Baked Peperonata
There are dishes that taste like vacation even before you take the first bite.
Baked peperonata is exactly one of them.
Sweet, slowly roasted peppers, soft onions, good olive oil and the scent of rosemary – often that's all it takes. This dish thrives on patience, simple ingredients, and giving them time.
Warm from the oven, served lukewarm, or fully infused the next day – peperonata is one of those antipasti that only gets better.
Ingredients
For approx. 4 servings
Vegetables
- 500 g red bell peppers
(alternatively or mixed with yellow bell peppers) - 150 g red or white onions
- 5 g garlic
Herbs
- 2 small sprigs of rosemary (approx. 4 g)
- optional: 1 g dried oregano
Oil & Acidity
- 40 g extra virgin olive oil (for cooking)
- optional: 10 g extra virgin olive oil (for marinating)
- optional: 5–10 g Balsamic Vinegar of Modena
Spices
- Salt
- Black pepper
Preparation
Clean the bell peppers, remove seeds and membranes, and cut into larger, rustic pieces.
Peel the onions, halve them, and cut into even wedges. Peel the garlic and slice thinly.
Place bell peppers, onions, and garlic in an oven-safe dish. Add rosemary sprigs and season everything with salt and black pepper. Then mix with olive oil until the vegetables are evenly coated.
Optionally add some dried oregano.
Bake in a preheated oven at 185 °C (365 °F) top/bottom heat for about 40 minutes, until the bell peppers soften and develop slight roasting aromas.
Let cool completely after baking.
Before serving, marinate with a little good olive oil and optionally refine with a small splash of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena. Remove the rosemary sprigs before serving.
Serving
Peperonata is perfect as an antipasto with fresh bread, with grilled meat, or simply as a small appetizer on a warm evening.
It tastes particularly good when it has rested a little, allowing the olive oil to combine with the roasted aromas and the natural sweetness of the peppers.
A little story behind this dish
I love antipasti in all variations.
At our house in Tuscany, I often just bought fresh vegetables – whatever looked particularly good at the moment – and slowly sautéed them or baked them in the oven. Afterwards, everything was marinated with good olive oil and served as a small side dish in the evening.
Exactly these simple dishes are what define the taste of the South for me.
Peperonata is one of my absolute favorites because I love bell peppers. When they slowly bake in the oven, they become soft, sweet, and, together with the onions and rosemary, develop those deep, warm roasted aromas that immediately evoke Mediterranean cuisine.
Add some good bread, a little olive oil, and a quiet evening – often that's all it takes.
