Chermoula

One of the most useful recipes ever!

In this Moroccan recipe, sweet green peppers are slow-cooked to the point of softness in olive oil with vinegar, garlic and coriander.  You can make it quickly and easily, and store it in the refrigerator to use as needed.  It's called chermoula, and  is delicious served with crackers and cheese, or in a salad, or on an antipasto platter, and is especially good on pizza.  The garlic cloves are wonderful, so delicious it’s tempting to fish one out and eat it every time I see the jar.  The oil is good in a vinaigrette, or drizzled on bruschetta or fresh sourdough bread.  Chermoula looks pretty in the jar, so it makes a good hostess gift.

The vinegar and coriander are essential for the flavor.  The combination of garlic and vinegar is one of those felicitous combinations like bacon-lettuce-and-tomato, a classic taste that everyone loves.  

The recipe:

Slice three large bell peppers into thin strips, using green, red, yellow or orange peppers. Combine the pepper strips with one cup olive oil, ½ teaspoon of ground coriander and ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar in a saucepan.  Add as much garlic as you feel like peeling, an entire head of peeled cloves if you like.  Cook over low heat until the garlic and pepper are tender, which may take up to 15 minutes.  Do not allow this mixture to fry as it will become bitter and won’t taste good.

While the peppers are cooking, wash a pint canning jar in very hot water and rinse it with boiling water. Drain it on a clean kitchen towel. Rinse the lid in boiling water also. When the peppers are tender, use a slotted spoon to put all the vegetables in the sterilized jar, pour in the oil, seal and store in the refrigerator. The mixture keeps for up to two weeks in the refrigerator, although it's so good, it usually gets eaten before then.

To use on a pizza, prepare your usual pizza dough and roll out to the desired size.  Brush with the oil from the chermoula and arrange slices of bell pepper and slivers of garlic from the chermoula over the pizza.  Add cheese, such as goat cheese, and bake as usual until the crust is done and the cheese melted and bubbling.

To serve as antipasto, arrange the bell pepper and garlic on a platter with cheese, olives, celery sticks, cherry tomatoes, sliced sausage such as pepperoni or salami.  Drizzle the oil from the peppers sparingly over all the goodies on the platter.  Serve with toasted rounds of sour dough bread or French or Italian baguettes that have been brushed with the oil.