Ajvar Recipe - How to make Croatian pepper caviar
This Ajvar Recipe, is a smoky pepper based dipping sauce that is a great match for grilled fish or roasted meats, gives a bit of oomph to your sandwiches, or is delicious slathered on a cracker with a drizzle of olive oil and a crumble or smear of goat or feta cheese.
Servings: 16 2 Tablespoons servings
Ingredients
- 2 lbs sweet peppers – sweet carmen or red bell peppers about 5 peppers
- 1 medium sized eggplant, about ¾ lb
- 1 whole head of garlic roasted. See directions below for roasting garlic
- 1 hot pepper optional – like a large poblano pepper. Using a serrano, or jalapeno will increase the spice level.
- ¼ cup sunflower or extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar or white vinegar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler. Line a half sheet rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Pierce skin of eggplant with a fork all over. Remove outer papery layers of garlic bulb, leaving the skins intact and cloves attached. Using a sharp knife, trim about ¼ inch to a ½ inch off the top of the bulb to expose the cloves. Drizzle with olive oil (I like about 2 tablespoons olive oil per head of garlic) and place cut side down on parchment lined baking sheet.
- Now, place washed peppers and eggplant on baking sheet. Roast vegetables, turning occasionally, until their skins blister and turn black (and I mean black, not just charred), about 30 minutes. Make sure to roast all sides and the tops and bottoms. Transfer peppers, garlic and eggplant to a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let sit until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. Once the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel them with your fingers carefully and remove seeds. (Keep a large bowl of water to rinse your hands as you peel the peppers. But do not rinse the peppers, it will also rinse the flavor away!)
- Slice length wise down the center of the eggplant so it splays open like a book, then using a tablespoon or an ice-cream scoop, remove the pulp of the eggplant. Discard the seeds and the skin.
- Place peppers and eggplant into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse the contents of the food processor until desired consistency is achieved. I like to blend until smooth.
- Transfer the vegetable “mush” into a medium pot. Squeeze the bottom of the roasted garlic head to add the roasted cloves to the pot. Add oil, vinegar and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Place the pot over low heat and simmer for about an hour (or longer), until the liquids are gone and the mush is reduced into a thick spread. The longer the simmer the more the flavors come together, so do not cut corners. Taste and Season. Add some minced garlic if you think it needs more. Salt is a fantastic seasoning, do not hesitate to add a little at a time. Stir, taste and season. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Let the spread rest for a day before eating.
Notes
Store in a glass jars, covered in the fridge for about a week. Ajvar also freezes beautifully.