Fire-Roasted Red Peppers Preserved in Olive Oil

I hope you’re enjoying a relaxed and happy Labor Day. Today I’m giddy with excitement because I took a nap.

Yes, a nap. For nearly fourteen years I rarely napped (except when ill). If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you might notice that fourteen years is almost the age of my eldest son. Coincidence? Not really.

I used to take short power naps — fifteen to twenty minutes on a couch with a blanket was enough to recharge. Then our second child arrived when my eldest was just under a year, and with two small children at home, naps became a distant memory. Two kids are a different challenge entirely if you want naps without medication.

Now my eldest is turning seven this fall, and I’m reclaiming the power nap. These days I aim for twenty to thirty minutes — I’m older and I have five kids — and that boost gets me through canning season and the mountains of produce I’m preserving for winter while my kids enjoy the last days of summer vacation.

Quick, low-effort recipes help make that possible. Today’s recipe requires almost no special equipment, no hot water canner, and very little hands-on time. My farmers’ market friend Halle Reed of Vandermark Farms in Scio, New York passed along a bushel of bell peppers that needed a home and also shared how she preserves them: trim the usable pepper pieces, roast or grill them until the skins blister, pack them in jars, heat olive oil and pour it over the peppers, then seal and refrigerate. Simple and brilliant.

I used to just sauté and freeze peppers—thanks to Halle, I’ve learned a better way.

The advantages of this method are many:

Minimal hands-on time and no canner needed.
Ready-to-use roasted peppers in the refrigerator for pizza, pasta, sandwiches, salads, pimiento cheese, or more.
The preserved oil becomes a flavorful pantry ingredient: brush it on pizza crust, use it for garlic bread, sauté vegetables, or drizzle it on salads.

How much you’ll end up with depends on how many peppers you roast. I started with nearly a bushel of mixed-color peppers. After trimming and roasting, my yield was one half-gallon jar, one quart jar, and one pint jar, and it took about four cups of olive oil to submerge them. Your results will vary, so plan for a little more or less oil.

There are still plenty of peppers at farmers’ markets and in gardens. Buy a big box, roast and jar a few jars of these peppers, and you’ll have summer ready to open throughout the colder months.

Fire Roasted Red Peppers Preserved in Olive Oil

Rebecca Lindamood

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Use the bounty of bell peppers from local markets or your garden to prepare jars of fire roasted peppers preserved in oil. They’re ready for pizza, pasta, salads, sandwiches, pimiento cheese and more. Store them in the refrigerator for up to three months or freeze for up to a year.

Ingredients

Red or multi-color bell peppers
1-2 cloves garlic peeled and thinly sliced
Pure olive oil not extra virgin

Instructions

Preheat your grill to medium-high.
Stand a bell pepper on its bottom and cut slabs away from the stem and core. Discard cores and place the pepper pieces in a bowl. Repeat with all peppers.
Lay the pepper pieces skin-side down on the hot grill. Grill until the skin blisters and chars, then flip and cook for about 1 minute more. Transfer the pieces to a rimmed baking dish, cover loosely with foil or plastic wrap, and let cool about 20 minutes until easy to handle.
Place a wide-mouthed funnel into a large jar, add the sliced garlic, then peel the charred skin from each pepper and slide the flesh into the jar through the funnel. Pack gently; peppers will settle and you want room for oil.
Heat olive oil in a heavy saucepan over medium until it reaches about 200°F (use an instant-read thermometer). Pour the hot oil over the peppers until they are fully submerged. Use a skewer or chopstick to release trapped air bubbles along the jar sides. Add more oil if needed to keep peppers covered. Seal with a lid and let cool about an hour, then refrigerate.
Store refrigerated for up to three months. For longer storage, transfer peppers and oil to a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to a year.

Notes

Note: Close to a bushel of red peppers yielded about 3 quarts of fire roasted peppers in my batch; your yield will vary by pepper size and how much you trim away.

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided as a courtesy. Calculate nutrition using the specific ingredients you use if needed.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @foodiewithfam on Instagram and use #foodiewithfamily so I can see your jars of summer.

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