Yotam Ottolenghi’s pepper recipes

Peppers are so ubiquitous and versatile that they can, perversely, be easy to overlook. Rather like onions and celery, they’re so much in the background that they rarely make it on to “favourite vegetable” lists in the way that, say, potatoes, carrots and peas do. (Apologies if you don’t carry such a list in your mind: I’m asked to name my favourite vegetable so often that I have started to think such lists are a totally normal way to fill up head space.)

Peppers do a lot of the heavy work in the kitchen. Sliced or chopped, they add a refreshing crunch to a salad, while roasting draws out all that water and intensifies their sweetness. From there, they can be used as a vehicle for all kinds of stuffing or eaten as they are (whole, if small enough), both peeled and unpeeled, depending on what texture you’re after.

The colour of a pepper (green, orange, yellow or red) depends on its degree of ripeness, green being the least ripe and red the ripest and sweetest. Their heat levels, meanwhile, running all the way from sweet to spicy, just adds to their versatility. That’s as true when peppers are fresh as when they are dried and ground, which opens up a whole other world of paprikas, from sweet to hot to smoked.

So is a pepper a vegetable or a spice? A receptacle for a filling or a champion in its own right? All of the above, and well deserving of a place at the top of any favourite veg list.

Mixed pepper and feta tart

The more kinds and colours of peppers you can get for this, the better, not least in looks. Just make sure the total net weight of peppers is the same. Use a large serrated knife to slice this tart, because otherwise things get messy. Serves six.

2 yellow peppers (350g)
2 red peppers (350g)
4 romano peppers (500g)
10 mixed sweet mini peppers (aka chiquiño; 250g)
4 unpeeled garlic cloves
2 large red chillies
2 tbsp olive oil
15g oregano leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Plain flour, for dusting
320g puff-pastry (ready-rolled is fine)
150ml double cream
1 egg, lightly whisked
½ tsp smoked paprika
100g feta, crumbled into 2cm pieces

Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Put all the peppers, garlic and chillies on a large oven tray lined with baking paper. Roast for 15 minutes, then lift the baby peppers, garlic and chilli from the tray. Pull off and discard the stalks from the baby peppers, but otherwise leave them whole and set aside. Put the garlic and chilli in a large bowl and cover with clingfilm. Leave the larger peppers to roast for 15 minutes more, until the skins are blackened, then add to the garlic and chilli bowl. Re-cover with the clingfilm and leave to steam for 10 minutes.

Once the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel the larger peppers and discard the skin and seeds. Cut the flesh into long, 2cm-wide strips and put in a colander to drain off any liquid. Peel the garlic and chillies, discarding the seeds of the latter, then finely slice both. Put in a bowl with the drained pepper strips, stir in the oil, 10g oregano, half a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper and set aside.

Turn down the oven to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. Dust a work surface with only a tiny amount of flour, then roll the pastry into a circle 31cm in diameter and 3mm thick. Press the pastry into a 25cm tart tin, pushing it all the way into the edges (use excess pastry to patch up any gaps). Prick all over with a fork, then line with baking paper and fill with baking beans. Blind bake for 25 minutes, until the sides are golden-brown, then lift out the paper and beans, and bake for eight to 10 minutes, until the base is golden-brown. Remove and leave to cool.

In a small bowl, whisk the cream, egg, paprika, a quarter-teaspoon of salt and a grind of pepper. Spoon the pepper mixture into the tart shell, then pour the cream mix over the top. Put the whole baby peppers randomly into the mix, then dot the top with feta and the remaining oregano leaves. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the filling is set, puffed up and golden-brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Roast baby peppers with paneer and chilli and ginger dressing

You need only half the dressing for this dish, but keep the leftovers in the fridge: it’s also lovely with grilled meat or fish. Serves four.

550g mixed baby peppers (ie, red, orange and yellow)
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt
170g paneer (a soft variety, if possible)
5g fresh coriander (the thick end of the stem cut off, but otherwise left intact)
For the chilli and ginger dressing
2 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

5g coriander leaves, roughly chopped

5g mint leaves, roughly chopped

Finely shaved zest of 1 lime, plus 2 tsp lime juice

2cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated

1 tsp ground coriander

2 tbsp Greek yoghurt

3 tbsp olive oil

Start with the dressing. Put everything in a food processor with a quarter-teaspoon of salt, blitz smooth and set aside. (It may look split, but that’s fine.)

Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Mix the peppers in a medium bowl with the oil and a quarter-teaspoon of salt. Spread out on an oven tray lined with baking paper and roast for 20 minutes, until soft and caramelised. Spoon into a large bowl and add the paneer, broken into 2-3cm pieces. Stir in the coriander, then spread out on a platter or shallow bowl. Spoon on half the dressing (or serve it separately in a bowl on the side), and take to the table.

Stuffed peppers with lamb and egg

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Well, who doesn’t love a stuffed pepper? Serves six.

6 large red peppers, cut in half lengthways keeping the stalk intact, seeds and pith scraped out and discarded
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt and black pepper
120g corn kernels (fresh or frozen and defrosted)
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
400g lamb mince
1½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1½ tsp ground cumin
1½ tsp paprika
1 tsp urfa chilli flakes, plus ½ tsp extra to serve
1 large garlic clove, peeled and crushed
1 tsp honey
6 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced on an angle
75ml tomato passata
100ml chicken stock
12 eggs
5g coriander leaves (optional)

Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas mark 6. Arrange the pepper halves cut side up in a 30cm x 35cm ovenproof dish, so they sit snugly. Drizzle over a tablespoon of oil and sprinkle with a quarter-teaspoon of salt and a generous grind of pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, until the peppers are starting to colour and are mostly cooked, then remove and leave to cool slightly. Turn down the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.

Heat a medium frying pan on a high flame, then dry fry the corn for one to two minutes, stirring every so often, until browned all over. Tip the corn into a large bowl, return the pan to a medium-high heat and add the remaining two tablespoons of oil. Fry the onion for seven to eight minutes, until soft and caramelised, then tip into the corn bowl.

Once the corn and onion are cool, add the lamb mince, spices, garlic, honey, spring onion, three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper. Mix to combine, then divide between the pepper halves, pressing the stuffing into the cavities.

Combine the passata, stock and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt, then pour all over and around the peppers. Bake for 30 minutes, until the mince is cooked and browned and the liquid has reduced. Remove the tray from the oven and, using a spoon, make a well in the stuffing mix in each pepper half, to make room for an egg. Break an egg into each pepper half, but don’t worry if some of the white spills over the sides – it will just get cooked in the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the eggs with a generous pinch of salt, then return the peppers to the oven for 10-12 minutes, until the egg whites are just cooked and the yolk still a bit runny.

Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the coriander, if using, and more urfa chilli, and serve hot.