Recipe: Filfil Akhdar Musabbar bi'l-Zayt (Algeria) Red Bells Peppers Preserved in Olive Oil

Winner of the James Beard/ KitchenAid Cookbook of the Year 2000 and Winner of the Beard Award for the Best Writing on Food 2000.

February 9, 2012

Home > Recipes > Antipasto, Meze, Tapas, and Hors d'Oeuvres > Red Bells Peppers Preserved in Olive Oil

Red Bells Peppers Preserved in Olive Oil
Filfil Akhdar Musabbar bi'l-Zayt
Region: Algeria
Category: Antipasto, Meze, Tapas, and Hors d'Oeuvres
Season: Fall
Difficulty: Easy

This recipe is from an Algerian friend, Necim Zeghlache, from whom I have learned a lot about Algerian cooking. Necim served this very delicious red bell pepper preparation as part of a qimia table, what the Arabs of the Mashraq (eastern Arab world as opposed to the Maghrib, the western Arab world) call a meze, before he served a lamb and vegetable couscous. This is a perfect dish for September when it bell peppers are at their height.

Yield: Makes 12 to 14 small servings before a main course
Preparation Time: 45 minutes

16 red bell peppers

Extra virgin olive oil to taste

White wine vinegar to taste

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

1. Preheat the oven to 450?F.

2. Roast the red bell peppers until their skins are blackened, about 30 minutes. Place two brown paper bags in a large pot (to reinforce the bottom of the bag) and put all the red peppers in and close the bag so the bell peppers will steam.

3. After 10 minutes, remove the bell peppers and peel. Cut up all the peppers and place in a bowl. Sprinkle with olive oil and vinegar and stir in the garlic. Sprinkle with salt and parsley.

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