Grilled Yellow Pepper Soup

  • Prep time:

  • Cook time:

  • Total time:

  • Portion/Yield:

    Serves 6 as a starter or light lunch

  • Difficulty:

    Easy

The supermarket shelves and farmers’ markets are packed with peppers of all colours, shapes and varieties. I love peppers and Mr P’s recent favourite is a red pepper casserole that he prepares and serves with baked cod; delicious!

Yellow peppers are sweet and bright and their cheerful colour never fails to put a smile on my face, especially so after the winter when most fruit and veg are creamy coloured or dark autumnal shades of orange, red or brown.

This soup is easy to make and can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Once made, simply cool, chill and store the blended soup in an airtight container in the fridge, then reheat gently until piping hot before serving.photo of Yellow pepper soup

Ingredients & Method

For the grilled yellow pepper soup

  • 2 tablespoons rapeseed oil
  • 3 yellow peppers
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1 large onion, sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • ¼ teaspoon yellow mustard seeds
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 125ml dry white wine
  • 600ml vegetable or chicken stock
  • sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

To garnish

  • ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
  • 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
  • 80g feta cheese, crumbled
  • olive oil

Preheat the grill to medium. Rub a little of the oil all over the peppers, then place them on a roasting tray and grill for about 6–8 minutes or until the skins are blistered and browned all over (if the skin chars and goes black in places, this is good!), turning occasionally. Remove the peppers from the grill, place in a bowl and cover with cling film, then set aside for 10 minutes. Remove the stalks, seeds and skin, then roughly dice the flesh and set aside.

Put the remaining oil in a saucepan with the butter and melt over a medium heat. Add the onion, pepper flesh, garlic, yellow mustard seeds and cumin, along with salt and pepper, and sauté for about 8 minutes or until softened. Add the wine and cook until the wine is reduced, about 5 minutes. Add the stock, cover the pan with a lid, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 12–15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Meanwhile, prepare the breadcrumb garnish. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat until hot, then add the black mustard seeds and toast for 30 seconds. Add the butter and breadcrumbs, and cook, stirring continuously, until golden brown, about 1–2 minutes. Remove from the heat, transfer to kitchen paper and leave to cool.

Once the soup is ready, blend it until smooth and velvety using a hand-held stick blender. Reheat gently until hot, if necessary.

Serve the hot soup in warm bowls and garnish with the crumbled feta, the golden breadcrumbs and a few drops of olive oil.

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