is an amazing and versatile roasted red bell pepper pesto that can be eaten as a dip to vegetables, as a topping to crostini, or as a dressing to meats such as salmon, chicken, lamb, pork, or beef - perfect for summer grilling! SO GOOD!
I love roasted red peppers, but never thought of freezing them! Good advice for the summer!
ReplyDeleteTo remove the skin easier I also put some salt on the peppers. We also make a nice salad of those red roasted peppers..add some chopped garlic, sugar, vinegar, salt and who wants a few drops of olive oil... yummm
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ReplyDeleteThankyou! Great ideas. Going to the famers market to buy all I can, as they are in season. Sue N.
ReplyDeleteI coat them with olive oil and then broil on all sides. Transfer to a bowl & cover until you can handle them to peel. This makes peeling a lot easier! I also place a strainer over a bowl to catch the seeds and/or skins and then I I have the wonderful juice that I would have lost without using the strainer.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this tutorial! I'm allergic to tomatoes so I use red peppers as a substitute almost everywhere, but canned roasted red peppers are expensive and I don't always have time to roast them on the spot. This will be super helpful!
ReplyDeleteI love u idea i ll try this weeked.. ty so much :)
ReplyDeletekeeping the charred (roasted) skin on helps prevent freezer burn.
ReplyDelete"Can I freeze them the idea? " is a dilemma often questioned within our properties, and for good explanation. Most likely most people, at some point or perhaps a different, get attemptedto freeze them a selected meals only to find out it wouldn't freeze them effectively and often a failure or perhaps grew to be inedible. I know all the answers here in this article.
ReplyDeleteI really like your writing style and how you express your ideas. Vacuum sealers can go a long way in helping us to pay and waste less food. thanks for sharing this useful post.
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