This simple Mediterranean roasted red pepper and tomato sauce can be used in several ways; including chicken, pasta and rice!
I had some extra tomatoes this week and thought of making a different sauce to go with grilled chicken breast. I really love how it turned out and I'll be making more next time round and freeze it for later use. Best of all, it can be used with chicken, pasta, rice, fish, or as a plain dip/ spread.
So this recipe is really uncomplicated. You just need to roast your veggies in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Then, let them cool completely, and discard the tomato skins. After roasting, tomato skins crack slightly and are really easy to remove. Then, place all ingredients in a food processor/ blender and pulse until you reach your desired consistency.
Chilli flakes in this recipe are completely optional, but I love the spicy kick they give to the sauce. The pine nuts are responsible for that slight nutty flavor, whilst the sugar helps balance the acidity from tomatoes. Best of all, you can make as much as you want and freeze it for later use. This recipe makes 2 -3 servings of sauce (depending on its use) but you can use this ratio of ingredients to prepare a bigger batch!
I personally think this recipe is a good way to use up any extra fresh ingredients which are abundant and in season (such as tomatoes and basil). It's a healthy alternative to ready made, store-bought red pepper sauces loaded with dangerous preserves. It's also really versatile, you could use this with almost anything you fancy with some roasted red pepper and tomato sauce!
Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 red bell pepper large, sliced
- 5 to matoes medium-sized, whole
- 1 onion small, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic whole
- ½ tsp white sugar
- handful pine nuts
- 5 leaves fresh basil
- ¼ tsp crushed chilli flakes
- 50 mL olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (fan assisted)/ 220°C/ 425°F/ Gas Mark 7. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place tomatoes, red pepper, garlic and onion on baking sheet and roast the vegetables for 15 - 20 minutes.
- Bring out of oven and let vegetables cool completely. Discard tomato peel (it will come off easily when roasted).
- In a blender/ food processor, place olive oil, roasted vegetables, chilli flakes, sugar, salt, pine nuts and basil leaves and pulse until you reach your desired consistency. If the sauce is too thick, add more olive oil.
- Serve sauce over chicken, pasta, rice, vegetables etc...
Leave a Reply