Turkish Pepper Paste (Biber Salcasi)
Turkish pepper paste, or biber salcasi, is a tasty red condiment made from sweet peppers. Make this recipe to use in your favorite dishes.
- Prep time
- 5 min
- Cook time
- 20 min
- Yield
- 18 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 4 red bell peppers (or Turkish salcasi peppers)
- 4 long red chiles ((See Note 1))
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven or grill to 450°F. Remove seeds from chiles (unless using a jarred variety). Roast whole bell peppers and seeded chiles for 20 minutes on a baking sheet. Turn them over occasionally to char all sides. Remove from the oven or grill when the skins blister and are charred black. Transfer to a paper bag or leave on baking sheet covered with a kitchen towel to steam and cool down.
- 2
When cool enough to handle, remove the skins from peppers. Use knife to remove stems from bell peppers, then pull away and discard the seeds and membranes.
- 3
Rough chop the peppers and chiles and put into a food processor or high speed blender. Add the lemon juice, garlic and salt. Puree on high until a smooth paste forms.
- 4
Place the mixture in a baking dish and "dehydrate" in the oven until it thickens to a rich paste consistency, baking for 12+ hours at lowest setting, stirring often (See Note 2).
- 5
Transfer to a clean jar or container. Top with a tablespoon of olive oil to preserve freshness. Cover jar with lid and store the pepper paste in the refrigerator. Good for up to 7 days.