Hey guys! I chose this dish as one of my first recipes to share with you, because to put it simply, it’s one of my all time favourites. It’s a dish that shows you how a little bit of patience can go a very long way with a very little. If you think about it, take away the basic seasonings, the fats and the herbs above, this dish is basically 3 things i.e. peppers, onions, tomatoes. Sure you may think anyone can throw a bunch of chopped veg in a pot and simmer them away for 40 minutes, but you’re not going to get much out of that. Marco Pierre White always says that ‘Perfection is little things done right’, and whilst I don’t believe in the idea of ‘perfection’ as a whole, this dish however comes pretty damn close to what he says. With all (or most) things, selflessly invest your time and love into them, and reap the rewards after. As this is a very simple dish, you want to try and get the best quality veg you can find. 

The other reason I chose this dish is because it’s in line with the versatility principle this blog’s recipe section revolves around. Traditionally over scrambled eggs and toast, there are also countless other ways you can use this dish for. A main, a side dish, over rice (I’m asian, we adapt anything to rice), as a rough pasta sauce or blended into a smooth one, a soup, and much more. Lastly, it’s great warm but also really good cold, and keeps for 2-3 days in the fridge. So you have lots of time to experiment with its versatility, even when you’re in a rush (after cooking it!). Anyway, enjoy!

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Prep time	5 minutes
Cook time	35 – 45 minutes
TOTAL	About an hour

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Ingredients:

• 50g good quality unsalted butter
• 15 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 1-3 garlic cloves, smashed.
• 3 banana shallots/ 6 asian shallots/ 1 large red onion – Finely diced.
• 3 bell peppers (1 green, 1 yellow 1 red) – Diced into 1cm cubes – discard seeds and veins.
• 1 plump roma tomato (or any other fleshy tomato) – Diced into 1cm cubes – discard seeds.
• 10 grams of fresh chives – Finely chopped.
• 5 grams of fresh tarragon – Finely chopped.
• Salt and pepper to taste 

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3. When the shallots are translucent, increase the heat high and immediately add in your peppers and stir. (Don’t worry you won’t burn your beautiful shallots you worked so hard on. The temperature displacement from the room temperature-peppers will be enough to offset the extra heat and bring your pan quickly back to a good medium one. Otherwise you’d end up ‘slow boiling’ the peppers. You don’t want this.)Sweat the peppers as you did with the shallot, low and slow, stirring occasionally. About 10-15 minutes. (After awhile the extra head you added in step 3 will be more than enough to get things going. When this happens, turn the heat back down to medium-low).

4. Just when the peppers have started to get soft, but not mushy, add in the tomato. Continue to sweat everything for another 5-10 minutes until the tomato is soft but, again, not mushy. 

5. Season the Piperade and when you’re happy with it, throw in the chives and tarragon. Drizzle over some extra virgin olive oil. Give them a stir, turn off the heat and cover. Let it sit for another 10 minutes before serving. (You can definitely eat it straight away if you’re in a rush but this last step lets everything come together nicely. You’ve already gotten this far. A little bit more won’t kill you!)

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Tips and Tricks:

N/A

Serving Suggestions:

As an omelette filling, over scrambled eggs or as a pasta sauce. 

Spice Kick:

Add 1/2 – 1 tsp of fennel seeds and a dried chilli together with the garlic and butter in step one. The anise-flavour of the fennel works really well with the onions and peppers. Combined with the warmth of the dried chilli, these spices really bring this dish together like ‘a warm hug’ on a cold day. I’m not sure if I’m explaining this right but try it out and you’ll understand.