romesco
non
traditional

1250g red capsicums
splash EVO
YIELD – 650g approx
125g local almonds [skin on] roasted in a 160°C oven and hand chopped
25g p/w garlic, finely chopped
7g Maldon sea salt
1g freshly milled black pepper
12g hot smoked Spanish Paprika [1]…halve if you are not mad on a bit of a chilli hit
25g EVO
75g coarse ciabatta crumbs, fried until crunchy in your best EVO and well drained on paper towel…optional

OVEN
Roll the capsicums through EVO and char them over a grill or roast them @ pre-heated 220°C (turning once) until they are charred and blistered. Put them into a bowl with a lid and let them set until they are just cool enough to peel.

GAS OR CHARCOAL GRILL
Pre-heat the grill to 220°C. Roll the capsicums through EVO and char them (turning once) until they are charred and blistered. Put them into a bowl with a lid and let them set until they are just cool enough to peel.

Depending on what my plans are for the Romesco I like to keep a fair bit of texture and crunch. Put everything in a food processor except the almonds and the fried bread and process until it is roughly combined. Scrape into a bowl and mix through the chopped roasted almonds and the fried bread. Allow it to stand for about 15 minutes to allow the crumbs to absorb some moisture, stir over again and then pack into an airtight container and refrigerate.

[1] I keep my smoked paprika in the freezer where it doesn’t go manky quite so quickly.