Pepparade Recipes

PIPERADE

Steps:

• Cut a small X into bottom of each tomato. Bring a pot of water to a boil, add tomatoes and cook until skin begins to wrinkle and peel at the edges of the cuts, about 30 seconds. Drain, rinse with cool water and peel off skin with your fingers. Roughly chop tomatoes and set aside.
• In a 12-inch skillet over medium high heat, heat oil until hot but not smoking. Add onions, peppers and salt and sauté, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent and peppers have started to lighten in spots, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and continue to sauté for 1 more minute.
• Stir in tomatoes, sugar and piment d'Espelette, reduce heat to medium, cover and cook until tomatoes are starting to fall apart and peppers are soft but still hold their shape, about 15 minutes. Remove cover and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens like a slightly runny relish, about 5 minutes more. Adjust salt.

PIPERADE (SAUTE OF PEPPERS, ONIONS AND TOMATOES)

Steps:

• Preheat broiler with broiler rack about 2 inches from heat. Broil peppers for 10 minutes, turning as skins blister and blacken. Remove peppers. When cool enough to handle, carefully peel and seed, discarding skins and seeds. Cut peppers into thin strips.
• In large skillet, using no butter or oil, combine peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic and herbs and cook, covered, over very low heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Mixture should be quite thick.
• Piperade can be made ahead and put into 4 half-cup ramekins or molds. To reheat, place in boiling water bath and cook on top of stove until warmed through, about 10 minutes.

PIPERADE

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, add the onions, garlic and peppers and cook, stirring often, until everything is soft but not browned (about 5 minutes). Add the tomatoes and cook over high heat until most of the liquid has been evaporated.
• Remove from the heat, cool, put into four small containers, and freeze.
• To make one breakfast for two people, defrost a container of the mixture in the microwave (or overnight in the refrigerator), empty it into a suitable skillet (preferably nonstick) and heat to boiling. Beat three or four eggs in a bowl, season with salt and pepper, pour into the mixture in the skillet, and cook, stirring constantly, until the whole is creamy and saucelike (do not let the eggs cook until they are firm). Remove immediately from the skillet and serve.