Make Ahead

Roasted Red Pepper Dip with Cumin, Lime and Coconut Milk

by:
January 17, 2011
4
3 Ratings
Roasted Red Pepper Dip with Cumin, Lime and Coconut Milk
  • Makes about 1 cup
Author Notes

My new favorite ingredient is coconut milk and I'm now experimenting with all kinds of flavor combinations. This dip is a great combination with corn chips or shedded wheat crackers. You can make this dip as thick as you want based on how long you reduce it on the stove. - ChezSuzanne —TheWimpyVegetarian

Test Kitchen Notes

Just reading the name of this recipe put my taste buds on high alert. I was very excited to test this dip out, and the results pleasantly exceeded my expectations! The smoky pepper and cumin scent rising out of the saucepan was so inviting. And because the puree was not reducing quickly enough to match my impatience, I decided to try some as a sauce over warm angel hair pasta. It was so delectable (and beautiful in color) that I highly recommend trying it that way! I did continue to reduce the majority until thick and chilled it overnight, however I could not resist the temptation to have it for breakfast on toast the following morning, it's that good. Great recipe! —Sadassa_Ulna

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 5 red bell peppers
  • 1 large tomato
  • 1 large lime, juice and zest
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
  • 5-6 teaspoons coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon creme fraiche
  • 1 teaspoon cilantro, minced
Directions
  1. Roast the bell peppers and tomato; peel and seed. Drop in a blender and puree. Place the pureed mixture in a small pot.
  2. Toast the cumin seed in a dry skillet and grind to a powder using a coffee or spice grinder.
  3. Add the lime juice and zest, salt, toasted cumin powder, coconut milk and creme fraiche to the pot with the pureed pepper mixture. Heat up and cook for at least 15 minutes to meld the flavors together. Cook as long as 30 minutes for a thicker dip.
  4. Chill and correct for seasoning. Serve with chips, crackers, cheese strips or veggies.
Tags:
Contest Entries

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • veghead
    veghead
  • checker
    checker
  • drbabs
    drbabs
  • Sadassa_Ulna
    Sadassa_Ulna
  • TasteFood
    TasteFood

Popular on Food52

16 Reviews

veghead
veghead July 1, 2012
Wow! I have had this on my saved recipe queue for a long time and just tried it. I will be using it is as a pasta sauce. Really amazing. Thanks for the recipe.
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian July 9, 2012
I'm so glad you tried it - there are so many fabulous recipes on this site, that's for sure. But this is hands down one of my favorite sauces/dips/spreads. It's amazing with a grilled cheese sandwich too, but I may be prejudiced :-)
 
checker
checker April 4, 2011
What a neat dish! It's kind of like a Southeast Asian version of Ajvar, which I love. This must be added to my list for summer cookouts. Well done!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian April 15, 2011
Thanks checker! I'd love to hear what you think if you make it! I've used it for all kinds of things from a dip to a sandwich spread. I hope you like it too!
 
drbabs
drbabs February 4, 2011
How did I miss this?! Love!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian February 4, 2011
It's really good - I hope you try it! I'd love to hear what you think if you do!
 
Sadassa_Ulna
Sadassa_Ulna February 4, 2011
The next time I make this, I will triple the batch and serve it [thin] as a sauce over angelhair pasta. That will probably leave plenty to reduce and eat as a spread over the next couple of days. Also, I am not a canning pro, but I would guess this would preserve very well, and be a great way to use up summer peppers and tomatoes. A jar of this would make a great holiday gift!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian February 4, 2011
Wow! Thanks for much for such a lovely endorsement of my recipe, Sadassa_Ulna!! I love your ideas of using it. I'm not a canning pro either, but delved further into it last year. I love the idea of this for a holiday gift. Oh, and another use I found that worked very well was as a spread on a grilled ham and swiss cheese sandwich! I'm definitely going to try it over angel hair pasta as you suggest!!
 
TasteFood
TasteFood January 18, 2011
Yum, I love all of these flavors!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian January 18, 2011
Thanks Lynda!
 
Lizthechef
Lizthechef January 18, 2011
Now this is a dip I would make - could I use low-fat coconut milk? Thumbs up!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian January 18, 2011
Good question, Liz! I just bought my first can ever of coconut milk this week, so I have no idea, but I can't see why not. You don't need the fat for anything in the dip - and one of the key points of the dip was to make it a fairly healthy dip - so it should work fine. Let me know if you try it!
 
lapadia
lapadia January 18, 2011
Yum, love roasted red peppper dip, and coconut milk....an interesting smooth addition, must keep this in mind, I make roasted pepeper dips often...must try.
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian January 18, 2011
Thanks lapadia!! I love the combo of coconut milk and red peppers - it's a surprisingly good combo for both flavors to shine! Just be careful of the lime - it can overwhelm if you use too much.
 
MyCommunalTable
MyCommunalTable January 17, 2011
This sounds delicious. Love the use of coconut milk. It sounds so zesty, but smooth.
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian January 17, 2011
Thanks so much MCT! We finished the dip off today - and yes the coconut milk is what makes it interesting. Somehow it brings out the red pepper flavor. Always so fun to play with a new ingredient :-)