The rich flavors of roasted red peppers and sun-dried tomatoes, the nuttiness of almonds, with the tang of vinegar and the bite of garlic. You will love Romesco Sauce!
Mediterranean food has always been one of my absolute favorite cuisines, so it was no surprise when I first discovered Romesco Sauce that I would fall in love with it! It is a sauce that developed in the Catalonia region of Spain. The richness of the peppers and tomatoes, the tang of the vinegar, the bite of the garlic and spices, what isn't there to like!
This sauce can be used for so many things:
- Thin the Romesco Sauce and use it as a pasta sauce.
- Leave the sauce thick and use it ias a dip or as a spread for bread.
- It makes a lovely sandwich spread.
- Thin it out or leave it thick and serve with roasted cauliflower steaks.
- Use it as a condiment on portobello mushroom burgers.
- Mix it with Butler's Soy Curls and use it in a wrap.
- A hearty dish of deliciousness with Romesco Beans!
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Ingredients
- Almonds (or other nut)
- Roasted red peppers
- Oil packed sun-dried tomatoes
- Garlic
- Italian Parsley
- Aleppo Pepper
- Smoked paprika
- Extra virgin olive oil
See recipe card for quantities.
The almonds give the sauce a rich, nutty flavor and add to the creaminess of the sauce.
The roasted red peppers give a sweet, smoky flavor and a creaminess. Another exciting variation is to use lacto-fermented peppers in place of the charred peppers. The sourness and funk are amazing!
The sun-dried tomatoes give richness and umami.
The Aleppo pepper provides an earthiness and touch of heat, while the smoked paprika give a smoky flavor.
The vinegar adds a bright tang to the sauce, providing contrast with the richness of the other ingredients. Sherry vinegar adds a nutty note as well.
I typically use the olive oil the sun-dried tomatoes were packed in for the sauce as it has so much flavor.
Instructions
Step 1: Place almonds in a pan over medium heat.
Step 2: Toast the almonds until a few shades darker, about 5 minutes, stirring to toast evenly. Let cool.
Step 3: Place the peppers and tomatoes into the food processor
Step 4: Add the rest of the ingredients
Step 5: Thoroughly blend. It will likely stay a bit chunky.
Romesco Sauce is so much better if you roast the red peppers yourself. It is pretty easy. Place the rack in your oven so that the peppers will be as close to the top elements as possible without touching them. Place the red peppers on a cookie sheet and place in oven. Put your broiler on high.
Keep an eye on the peppers. As they begin to blacken, rotate them with a pair of tongs. Keep rotating them every few minutes as the skin begins to blacken and char.
When the peppers are fully charred, pull out of the oven. If you can, place them in a container with a lid for half an hour. This helps them sweat and the charred skin comes off more easily.
Once the peppers are cool, remove the charred skin, though it is OK to leave bits of the skin, and the seeds. Add to the food processor.
Substitutions
If you are concerned about a tree nut allergy for yourself or someone you are making this for, replace the almonds with sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or even roasted chickpeas.
If you don't have Aleppo Pepper, you can replace it with paprika mixed with a touch of cayenne pepper.
Want Romesco Sauce to be oil-free? Use pine nuts as a replacement for the oil. You would also need to replace the oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes with just dried sun-dried tomatoes.
Variations
Romesco sauce can be varied in so many ways.
Make it spicy by adding cayenne pepper, or perhaps use some charred jalapeños or Fresno chilis. You can also replace some of the red pepper with Calabrian Pepper paste.
Hazelnuts are sometimes used in Romesco Sauce.
Some Romesco sauces are thickened by adding shredded bread to the sauce before blending. This makes it hardier! And also adds gluten.
Use fermented garlic to give it some funk! You can also replace the charred red peppers with lacto-fermented peppers. This will give funk and fizz to your Romesco Sauce!
Equipment
You will need the following equipment.
- A food processor
- A skillet for toasting the nuts or seeds
Storage
Romesco Sauce should last up to 5 days in the fridge if stored in an airtight container. It can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Top Tip
It really makes the sauce special to roast your own peppers.
Related
Looking for other Mediterranean recipes like this? Try these:
Looking for other Sauce recipes? Check out these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Romesco Sauce:
Recipe
Romesco Sauce
Equipment
- 1 food processor
- 1 Skillet
- 1 baking sheet optional, if roasting your own peppers
- 1 tongs optional, if roasting your own peppers
Ingredients
- ¾ cup almonds can use hazelnuts, leave the skins on
- 16 ounces red pepper jar of roasted or can use fresh if roasting yourself
- 7.9 ounce sundried tomatoes packed in oil
- ¼ cup parsley Italian (of course)
- 4 cloves garlic could use fermented
- ¼ cup olive oil use the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes, or extra virgin
- 2 tablespoons vinegar preferably sherry
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Aleppo Pepper can use paprika with a touch of cayenne as a replacement
Instructions
- Place almonds into skillet. Toast over medium heat until darkened, about 5 minutes. Stir to toast evenly. Do not burn.
- Place all ingredients in a food processor. Blend until fully mixed. The sauce will remain a bit chunky.
- Enjoy!
- Romesco Sauce should last up to 5 days in the fridge if stored in an airtight container. It can be frozen for up to 3 months.
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