Know your peppers

ALMOST half of all dishes in Spain's traditional cuisine contain paprika in some form whether fresh, dried or ground.

Peppers exist in countless variations. Their shape, colour, size and taste are as varied as their use. Most are red or green. The red pepper is the ripe version of the green one, which precisely because it is not ripe tastes less sweet. However, there are also yellow, orange or purple to almost black varieties.

In terms of taste, a distinction is made between sweet, spicy and the varieties that are dried and processed into paprika spice or paprika pulp, or into Tabasco or Cayenne pepper. A bitter substance called capsaicin is responsible for making them taste hot; it is contained in the partitions and seeds. It stimulates blood circulation and is effective against fever and poor digestion, while the sweet varieties rival citrus fruits in terms of their vitamin C content.

In Spain, depending on the region, some very special varieties have emerged. Some of them have a protected designation of origin to guarantee their quality.

Types of peppers:

■ Sweet pepper (Pimiento Morrón). Almost half of all peppers cultivated worldwide are varieties of the bell pepper. A lot of flesh and a mild, sweet taste characterise this pepper. Harvested before ripening, it is green, but afterwards it is an intense red. Due to its hard skin, it is well suited for roasting. But it is also deep-fried, baked in the oven or preserved.

■ Italian green peppers (Pimiento Italiano) - The slender green peppers belong to the group of sweet peppers and have a strong aroma and sweet taste. Their flesh is crunchy, the skin thin, they are usually served fried as a side dish.

■ Piquillo peppers (Pimiento del Piquillo) - One of the most popular peppers, these small, intensely red triangular pods are only about ten centimetres in size. The best ones come from Navarra. Despite their mild flavour, they have a spicy note. The season for Piquillo peppers is only short, between September and December, so they are mainly found on the market as preserves. They are delicious fried, in tortillas, with garlic and oil, and stuffed with cod, hake, prawns or vegetables.

■ Riojan delights (Alegrias riojanas) – A type of red chili pepper cultivated on the fertile banks of the River Ebro in Navarra, Rioja and Aragon.

■ Gernika green peppers (Pimiento verde de Gernika) Although several varieties are grown in the Basque Country, this small green pepper with a pleasant taste is said to be the best. It is narrow, elongated, triangular and not at all hot. It is protected by the "Gernikako Piperra-Pimiento de Gernika" seal of quality. Roasted over a fire and sprinkled with salt, it is considered a real delicacy.

■ Padron peppers (Pimientos de Padrón) - These are small peppers about 5 cm long, with a colour ranging from bright green to yellowish green, and occasionally red. Their peculiarity lies on the fact that, while their taste is usually mild, a minority (10-25%) are particularly hot. Whether a given pepper ends up being hot or mild depends on the amount of water and sunlight it receives during its growth, in addition to temperature. They are served as a tapa fried in olive oil, sprinkled with coarse salt, and accompanied by thick chunks of bread.

■ Ñora pepper (Ñora) – This small round, dark red pepper is marketed dried. Before using it, either it is soaked in cold water to scrape out the flesh or it is roasted in a pan and then ground in a mortar with a little salt. Indispensable in rice dishes such as paella, stews or in romescu sauce. The best Ñoras come from Guardamar in Murcia. Ñoras are also sold as a powder.

■ Choricero peppers (Pimiento Choricero) – It is common to see these dehydrated peppers hanging in Spanish kitchens. The drying allows them to last much longer in the open than raw pepper. They are hydrated a few hours before their culinary use for the purpose of extracting their intense red pulp. Their characteristic flavour made them popular in many Basque dishes. Alongside onion, it is the main ingredient in salsa vizcaína, the base of bacalao a la vizcaína, and marmitako. They can also be dried, ground and used as a form of paprika.

As the name suggests, they season chorizo sausage, but you can also roast them briefly in a pan and grind them in a mortar with garlic, parsley and salt. This delicious mixture is then spread on bread.

■ Chili pepper (Guindilla) Small, elongated, pointed pepper, red, yellow or green. Rich in the capsaicin. This pepper is available fresh, dried or preserved in vinegar. It goes well with tripe, eels, snails and especially dishes "al ajillo" (with garlic).

Now for some recipes

Piquillo peppers

For 4 pers. : 2 tins of Piquillo peppers (pimientos del piquillo), 1 to 2 fresh red or green peppers (pimientos), 1 leek (puerro), 1 onion (cebolla), 2 tins of tuna (atún), tomato puree (puré de tomate), béchamel sauce (salsa béchamel), garlic (ajo) and pine nuts (piñones) to taste, salt, pepper, paprika (pimentón dulce).

Chop the onion and garlic, wash, clean and chop the pepper. Fry everything in olive oil; add a little tomato paste and paprika powder. Add the tuna, season with salt and pepper and puree in a blender.

Also sauté the chopped leek and pine nuts, mixing them together.

Drain the small peppers well, stuff with the mixture and place in a buttered dish. Cover with béchamel sauce and gratinate in the oven.

Roast peppers

For 4 people: 4 thick red peppers (pimiento rojo), quality olive oil (aceite de oliva virgen extra), 2 cloves of garlic (dientes de ajo), sea salt (sal marina).

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Brush washed peppers with oil and place on a tray, turn oven down to 180 degrees and roast peppers for about 40 minutes until the skin blisters. Turn them from time to time. Then let them rest separately, wrapped in newspaper, for ten to 15 minutes so that the peppers can be peeled off more easily. It is advisable to have a bowl of water nearby. The skin and seeds of the peppers tend to stick to your fingers.

Cut the skinned peppers in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Cut the cooled peppers lengthwise into strips, spread the chopped garlic clove on top, sprinkle with sea salt and pour a good dash of olive oil over the whole lot.

■ This classic 'pepper salad' can become a small tapa or side dish with olives, anchovies, capers, a piece of bread.

■ Peeled peppers sautéed with shallot in olive oil or butter, mixed with fish stock, makes an excellent sauce for steamed fish.

■ Pureed with a light vegetable stock, it makes a colourful soup. It is perfect with a little added pesto.

■ When tomatoes, aubergines, onions or bacalao (cod) are added to this type of pepper, the whole thing is called ‘aspencat’ in Valencian, ‘escalivada’ in Catalan – it is a popular starter, especially during summer months.

Peppers stuffed with couscous

6 red peppers (pimientos rojos), 200 g couscous, precooked (precocido), 1 onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 large tin of tomatoes (tomates enteros), a few fresh mushrooms (champiñones), some spicy paprika sausage (chorizo) and pine nuts (piñones), parsley (perejil), olive oil

For the sauce, about a litre of meat or vegetable stock (caldo de carne or vegetal), a cup of sweet cream (nata liquida), curry, lemon juice (zumo de limón); to thicken, knead 50g butter with 30g flour.

Let the couscous swell according to the instructions on the packet. Cut everything into cubes of about the same size: Onion and garlic, chorizo and mushrooms. Remove the stalk from the canned tomatoes and cut them into small pieces. Cut the tops off the peppers and dice them too. Sauté the onion, garlic, sausage, mushrooms and pine nuts in olive oil, add the tomatoes and parsley, add a little more of the tomato juice if necessary, season with salt and pepper. Mix in the cooked couscous and stuff the whole thing into the peppers.

Place in a pan; pour in the stock and cook, covered, over a low heat for about 25 minutes until the peppers are soft. Remove the peppers from the pan. Pour in the cream, sprinkle a little curry powder and season with lemon juice. Stir in the flour butter to thicken the sauce.

Chicken ‘al chilindrón’

1 free-range chicken, gutted and cut into pieces (pollo de corral), 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, 2 large ripe (if possible, peeled) tomatoes, 1 large green and 1 large red pepper (pimiento verde and rojo), 1 small glass of cognac or brandy, 1 large onion, paprika (pimentón dulce), olive oil, salt.

Brown the chicken pieces with the unpeeled garlic cloves in an earthenware pot. When the meat has taken colour, baste generously with brandy and season with salt.

Put the tomatoes and onion on top in large pieces and the peppers in strips. Now let everything simmer on a very low heat, covered, for about an hour. The cooking time depends on the size, quality and age of the chicken. When it is ready, sprinkle with paprika and let the liquid boil down in the open pot for five minutes at maximum heat. Leave to rest briefly before serving.

Seafood ‘pincho’

As a tapa: 4 slices of French bread, 80g cooked and deveined seafood such as prawns (gambas, langostinos) or mussels (mejillones, almejas), 30 g cottage cheese (queso fresco), 1 tbsp mustard (mostaza), 1 tsp creamed horseradish (rábano), 1 red pepper, roasted in the oven and peeled (see ‘Roast peppers’), 4 green olives (aceitunas verdes), 1 hard-boiled egg, chopped, 1 tsp cress (berro), chopped, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (aceite de oliva virgen extra), lemon juice (zumo de limón), Tabasco (salsa picante), salt, ground black pepper

Coarsely chop the cooked seafood. Mix with cottage cheese, mustard, egg and creamed horseradish and season with lemon juice, salt, Tabasco and pepper. Divide the peppers into four pieces and place on the bread slices. Place the shellfish salad on top. Fix the olives on top with toothpicks.

Finish with cress and a few drops of olive oil.

Peppers with sherry vinegar

For 1 1/2 cups: 4 medium red peppers, 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, 4 peeled and finely sliced garlic, 1/4 cup mineral water, 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (vinagre de Jerez), salt, some chopped parsley.

Roast the peppers in the oven and peel skin off (for instructions see recipe 'Roast peppers'-.

Heat the remaining olive oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Fry the garlic for about a minute, add the peppers and mineral water. Simmer on low heat with the pot covered for about 30 minutes until the resulting pepper sauce has a silky texture and emulsifies. Season with sherry vinegar and salt, sprinkle with parsley. Either serve immediately or leave to cool.

The sauce is excellent served on bread as a tapa, an ingredient in a salad or the perfect garnish for a dish, especially pork.

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