Laura, now I understand you meant frying Italian peppers but thank you for this question, because I've been wondering about frying peppercorns ever since. There must be cuisines that do that. Fry them, then smash them? What would frying do to the flavor, etc.?
Here in one of my favorite late summer dishes and it is quite simple to make. You will need a couple of peppers (say 6-8) and a lot of garlic (say 10-12 cloves, roughly cut into 4-6 pieces). Oil a pan generously with extra virgin olive oil (say about 1/4 cup). Heat the oil over medium-high heat. (Make sure that the pan has lid.) Place the peppers in the pan in one layer (do not overcrowd) and cover. The role of the lid is to prevent splatters but to also keep steam in so you are essentially half frying and half steaming the peppers... Fry while stirring occasionally. When the peppers begin to char add garlic, cover and continue to fry until peppers are very soft and garlic is golden (it will take about 15 or minutes or so, sometimes more or less, depending on the heat, type of peppers, etc.). Remove peppers from the heat, place in a bowl, pour the juices and garlic on top and cover. Let sit for a while and then before serving sprinkle with coarse see salt. Some folks like to add balsamic or lemon juice.
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