Piedmontese Peppers… a Treat for the Eye and Tastes Divine!

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Although I am a hobby-chef and adore cooking in my free time,  the current situation  and my efforts to mix chairs, crutches and my tiny galley kitchen have not been particularly successful.

It’s been with regret that I’ve been cooking less than once a month, and it’s  a source of frustration. Luckily we have Foodie friends who have either turned up and cooked for us in our own kitchen or been very accomodating  with my simple menus.

In recent months with physio expanding  I have ongoing spells of pain that I couldn’t quite get on top of and when I finially had a “good” day  last month I was spurred by my frustration to make the most of it.

I duely gave Himself a shopping list for lasagne ingredients, dispatched him to the supermarket post haste and warned  him that if I was going to cook then I wanted to cook in bulk and make the effort worth while.

Just by using my tall soup pots and taking a few small shortcuts (adding precut frozen vegetables to the tomato and meat sauce, and dried lasagne sheets that don’t need pre-cooking), I made four large lasagnes in mass production fashion: kept one for direct use, gave one to Himself to deliver to a friend needing her rest in the last days before her baby was due and shoved the other two into the freezer for future easy meals.

Now a month later I have the cooking urge again and help was at hand in the form of a television programme on the BBC.  It’s called “The Good Cook” and is presented by chef  and cookbook writer Simon Hopkinson.

I immediately warmed to his style of using fresh easily available local ingredients.. and easy, uncomplicated recipes .  We had dinner guests coming over  and I needed to cook within my limitations so: Lasagne out of the freezer = main course almost taken care of,  just need a side dish.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Simon’s  roast pepper recipe “Piedmontese Peppers” looks divine… literally! (and easy) I’m seriously into “easy” right now.

I have copied the recipe below and added in my own working method below as well as step by step photos of how I made the recipe.

Ingredients
8 – 12 ripe plum tomatoes
4 red peppers, stalks left on (for decoration), cut lengthways in half, seeds removed
4 garlic cloves, sliced
5-6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 large canned anchovies cut in half lengthways
small handful fresh basil

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5.
2. Pour boiling water over the plum tomatoes, leave for 10 seconds, carefully remove from the water and refresh in a bowl of cold water. Peel off the tomato skins.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

3. Place the halved peppers into an ovenproof dish (preferably one that will be nice enough to present later), cut-side up.
4. Place the garlic inside the peppers and then fit the tomatoes inside too, pushing them gently into the space. Add a small pinch of salt and a grinding of freshly ground black pepper.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(this is where I put mine into the fridge instead)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Spoon over the olive oil and then place into the oven.

5. Bake for about 45 minutes to one hour, turning the heat down a little if you notice any excessive scorching of the peppers.

6. Once they are nicely softened and have slightly collapsed, remove the peppers from the oven. Criss-cross each pepper half with an anchovy, baste with the oily juices and allow to cool to room temperature.
7. Top with basil leaves and serve.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Ok first I made three peppers (six halves) rather than the 4  (8 halves) in the recipe but we looove garlic so five cloves of garlic went into my six halves. I minced my garlic instead of slicing it. (tiny tweek). I added some freshly ground black pepper to the garlic layer before  putting in the peeled tomatoes. Himself had bought an assortment of vine tomatoes and not enough of the plum ones so I mixed and matched them all to fit. (worked fine). Another layer of black pepper went in on top.

At this point I was too tired to continue  and needed a rest, so just covered everything with plastic wrap and shoved it in the fridge. Half an hour before guests arrived  that evening I shoved it into the oven above the lasagne to cook.

I confess that it’s been so long since I’ve used anchovies that I couldn’t remember if I liked them or not…  you know what it’s like: “should I use them or should I just give them a miss?” ….but was brave and put them in as the recipe asks and wasn’t dissapointed, this tastes great with anchovies, and I need not be nervous about anchovies ever again, they are better than I thought.

The fresh basil was the final note in the harmony of this dish… yum, seriously yummy and I’ve already passed on the BBC link  http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/piedmontese_peppers_40938     to the three friends who came to dinner since they sang it’s praises too.

I delighted that I tried this recipe, it wasn’t hard, you can make it in advance up to the oven stage and it’s a keeper!

 

Walking around Padron, some Traditions literally continue today…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

The small town of Padron in Spain is a sweet little place that oozes charm.

Of course we are in the centre where a lot of the oldest buildings are situated and it’s clear that there is a long history here.

I find a small map on a wall that I can’t read but is quite helpful to give you an idea of the lay of the land.

The car is close to the black square at the top right of the map and we have just had lunch in the little triangular building that’s in the middle of a tight cluster of buildings half-way between to black square and the red one at bottom right.

I read that there are also major religious  connections with  artifacts said to be connected with the Apostle St. James here, there are churches to see, museums and on selected days: Padron hosts the largest open air market in Galicia.

Only two things stop us from doing a larger walking tour… the sheer heat, it’s baking down and we are not  used to these temperatures, and the fact that Himself is keen to see what the coastal road has to offer.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

So we avoid heatstroke, leave the Spanish to their very sensible siesta’s and head back through the little streets to the car.

Air-co and sightseeing await.

We will be sure to do a larger tour here one day because a) we love the North of Portugal, Portugal is close by, b) Padron Peppers are always worth a visit to come and get, and c) we are already thinking of arranging to come back  at a time of year when it’s not quite so hot as this.

We walk leisurely back to the car and (come on, you know me…) naturally I’m taking photos on the way.

Let’s take a look at what appeared in the lens:

I spot some wonderful stonework on the “Biblioteca Publico Municipal” (That translates as “Public Library” I assume?)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Buildings and fountains…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

and a very interesting Cross…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Close to the car park area, where’s a statue that commemorates on of the biggest things that this area is famous for.. the Padron Peppers.  The sculpture shows a woman sitting selling her peppers.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

… and just behind the car park wall, a discrete  photo shows two older ladies doing exactly that too…  the tradition continues.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(the only mystery is why the woman in the last photo is wearing what looks like quite a heavy a pullover when it’s close to 40 degrees C.)

Our Mystery Destination Revealed…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

If you are a regular reader then you’ll know that Himself and I are not what you’d call ” typical” tourists.

Yes, admittedly we do sometimes visit tourist traps but  in general we avoid them as much as possible.

And you might have figured out by now that I’m a Foodie….

So if you are me and you are looking at a map of the northern tip of Portugal where it meets up with the north western section of Spain, and your sweet Other Half says to you, ” I’d love to drive up there into Spain  and wander around for the day, any suggestions as to where you might like to go?” and your eye spies two place names close together on the map, then you have a very quick and logical answer.

Now that was easy wasn’t it? You know instantly where were are going.

(sigh) What do you mean you need clues??? Do I deduce that you have failed Stage one of Sherlock’s Course of Elementary Deduction? Ok. ok… I will help you then: the Two place names you are looking for are: Hebron and Padron.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Has the penny dropped yet?  Ok, ok, before I see you posting photos of burst brain cells in the comments section, here’s your final Clue: http://kiwidutch.wordpress.com/?s=padron

Hebron is the area of Spain where Padron Peppers come from.

We arrive there before lunch and drive around observing rows of  pepper plants everywhere, some in poly-tunnels, many in open fields but also a lot under a tent-like structures of netting to keep the birds out.

The ” main street” though Hebron consists of houses, warehouses and a lone cafe/pub, where we ask  first for lunch and then for directions using the address taken from the Padron Peppers packet I photographed in the earlier blog post.

Lunch isn’t an option as they are now only a bar, but the address we want is almost next door… well almost.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

We wanted the address of J.J.Conde and got C.C. Conde, local Padron Pepper businesses, same family but JJ is the sister’s family enterprise and CC is her brother’s. That’s close enough for us, … we start walking down the street to the building that’s been pointed out to us.

Outside it’s topping 36 C so the cool of the thick walls and inside is a welcome relief. Himself’s Spanish talents are very helpfully dragged out once again as we get an emphatic “No” head shake to the ” do you maybe speak a little English?” question.

Yes, they have peppers and Yes, we may buy some.. How many bags? Well, at Euro 1.25 per bag, Five bags please. Five? Ok we will have to bag some for you.

We wait whilst the two friendly but not very chatty guys stand and sort out peppers. At first I assume they are weeding out peppers that might be damaged or past their best, or not up to scratch for some reason. These “rejects” are added to a large bowl nearby on the table.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Observation after ten minutes has me completely and totally confused… the peppers they are deftly  removing from the pile look identical to the ones the are putting aside for the bags. No blemishes, no damage, they look perfectly fine. What’s going on here? Why bother?

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

We wait patiently until they have finished and have sealed up our five bags full of peppers, finally as we are are about to pay I ask Himself to ask roughly how many hot peppers we could expect to stumble upon in the mix. To be fair it was a very tricky question for Himself to translate and pose but they got there in the end.. the answer ? None.

What??? What’s happened to the “one in 30 has a kick!”  Come on guys, Where’s the fun of playing Pardon Pepper Roulette when there’s no fire in any of the peppers anywhere in the pile?

More halted Spanish and a great deal of effort from Himself leads to us stumbling on the truth… they have removed the hot ones for us. Huh? How on earth could they tell which were which? We certainly looked closely but could see no difference between the two piles at all.  Laughs all round when Himself asks if we could also buy a bag of just hot peppers please…  so we leave with five bags of sweet Padron Peppers and a large plastic bag of hot ones.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

The guys give Himself and I one of the hot peppers to try as we go…

Himself handles the heat well.. Me, well, the kids delight in telling me that my face is very very very red, I finish it completely as we walk back to the car but now my mouth is on fire and my lips are about to explode.

Beer or milk are the obvious answers but the only thing I love about beer is the smell and we have no milk.

Flat Cola Light is my only relief much to the pure delight of the kids for whom my suffering is suddenly brilliant entertainment.

Man… these hot ones pack a punch.

Testing your culinary boundaries can be painful sometimes. But what’s a Foodie adventure without a little risk?

Laughing, smarting and pleased with our purchases we head towards nearby Padron for lunch.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Padron Peppers, a Spanish Gem with a Twist and a Kick…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Our friends returned from their UK holiday the other day…  being Foodies like us, they have of course been catching up on their favourite London food haunts. One of their stops before coming home was a Spanish specialty shop, so they bought Himself and I home a little culinary surprise: Padron Peppers.

Padron Peppers? Who or what are they when they are at home? Yum… a new culinary experience looms.

Padron is a small area of Spain situated very close to the Northern border with Portugal, on the Atlantic coast side and it’s just a short distance south of  the famed Santiago de Compostela.

So these are a sweet pepper (pimientos de Padrón in Spanish) that originated from South America that you lightly fry and then eat… Then what’s the twist?

Well the twist is that for some unknown reason roughly one pepper in 20 or 30 will have a slight kick to it, not a whopping belt of a kick like a Jalapeño or Habanero pepper, but just a pleasant surprise to tickle your taste buds. No, they don’t throw one of a different variety of pepper into the bag as a joke, apparently the “ odd one with a kick” is a natural  quirk of this pepper variety.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

My friends say these are addictive, and Wow they are right about that. These ARE really lovely peppers, not fiery hot at all, just a wonderful flavour and of course the added mystery thrown in…

…who among the four of us would find the one or maybe two in the packet with the kick in it?

I can say that one of them might have been mine, it was such a slight heat that I really wasn’t sure, a very mild subtle heat, more a nudge than a whopping kick.

It was just like a small surge in flavour, and it was wonderful.

The text from the grower on the packet of fresh peppers says it all:

“With a taste as distinctive as the landscape where they were first cultivated 400 years ago, these peppers are unique to the region of Padron in northwest Spain where they have been grown by mt family for three generations.

You’re sure to enjoy them eaten the same way as we do in Spain, fried lightly in olive oil and with a sprinkle of sea salt and accompanied by a cool drink. You’ll discover a flavour unlike any other pepper you you’ve fried, deliciously sweet and every once in a while, you’ll taste a spicy one which only adds to their charm. the possibilities are as abundant as your culinary creativity, Enjoy! or as we say: Pimientos de Padron, que ricos son!” (Noeia Conde)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

And here’s Noelia’s recipe on the packet… (serves two)

200g Padron Peppers (washed)

30 ml olive oil

sea salt

Heat 30 ml olive oil in a pan.

Fry the peppers gently in the olive oil, turning occasionally.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

As the skin starts to blister (3-4 minutes) take out of the pan and put into bowls, sprinkle with a little sea salt and serve immediately.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

These are grown by:

Frutas Hortalizas  J.J.Conde

Teléfono 981 81 01 13

Herbon – Padron

La Coruña

N.IC.A. 15117

N.R.S.21.04793/C

Espanol.

If you are looking for a fiery taste then these are not for you, but they would be a welcome addition on any tapas table if you can find them.

So, if you ever see these little peppers fresh anywhere, do yourself a wonderful favour, snap them up and give them a try. You won’t be disappointed.

www.padronpeppers.com