Look at this colorful piperrada vasca! Have you heard of it before? It is a traditional Basque green bell pepper and vegetable stew, a great companion for fried eggs or pan seared fish!
Piperrada or pipperada, it is often spelled in different ways.
So what is this?
It is a Spanish bell pepper and tomato ’stew’ and you can serve it as a vegetable side dish or even as a main course. I said it was Spanish, well it is Basque (or vasca) to be more specific.
Basque
You might heard of the Basque Country before.
That is a region in northern Spain. Some even claim that this dish a kind of tribute to the Basque flag because it contains the same colors: white (onion), red (tomato) and green (bell pepper).
But then that is what they also say about a pizza margarita, that it resembles the Italian flag too.
Who knows.
Easy Piperrada Vasca (Bask Bell Pepper Stew)
This bell pepper stew is a delicious side dish.
You can serve it hot straight from the stove. But I also like to let it cool down fully, then add extra vinegar to it and serve it cold as a bell pepper salad.
It also tastes delicious on a simple piece of toast for lunch!
You can turn it into a main dish if you add a couple of fried or scrambled eggs. Or let a couple of chunks of fresh fish poach in it. Fresh tuna, salt cod or swordfish are perfect for that.
Fish Piperrada
You need a type of fish that is firm and stays firm if it is cooked. Just dice the fish up or leave it just like that and let it simmer in the pepper stew until cooked through.
It will pretty much look like a pescado encebollado (fish with tomato and onion) by the way but then with a bell pepper topping instead.
I also added black olives and smoked paprika to my version.
There is also a French version of this piperrada, by the name of ‘piperade’. You can find it in the Gascony region.
Enjoy!
Easy Piperrada Vasca Recipe (Bask Bell Pepper Stew)
My colorful piperrada vasca, a traditional Basque green bell pepper vegetable stew to serve with fried eggs or baked fish!
- 13,5 oz green bell pepper (350 g)
- 3,5 oz canned chopped tomatoes (100 g)
- ½ small onion
- 1 large garlic clove peeled
- a handful fresh parsley
- ½ tsp paprika powder (smoked)
- 2 tsp red wine vinegar
- olive oil
- pepper
- salt
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Chop the onion and the garlic clove. Pour a little olive oil in a large pan and place it over medium heat. Add the chopped garlic and onion.
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Gently fry the onion in the warm oil for about 6 minutes. In the meantime trim the green bell pepper and slice it up. Add it to the onion in the pan.
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Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Then pour in the canned tomatoes and season with a little pinch of pepper and salt.
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Give the vegetables a good stir and put a llid on the pan. Smother them for 6 minutes. Then add a glass of water.
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Add the smoked paprika and the red wine vinegar. Stir the bell pepper well and cover again.
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Cook for 10 more minutes. Then check the seasoning and add extra pepper or salt to taste if necessary. Stir in the freshly chopped parsley. Serve the bell pepper warm or let it cool down fully and serve it as a cold side salad. Sprinkle with extra chopped parsley.
