Grill & Chill: How To Roast Capsicum Bell Peppers!

It's capsicum pepper season and make these last for longer by roasting them. Roasted red pepper capsicums are amazing in sandwiches, paninis or pizzas or you can transform them into delicious capsicum dips too!

What we call Capsicum in Australia is called Bell Peppers in America and Peppers or Sweet Peppers in the UK. Capsicum peppers comes in a variety of colours from green, yellow, orange and red and each has a different amount of sweetness. Did you know that each colour is determined by when they are picked? Peppers or capsicum start as green, then turn yellow, orange and then red which is when they've been growing the longest. The red version is the sweetest and is also the best nutritionally as it contains the most antioxidants and nutrients as red capsicum peppers have been on the vine the longest.

Roasting works with any type of red peppers from these long slender Marconi peppers to regular red capsicum peppers. It's a really easy process although there are a couple of things you can do to make it even easier.

Tips For Roasting & Serving Capsicum Bell Peppers

1 - The number one tip I can give you is to flatten out your peppers as much as possible so that the grill gets as much of the skin as possible. Don't worry about "breaking" the pepper as you flatten them as you'll probably cut them into strips once they're roasted anyway.

2 - Make sure to grill them well! You actually want them black and blistered-if they look burnt on top that's perfect. The grilling only burns the skin.

3 - As soon as they're grilled pop them in a bag or a container with a lid and leave them to cool. I sometimes leave them in the fridge and forget about them for a day or two. This makes them easier to handle and the skin just slips off.

4 - Store grilled capsicum in oil for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze roasted capsicum for up to 3 months.

5 - Use roasted capsicum bell peppers in sandwiches, salads, blended into pesto style dips, blended into hummus and on pizzas. They make beautiful antipasto too - take some slices and add olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and serve alongside cheese and cured meat.

The reason why I left my capsicums in the fridge is that something happened while I was preparing them. I was closing up the bag of capsicums and putting them in the fridge when my friend D called. If a friend of mine calls me I know it's urgent because my friends and I relate on a level of three M's: Messaging, Meals together and sending Memes. If they call, it's usually an accident so I let the phone ring for a bit in case it was but it kept ringing so I answered the call.

D was breathless and her voice was panicky, "I've just had a car accident! I'm running!!!" she exclaimed.

"Oh my god, where are you?" I said, eyes widening as I pictured D running away from the scene of the crime with her crushed car bonnet smoking and people yelling after her in a Run Lola Run style scenario. Now D is no criminal but she was also overworked and doing crazy hours at her work and getting home very late and I wondered if she was overwhelmed and just ran from the scene of a crime. I whispered, "Are you running from the accident?", crouching down in the kitchen I'm not even sure why (in case the police were listening?).

D laughed and I was relieved to learn that she was not on the run from the law. The two sentences were separate from each other, buffered by a 30 minute window. It was her day off and she was driving to a park for a run. She had accidentally rear ended the driver in front of her as the car in front of that car had unexpectedly stopped to turn right causing everyone to brake suddenly. She apologised to the middle driver whom she had hit who was actually very understanding and placed the blame on the accident on the first driver who had suddenly braked. Poor D had to get it off her chest so I chatted to her and after that I completely forgot about the capsicum until 2 days later when I opened up the crisper and saw it there! And that's also how I know that it's totally fine to keep it in the fridge for a couple of days before peeling it ;)

So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever speak to your friends on the phone? Do you communicate via the three M's (Messaging, Meals together and sending Memes)?

How To Roast Red Bell Peppers Capsicum

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Preparation time: 10 minutes plus cooling time

Cooking time: 5 minutes

• 1kg/2.2lbs red capsicum peppers

Step 1 - Preheat grill to high and line with foil. Split the capsicum peppers down lengthways and remove the stem, seeds and membrane. Flatten them out as much as possible - you want the grill to hit as much of the skin as possible. Lay under the grill and grill until skins are blackened and blistered.

Step 2 - Remove them from under the grill with a pair of tongs and place in a plastic bag or a container with a lid. Allow to cool and then remove the skin-it will peel off easily. Store in oil for up to 2 weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze roasted capsicum for up to 3 months.