Smoky Red Pepper (Romesco) Sauce

Published by

Jasmine

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Today I’m sharing a Catalan sauce with red pepper and smoky flavours, plus three ideas on how to utilise it.

INGREDIENTS

Roasted red pepper (I used jarred)

Sun-dried tomatoes

Lemon juice

Blanched almonds

Chilli flakes

Smoked paprika (or regular paprika)

Garlic

Extra-virgin olive oil

Sherry vinegar (substitute with red wine vinegar if you can’t get hold of this)

TIPS

This is one of the few recipes that’s just easy with no caveats! I personally recommend roasting the nuts very slightly to release some additional flavour but you don’t have to. How thick vs. fluid you want your sauce to be is totally customisable; simple add more nuts for a heavier texture like mine, or dial them back to allow the water-based red pepper to thin things out a little (a high-speed blender would definitely be needed for a very smooth, creamy sauce). I also recommend removing the skins from the red pepper if you want a very silky sauce, though I personally didn’t bother!

Romesco Sauce

  • Servings: 4-6
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

A versatile, smoky sauce with red pepper and a mild kick

Blender or food processor required, no advance prep needed


Ingredients

  • 265g of roasted red pepper (roughly chopped)
  • 100g of sun dried tomatoes (roughly chopped)
  • 100g of blanched almonds
  • 1 tbsp of sherry vinegar
  • 1 clove of garlic (crushed)
  • 1/4 a cup of olive oil
  • Juice of 1/2 a lemon
  • 1 tsp of smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp of chilli flakes
  • Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

  1. Lightly toast the blanched almonds, either in a pan over a medium heat for 5-7 minutes or in a preheated 180C oven for up to 10 minutes (just until they pick up some colour)
  2. In the food processor, break the almonds down to powder or as small chunks as possible
  3. Add in the olive oil, some of the red pepper and some of the sun-dried tomatoes and blend
  4. Add the garlic, chilli flakes, paprika, lemon juice and sherry vinegar and blend
  5. Add the rest of the sun-dried tomatoes and red pepper, season with salt and pepper to taste and blend to desired consistency

My serving suggestions include: enjoying this as a dip topped with olive oil and fresh parsley, using it as a flavour-booster on a deli sandwich (I used olive foccacia and filled it with this sauce, grilled courgette, manchego and salad leaves – it was amazing!) or as a pasta sauce (I used Fusilli Lunghi with the sauce emulsified with pasta water, topped with blanched almonds, olive oil, extra chilli flakes and fresh parsley). These are just a handful of ideas, since this is a really versatile sauce!

Let me know if you try my Romesco sauce recipe!

See all 3 ways of enjoying it here:

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