Those who follow me on Instagram (@libertaincucina) will know that when I tried to make peperonata last week, while also trying make settembrini, it ended badly.

Peperonata 1

The weekend rolled around and with nothing planned for dinner (for once!) I thought I would give it another go.

The recipe was taken from Rachel Roddy’s charming book Five Quarters (well worth investing in) which I bought recently. I slightly reduced the amounts involved, I was very pleased with the result.

You need to take the time to let it cook, in order to develop the flavour – that is the secret here. You start by gently frying onions until golden. Then you add sliced peppers to the pan, cover and leave to cook for around 10-15 minutes. You then add a tin of tomatoes and a very small amount of wine vinegar and leave them to work their magic until the sauce is thick.

It’s definitely worth doing – it results in a beautiful, thick sauce that is sweet but slightly sharpened by the vinegar. I served my peperonata with some chicken and potatoes roasted with lemon, garlic and rosemary (from the same book).

As Rachel notes, any sauce left keeps very well and even though I reduced the amounts I was left with two jars of the sauce.

Peperonata 2 – pasta

On Monday night I added one of the jars to make a quick and easy pasta sauce. Having cooked some chicken in chilli and garlic, I added the peperonata to the pan to warm through. Although not a super saucy pasta, the flavours were just as delicious and it was a nice speedy home cooked dinner.

Peperonata 3 – panino

Having made some small rolls, I was now all set for a lovely lunch. Being quite chunky from the peppers I thought this might work as an addition to a panino.

Taking one of the rolls, I added salami, mozzarella and a good layer of the peperonata and warmed it through in the oven to slightly melt the cheese.

I confess, this was my favourite. Do you ever make something, eat it and marvel afterwards at how amazing it tastes – when you made it at home?

It made me very happy and gave me three amazing meals – I strongly recommend a peperonata to you!