Organic Red Bell Peppers
I love me some bell peppers and damnit, I was shocked to learn that they are really, really bad for you when grown conventionally. Pesticides baby. Bell peppers (aka capsicum the rest of the world) are so sweet and delicious, bugs love ‘em and conventional/industrial farmers love to spray ‘em down. So go organic! I’m serious, this is one of those crops that’s a must…almost always on the top 12 “dirty dozen” list. Tsk. Hit your local FARMER’S MARKET for your peppers, where you’ll see they are wicked cheap when compared to your supermarket. Why not try some different varieties too? Talk to the farmers, they’ll tell you a thing or three about peppers!
Generally speaking, I am not a big fan green bell peppers, I think they taste insipid…kind of remind me of cut grass and bad salsa. Not good. I try to stick to the colorful varieties—which are the same things as the green ones, only more mature. Green, white, brown and purple are all immature bell pepper colors. Red, yellow, light purple, and orange are all mature colors. Besides being so pretty, sweeter and more flavorful, the colorful bell peppers are healthier–a red bell pepper has double the vitamin content as a green one!
All bell peppers are crazy good for you—even the green ones. Super high levels of vitamin A and C are found within, along with antioxidants and lycopene—a super cancer! Bell peppers are also said to be good for the heart, the lungs, the eyes and your joints. And since they are affordable and easy to prepare it’s time you got more of them into your diet.
I love ‘em RAW and add them to salads and sandwiches all the time and nibble on sticks for a snack. My other big use for bell peppers is in stir-fries, just barely cooked, paired with some sorta meat or tofu with onions, garlic, ginger and herbs. An awesome crunchy addition! Oh yeah, they’re great on pizza too!
I also really love ‘em roasted! It’s like a whole new fruit when you roast the babes! I usually do the stove-top method where you just burn the skin black before steaming in a brown paper sack. You will get charred pepper skin ALL OVER the place, so use a sink and a little running water to keep it clean.. Baking in an oven is a much easier and cleaner route. The results are similar, though I miss that smoky flavor the burnt method lends. Grilling is also a great option for bell peppers! You can grill and eat them at any stage or go the full route and make roasted ones over the flames.
Stuffed peppers seemed like a really fun thing to do on the show. I felt like I was letting the world down by featuring this dish as it is so basic, but you know what? Stuffed bell peppers are SO GOOD and SO EASY and too often overlooked! There’s no wrong way to do a stuffed bell pepper…you just need to fill the halves with things you love. Feel free to experiment—use different grains, different seasonings, play with the proportions a bit, have fun and GET BELL PEPPER BUSY!
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