Em's Pepper Tomato Sauce

While visiting my family, we were gifted a big bag of green peppers. Green peppers are often not a favorite because of their bitterness, but they shine in long simmering dishes in which their bright flavor and bitterness work together to deepen the dish’s flavor profile, resulting in a complex taste with bitter, sweet, and fresh tones. The first dinner I made for my family at age ten featured an earlier version of this pepper tomato sauce, with both green and red peppers. In that version I used sugar to counter the bitterness of the green pepper and deepen the tomato sweetness. Now, I have a better solution by slow-cooking the onions and peppers to bring out their natural sweetness. Those veggies, with the later addition of broccoli, parsley, and garlic, meant the sauce was almost two thirds veggies, then reduced to one third before adding tomatoes. The finished sauce is a deeply flavored, mellowed out nightshade symphony. Nightshade lovers rejoice! This is a sauce to be enjoyed at any time of the year. Can or put some in the freezer to enjoy in another season.

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

4 large onions chopped, about 4 cups

6 large green peppers, small diced, about 6 cups 

Optional another veggies (flexible volume, 1-4 cups):

I used 1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli

1 bunch parsley, chopped 

2 large heads garlic, minced, about 1/2 cup chopped 

2 - 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes 

2 - 6 oz cans tomato paste 

2 teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste

Generous black pepper 

2 tablespoons oregano, or fresh to taste

2 tablespoons dried basil, or fresh to taste

Procedure:

  1. In a large Dutch oven add olive oil and onions. Start cooking the onions while cutting peppers. Add the peppers, stir well, and cook 1 hour, covered, on medium low heat.

  2. Add optional veggies, parsley, and garlic.

  3. Cook 20 minutes.

  4. Add tomatoes, salt and pepper, basil, and oregano.

  5. Simmer to heat through, then let sit at least 30 minutes to let the flavors meld. Adjust salt and herbs to taste.

  6. Keep the sauce on the stove till serving time, heating it up periodically to keep sauce in a good temperature range. It should feel uncomfortably hot to touch the entire time it is on the stovetop until it’s time for the final cool down before storing.

  7. Served over pasta with generous parmigiana, black pepper, and hot chile flakes, or your favorite toppings.

  8. Store refrigerated for one week or freeze for long term use.

Enjoy!