Roasted red peppers are a delicious, sweet addition to salad and so easy to make at home. In fact, once you realize how easy it is you will never buy those tiny, overpriced jars at the grocery store again!
There are several ways to roast peppers are home: over the grill, under the broiler or over the gas flame on a stovetop. Simply hold the pepper with long tongs (I love these Good Grips Locking Tongs by OXO) and rotate the pepper over the heat source until all sides are nice and black. This is one of the few times it’s ok to burn food! Once all sides are charred, simply place the peppers in a large bowl or dish and cover with plastic wrap to steam. The longer they sit and steam, the easier the skin will peel right off.
The end result? Perfectly tender and sweet roasted red pepper strips bursting with flavor for a fraction of the cost of store-bought.
Your fork is waiting.
Italian Salad with Shaved Parm
Ingredients
- 2 red peppers
- 2 tbs pine nuts
- 6 c mixed baby greens
- 1 medium tomato (diced)
- ¼ c shaved Parmesan
- 4 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbs balsamic vinegar
- 1 clove garlic (grated)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- Fresh basil (parsley or herbs of choice (garnish))
Instructions
- First, roast the peppers over a hot grill or gas flame on the stove.
- Using tongs, hold the pepper directly over the heat and rotate every 30-60 seconds until all sides are nicely charred and black.
- Place in a glass dish and cover with plastic wrap to steam.
- Next, toast pine nuts in a dry pan over medium heat.
- Stir the pine nuts frequently to brown evenly; set aside.
- Meanwhile, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper; set aside.
- Add salad greens, tomato and shaved parm to a large bowl and sprinkle with pine nuts.
- Once peppers have steamed for about 5-10 minutes, gently remove the skin and open to remove seeds.
- Slice into 1 in strips and add to the salad.
- Pour reserved vinaigrette all over the perimeter of the bowl and use tongs (or your hands!) to gently toss the salad.
- Garnish with fresh basil, parsley or any herbs of choice.
I made this for lunch today and it was really good! The only thing I would do differently next time is less salt in the dressing. I think it had way too much and was so overpowering. You can probably get away with 1/2 tsp. Or even less. I also added onions which were a good addition!