Red Pepper Paste
September 28th, 2006
Most of you who has been reading this site might have realized that we, Turks, do not use a lot of spices but usually include another taste-enhancer in our dishes: red pepper paste. Very easy to make, this red pepper paste can be used in nearly every casserole you can think of. You can surely buy it from a Middle Eastern Store or online, but if you have a chance to buy these type of red peppers, I’d suggest trying making them home.
Last weekend I visited a very close friend of mine in Stockton. We found these red peppers that I could not find anywhere else before. Being in San Joaquin Valley where they grow everything that loves heat, I guess I should not have been surprised. Got 2lbs to make my first ever paste.
All I had to do was to wash them, halve and seed them before chopping them finely in a food chopper. For 2 lbs of peppers, I added a tablespoonful of salt, mixed well and put in a glass dish. There is amazing amount of juice coming out the peppers. And the next task is to make sure all are dried so we can save the paste yeararound. Covered with cheesecloth, I put the dish under the sun for a few days. I tried to stir it at least 4 - 5 times daily, and at the end of the 4th day, most of the moustuire was evaporated and I had a thick, nice pepper paste. Put in a jar, topped with some olive oil to make sure it does not go bad. Out of 2 lbs (1kg) of red peppers, I ended up having 7oz (200gr) paste.
My very first one! I am excited and thinking about growing my own red peppers (not the usual bell peppers!) next year.
October 9th, 2006 at 1:47 pm
Fethiye merhaba,
Su salca yaptigin biberlerin adi nedir biliyor musun? Belki ben de burdaki pazarda bulabilirim.
October 10th, 2006 at 8:11 am
Burcu, no, I do not know under which name they sell these peppers. I found them in an Asian store sold as “red peppers.” I guess you’d have to look for them instead of asking ;(
[sorry in responding in English. Wanted to make sure the rest of the audience knows what we are chatting about]
November 11th, 2006 at 6:17 pm
[…] If you ask me what the easiest soup to make is, my answer would be this lentil soup, cooked with veggies. To give a nice twist to the taste, my family uses the usual trick; red pepper paste. I now realized how much I have been talking about this paste and using it. If you have it sold close by, grab a small jar to at least try this soup out. […]
September 16th, 2008 at 5:40 am
thanks for sharing! we live in turkey and i LOVE LOVE LOVE salcha; and have to learn to make it before leaving here!!!