Romesco Dip

Prep Time 10 min cook time 10 min

Once in a while one comes across a quick way to magically bring a simple dish to life. Romesco sauce does just that.

Originally from Spain, this sauce is used by fishermen to spice up a fish stew like what a Rouille does for the French bouillabaisse. The sauce has now found its way into countless other uses from a condiment for seared or grilled fish, seafood, meat, poultry and vegetables to a dip and even a salad dressing. 

It is a highly addictive, spicy and creamy combination of smoked red pepper, laced with crushed garlic, tomato and sweet smoked paprika blended with toasted crushed almonds.

This recipe is a thicker version of Romesco Sauce by doubling the amount of almonds

What you need

• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 medium sized garlic clove
• 3 Tbs tomato purée
• 1 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted ( if you are use 1/2 cup of nuts to thicken the sauce)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

What to do

• Sear a red pepper over a gas flame till its skin is scorched and the flesh is cooked – about 5 minutes. A knife should easily pierce the flesh when cooked. ( If you do not have a gas cooker, cut the stem off the pepper, cut it in half, deseed it and grill it under a broiler skin side up till it starts blistering. Then peel, cut it up then follow the recipe).

Using tongs, charr the pepper for about 5 minutes turning frequently to even the charring.

Peel pepper by scraping charred skin with a sharp knife and remove all the charred bits.

• Peel, remove the stem, de-seed and rinse off any charred bits and seeds. Cut up in 1/2 inch chunks and set aside.
• Toast the almonds for about 3 minutes then pulse in a food processor keeping the almonds coarse. Set aside in a bowl.
• Pulse all the other ingredients until puréed.
• Mix in the almonds and pulse a few times to mix.
• Season with salt and pepper and serve.
• Will keep refrigerated for a couple of weeks.

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