This sheet-pan vegetarian dinner can’t get much simpler
There’s a time-honored technique for roasting bell peppers. This recipe isn’t it.
The tried-and-true method produces lissome, velvety peppers with a concentrated, sweet flavor. But it’s also a pain.
Charring the whole peppers over an open flame, then steaming, cooling, peeling, seeding and deveining them, is time-consuming and messy, and it leaves sooty flecks of pepper skin clinging to everything they touch and even some things they don’t. I’m happy to occasionally trot out the whole process when I’m making something special, but it’s a lot of hoops to clear on any given Tuesday.
Here, then, is my Tuesday-night pepper hack, with a streamlined yet effective technique that gives great results any day of the week.
Not peeling the peppers saves you the most time here. I’ve learned that if you slice them thin and roast them long enough, they collapse into tender strands that caramelize at the edges — and taste so good you’ll never even notice the skin.
Slicing peppers lengthwise into strips, as opposed to crosswise into rings, looks elegant, and makes the veins and seeds easy to cut away as you go. That is the only knife work involved, apart from mincing some garlic and herbs, so chopping time is minimal.
I like to mix fleshy, multihued bell peppers with a medium-spicy pepper (such as Hungarian wax, Jimmy Nardello or Cubanelle) for a range of flavors and a sunset of colors. Tossed with olive oil, salt and herbs, these peppers can form the base of countless sheet-pan meals. Top them with fish fillets, chicken, sausages or simply the canned chickpeas I use here, which crisp and turn golden as they roast.
If you want to keep things vegan (and simple), you can stop there, perhaps rounding out the meal with bread for plate- and pan-mopping (sticky, olive oil-infused pepper juices are so delicious).
On the other hand, a small handful of crumbled goat cheese sprinkled on top adds a lovely creaminess, tang and depth, melting slightly as it hits the warm pan. Other soft cheeses, such as feta, chunks of burrata or mozzarella, or ricotta salata, will work nicely, too. Whichever version you like, you’ll have a resplendent sheet-pan meal that captures the heights of pepper season, even in the depths of the workweek.
ROASTED CHICKPEAS AND PEPPERS WITH GOAT CHEESE
In this quick, colorful sheetpan dinner, sweet bell peppers and spicy chiles caramelize as they roast, becoming even more intense under the oven’s high heat. Crunchy chickpeas and soft bits of goat cheese add flavor, texture and protein, rounding out the dish. Most of the work here takes place in the oven, leaving you free to make a salad if you want a cool and crisp accompaniment. Note that this recipe serves two or three; if you want to double it, be sure to use two sheet pans and add a few minutes to the cooking time so everything has a chance to turn golden brown.
1. Heat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, combine chickpeas, sweet peppers and spicy pepper.
Add olive oil, herbs, garlic, red wine vinegar and salt, tossing well. Evenly spread the mixture on a large baking sheet.
2. Roast for 28 to 35 minutes, stirring once or twice until the peppers are well browned and starting to crisp. Crumble goat cheese on top, if you like, and drizzle with more olive oil, salt and vinegar if you like. Serve with bread.