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Wellspent Market founder Jim Dixon has been writing about food and restaurants for Willamette Week for a long time. He wants our readers to eat well, and he shows them how with the recipes he creates just for us by using simple cooking techniques and easy-to-find ingredients.
I used to call this romesco. And almost every recipe online labels the chunky puree of roasted red peppers and tomatoes romesco. But we’re all wrong.
The romesco they make in Spain consists mostly of fire-roasted tomatoes, still thickened by ground almonds but with just one or two dried ñora peppers for a mild hit of chile flavor. This pepper-forward sauce is closer to Syrian muhammara, which is similarly made with roasted peppers and a bit of tomato, though muhammara has more heat and pomegranate molasses.
Even without a catchy Mediterranean name, this sauce is tasty and versatile. I mostly eat it with grilled or roasted vegetables, but it’s just as good with fish, meat, bread or even as a dip for salty chips. It’s also relatively easy to make. The most time-consuming step is peeling the roasted peppers.
Recipe
- 3 red bell peppers
- 4 roma-type tomatoes
- 1 cup roasted almonds
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher style sea salt
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (pimentón)
Cut the pepper stems flush and stand them upside down on a lightly oiled sheet pan or skillet. Cut the tomatoes in half and place them on a seperate lightly oiled sheet pan or skillet.
Place both vegetables in a 350F oven. Take the tomatoes out just as they start to brown around the edges, usually after about 20 minutes. The peppers will roast for about an hour; they’re done when the skins are starting to brown and blister.
After the peppers have cooled completely, work over a bowl to catch the juices while you remove the seed core and slip the skins off. (It’s ok if you don’t get all the seeds off.)
Put the almonds in a food processor and blitz until you get a coarse meal. Add the garlic and blitz again, then add the peeled peppers, tomatoes, vinegar, olive oil, salt and paprika. Pulse until everything is well blended but still a little chunky. Taste and add vinegar and salt if needed.
