Pick a Peck By Cindy Deachman
The latter, say botanists, although you would never eat the sweet ones out of hand or bake them in a pie for dessert, would you? Oddly enough, peppers are cousins of berries, classified in the pepos family of berry-like fruits with leathery husks. Include
Is the pepper a vegetable or a fruit?
Roasted Eggplant and Pepper Salad
“This is a dish we even eat in the morning,” says Chantal Erdogan, coowner of Turkish restaurant Topkapi. Although they do play second fiddle in this aubergine meze (appetizer), the sweet red peppers give lovely crunch. Co-owner Nail Erdogan (and husband of Chantal) is the one who makes the dish, grilling both vegetables (ahem! fruits), then chopping them very finely. A nub of garlic, a squirt of lemon juice, and there’s the salad, served alongside Chantal’s straight-from-the-oven pide bread, fluffy like naan. Respect to Nail’s father, who showed him all the tricks of the dish, traditionally known as közlemi biberli pattlican salatasi. $7.95. Topkapi, 484 Preston St., 613-230-8828.
Scallop Crudo with Rocoto, Avocado, and Black Olive Powder
When inventing a dish, says Daniela Manrique, “I think about all the elements: sweet, sour, spicy.” Manrique, coowner and chef at Soca, has certainly thought long and hard about the flavours of her scallop crudo. Since opening a year ago, the restaurant has offered ceviche in one way or another. Instead of lime juice, though, Manrique uses the acid of tomatoes to “cook” her sea scallops, turning them opaque. The brilliant burntorange sauce of sweet red peppers, with barely a sliver of the ever-sospicy rocoto pepper, swirls ribbons around the seafood. Avocados, dense and meaty, provide sweet contrast to the slippery-smooth scallops. Fine flavours here. $16. The Soca Kitchen & Pub, 93 Holland Ave., 613-695-9190.
Beef-Filled Piquillo Peppers
“I’ve seen them stuffed with cheese, I’ve seen them stuffed with anchovies,” says Phil Lussier. These red beak-shaped piquillos, the size of jalapenos, are actually sweet. In the kitchen at 222 Lyon Tapas Bar, chef Lussier fills his with braised beef slowcooked with Rioja wine, tomatoes, and saffron. The dish is smoky and so sweet. $15. 222 Lyon Tapas Bar, 222 Lyon St. N., 613-238-0222.