At Mom’s Dinner, we are firm believers in smart shortcuts in the kitchen, and this Roasted Red Pepper Sauce is one of my all time favorites. This is one of my "back pocket dinner recipes"!! The secret is right in your grocery store: jarred roasted red peppers. They are already softened, peeled, and ready to blend, which means you get all the deep, slow roasted flavor in your sauce without ever turning on the oven.
After making this on repeat for years, I can promise the finished sauce holds up against any "from-scratch" version. Toss it with hot pasta, a splash of starchy pasta water, and freshly grated parmesan, and you have a flavorful, 6 ingredient dinner on the table in under 10 minutes.
Jump to:
- Why Youโll Love This Red Pepper Sauce
- Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe Ingredients
- How to Make Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
- Variations
- How to Use Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
- How to Store Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
- Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe FAQs
- Goes Great Withโฆ
- WATCH SUSIE ON FOOD NETWORK!
- Easy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe
- Leave a comment and rate this recipe!
Why You’ll Love This Red Pepper Sauce
No roasting, sautรฉing or baking required to make this sauce. We LOVE a good kitchen shortcut at Mom’s Dinner. Here is why this recipe works so well:
- The store bought peppers are already roasted and softened for you. Take the kitchen help where you can get it!
- Since the peppers are so soft they blend up perfectly!
- The basil and fresh garlic add enough aromatics to give it extra layers of flavor.
- Balsamic vinegar is the perfect acid to add, balancing out the sweetness of the roasted red peppers.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe Ingredients
You only need 6 ingredients to make Homemade Roasted Red Pepper Sauce. The nice thing is you probably already have half of the ingredients in your pantry!
Jarred Roasted Red Peppers – make sure you get the roasted red peppers packed in water, not oil. You can use anywhere from a 12 oz jar to a 16 oz jar.
Olive Oil- you can use olive oil or extra virgin olive oil in this recipe.
Balsamic Vinegar- a little balsamic vinegar adds just the right amount of tang to balance the sweetness of the roasted red peppers.
Garlic- fresh, plump garlic cloves make this sauce SO good!
Basil- about 10 fresh basil leaves give this red pepper sauce another dimension of flavor. Not enough to make it taste like Pesto, but just a hint of basil to compliment the red pepper flavor.
Kosher Salt – enhances flavors.
How to Make Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This Roasted Red Pepper Sauce is SO easy to throw together, you’ll see there is only one step below! It’s great with pasta or with grilled chicken/fish/veggies!
Step 1- Blend
Put all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until your desired consistency.
Use right away with hot pasta or grilled meat. Can also be stored for later use.
Variations
- Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce – Blend in ยผ cup heavy cream for a creamier sauce that clings beautifully to penne or rigatoni.
- Spicy Calabrian – Add 1 to 2 teaspoon of Calabrian chili paste, or ยฝ teaspoon red pepper flakes, when you blend.
- Romesco Style. Toss in โ cup toasted almonds and ยฝ teaspoon smoked paprika before blending. (this one is great spooned over grilled chicken or fish/seafood)
- Roasted Red Pepper Vodka Sauce – Blend the sauce as written, then transfer it to a saucepan and simmer with ยผ cup heavy cream and 2 tablespoon vodka for 3 to 4 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
How to Use Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Our very favorite way to use this red pepper sauce is tossing it with cooked pasta. However the uses can seem endless…
- Toss with pasta – The classic! Stir the sauce into hot, cooked pasta with a splash of starchy pasta water, then finish with freshly grated parmesan.
- Drizzle over grilled chicken or fish – Spoon it generously over Grilled Buttermilk Chicken Breasts, salmon, or a flaky white fish. Add a sprinkle of fresh basil and you have an easy, restaurant quality dinner.
- Spread on sandwiches and wraps – A flavor packed alternative to mayo… or mix it up with some mayo. Try it on a grilled chicken sandwich, a turkey wrap, or a veggie panini with mozzarella and arugula.
- Serve it as a dip – Spoon it into a bowl and serve with crostini or warm naan and a side of feta or goat cheese.
How to Store Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
To Store: Pour leftover Roasted Red Pepper Sauce into an airtight container or a mason jar and store it in the fridge for up to 1 week. The sauce will thicken a little as it chills, so when you are ready to use it again just stir in a splash of water, broth, or starchy pasta water to bring it back to a pourable consistency.
To Freeze: This sauce freezes beautifully, just like marinara! Pour it into a freezer safe container or a zip top bag (lay the bag flat to freeze for easy stacking in the freezer) and freeze for up to 3 months. I like to portion it into ยฝ cup or 1 cup servings so I can pull out exactly what I need for a quick weeknight pasta. Thaw overnight in the fridge, then warm gently on the stove or in the microwave before serving.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe FAQs
Not quite, though we might consider them cousins. Traditional Spanish Romesco is made with roasted red peppers too, but it also includes toasted almonds or hazelnuts, breadcrumbs for body, smoked paprika, and usually sherry vinegar.
Thin it out with a splash of liquid until it is the consistency you want. The best choice depends on how you are using it.
For pasta, stir in ยผ to ยฝ cup of starchy pasta cooking water.
For spooning over chicken, fish, or veggies, add a tablespoon or two of warm chicken broth or water. Cream can also work here!
For the creamy or vodka sauce variations, splash in a little extra cream.
Add liquid a little at a time and stir as you go. You can always add more, but you cannot take it back! NO Take-sies Back-sies.
Goes Great With…
Spoon the Roasted Red Pepper Sauce over hot pasta and serve with:
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Easy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 oz jar Roasted Red Peppers - Drained -in water not oil
- 1 Large Garlic Clove - more as desired
- 1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar
- 10 Fresh Basil Leaves
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ยผ cup Olive Oil
- black pepper to taste
Serving with Pasta
- up to 1 lb. pasta - (rigatoni, penne, spaghetti, or what ever pasta you like)
- ยฝ cup reserved starchy pasta cooking water
- fresh grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- To a food processor or blender add the drained red peppers, garlic clove, balsamic, basil leaves, salt and olive oil. Process or blend until smooth.16 oz jar Roasted Red Peppers, 1 Large Garlic Clove, 1 teaspoon Balsamic Vinegar, 10 Fresh Basil Leaves, 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt, ยผ cup Olive Oil
- Give it a taste, adjust as needed with a dash more salt, garlic, or balsamic.
- Use immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Using with pasta
- Cook up to 1 lb pasta. Reserve about ยฝ cup starchy pasta cooking water.
- Toss the drained pasta with the roasted red pepper sauce, thin with the starchy pasta water. Sprinkle in fresh grated parmesan cheese and stir to coat.
- Serve right away!
Recipe Tips and Notes:
Storing: If you are making this ahead let cool and store in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge. Freezing: Pour it into a freezer safe container or a zip top bag (lay the bag flat to freeze for easy stacking in the freezer) and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight for serving then reheat. Sauce Troubleshooting: Too thin? Simmer on the stove over medium low heat to evaporate some of the water. You could also add extra Parmesan cheese to thicken. Too thick? Add a little chicken broth, water or cream to thin it out a bit.
Paige Higginbotham says
would this recipe work for canning as well?
Susie Weinrich says
Unfortunately I don’t know much about canning and safety around canning.
Joy says
Super Simple and tasty too๐
Kathy says
Can this be frozen?
Susie Weinrich says
You should definitely be able to freeze it, just like marinara!
Carolyn says
Do u have to peel the skin off the red peppers
Susie says
They should be soft enough to blend or some jarred roasted peppers will already have the skins removed.
John says
๐ Great for pasta year-round!