Pimiento Paste Recipes

PIMIENTO PASTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F
• Place the peppers on a roasting tray, drizzle over the olive oil, place in the oven and roast for 35-40 minutes or until the peppers have slightly blackened, turning them occasionally.
• Place the peppers in a large plastic food bag, seal and allow to cool.
• Meanwhile, soak the bread in a little cold water, then drain and squeeze out excess moisture.
• Remove the peppers from the bag, reserving any of the juices.
• Peel the peppers, halve and remove the seeds.
• Place the red pepper halves in a food processor with the bread, garlic, cayenne and the pepper juices and blend until smooth.
• With the motor running, slowly drizzle in the extra-virgin olive oil.
• Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Toast or griddle some slices of crusty bread and spread the paste over it.

PIMENTO SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a medium saucepan over moderate heat. Cook shallots and mushrooms until golden. Add garlic and tomato paste and saute. Add wine, turn heat to high, and reduce by half. Add brown stock and reduce again by a quarter. Whisk in pimento puree. Break butter into small pieces and whisk into sauce until smooth. Adjust seasonings and strain through a fine sieve. Serve warm with lamb.

BIFANA (PORTUGUESE PORK CUTLETS)

Steps:

• Rinse the pork cutlets and then pat dry with paper towels.
• Place pork in a large heavy plastic bag (like a freezer ziploc bag) and place in a large bowl.
• In a mixing bowl, combine one cup of the wine, the vinegar, garlic, bay leaf, 1/2 tsp of the pimento paste, 1/4 tsp of the paprika, peppercorns, cloves and piri-piri sauce.
• Pour this over pork, make sure all meat is coated, and seal the bag.
• Refrigerate for several hours or overnight, turning bag over in bowl frequently.
• Bring meat to room temperature before cooking.
• To cook, remove pork from marinade and lightly pat pork dry with paper towels.
• Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and melt lard, then cook pork in batches in hot lard; if your pork is thin it will likely only take a minute per side, at the most.
• When all the pork has been sauteed, drain off the fat and add the remaining wine (1/4 cup), remaining pimento paste (1/4 tsp), remaining paprika (1/4 tsp) to the skillet, as well as salt and pepper to taste.
• Bring this to a boil, stirring the pan to get up any brown bits.
• Return all the pork to the skillet, reduce heat to low, and cook for about another minute.

PORTUGUESE SWEET RED PEPPER PASTE (MASSA DE PIMENTãO)

Steps:

• Set a colander inside a large noncorrosive pan or dish with sides. (You may also use a wooden produce crate with narrow spaces between the slats found at a local produce market as a colander; you would be half-way to Portugal in your mind, at least.).
• Pour a 1-inch layer of salt into the colander to form the base. Some salt will seep out.).
• Place a layer of peppers, skin side up, on the salt, pressing the peppers into the salt. UNCURL EVEN THE SMALLEST PART OF THE PEPPER, otherwise mold will form.
• Cover with a 1/2-inch layer of salt and the remaining peppers, ending with another 1/2-inch layer of salt. Place a heavy dish or bowl on top to weight it down.
• Let stand for up to 5 days to allow the moisture to drain from the peppers. After the fourth day, the peppers should be thinner, about 1/4-inch or less. The salt will be damp and the amount of liquid draining will be barely a trickle.
• Shake off the excess salt and process the peppers briefly with either a hand-cranked grinder, food processor, or blender. The texture will not be smooth -- more like coarsely ground tomatoes.
• Fill the sterilized jars, leaving about an inch at the top. Pour olive oil over the top to a depth of 1/2 inch. Close the jar tightly and refrigerate.
• To use massa de pimentão, simply push aside the congealed olive oil with a spoon, remove what you need, replacing the oil and adding more, if necessary. Use sparingly.