Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
This fantastically easy Roasted Red Pepper Sauce takes 5 minutes to make, and adds instant flavor to a ton of foods. I drizzle it on Crispy Smashed Potatoes, spoon it onto Spice Rubbed Chicken, toss it with pasta and vegetables, and more. It’s made without cream, and is friendly to all styles of eating (Whole30 compliant, vegan, gluten-free, etc).
Much like the Basil Vinaigrette I shared last week, this is a sauce that can go on sooooooooo many things.
It’s basically flavor sauce.
Drizzle it on chicken, fish, vegetables, and so on, and boom! Flavor.
This is another recipe that I came to love during my Whole30, and I really have to thank the Whole30 for forcing me to rediscover the awesomeness of blender sauces.
Because of the restrictions of the program, you’re forced to get creative with simple and flavorful recipes, and having this sauce on hand was key to many satisfying dinners.
It’s quite a simple preparation, which goes as follows:
Put stuff in a blender, and blend.
Done.
See why I love it so much? And just wait until you taste it (seriously).
For the prep, you’ll need roasted red peppers, shallot, garlic, capers, and basil:
Quick note on the peppers: make sure to use a good quality jarred roasted red pepper.
I’ve seen brands where it’s a bunch of pepper scraps crammed into a jar, and in my taste tests, it wasn’t as good.
I usually use Divina brand, which I get from Whole Foods. The peppers are huge (about 3 to a jar), have those charred fire roasted bits, and are really delicious.
Moving on: throw those ingredients into a blender, and also add some lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper:
Blend on high for about 30-60 seconds, until completely smooth:
The sauce can now be stored in the refrigerator for one week, ready to be drizzled on whatever you’d like.
I LOVE this sauce on those Crispy Smashed Potatoes I posted the other day:
I also dunk roasted broccoli florets into this sauce, serve it with Crispy Spice Rubbed Chicken Thighs, or even plain Slow Cooker Chicken Breast when I’m in a pinch.
If you try this recipe, I’d love to know! Leave a comment, rate it, and share your photo on social media with a tag to @fifteenspatulas so I can check out your creation. Enjoy!
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce Tips & Tricks:
- Can you freeze roasted red pepper sauce? Yes, for one month.
- What are some uses for roasted red pepper sauce? Drizzle on fish, toss with pasta, serve with chicken and lamb, drizzle a little bit on a fancy vegetable pizza, spread on a sandwich, dollop a spoonful onto your burger, etc. It’s extremely versatile.
- How long does roasted red pepper sauce keep? Store it in the refrigerator for one week.
- Can you switch up the herbs? Yes, I also think parsley is great in place of the basil.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Ingredients
- 16 ounce jar roasted red peppers drained
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp minced shallot
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp packed chopped fresh basil (10 leaves)
- 1 tbsp capers drained
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Juice of 1/2 lemon (3/4 oz, liquid measurement)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into a blender jar.
- Blend for 30-60 seconds on high speed, until completely smooth.
- Serve and enjoy!
- Store any leftovers in the fridge for 1 week, or freeze for 1 month.
Notes
Nutrition
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Hi Joanne! I literally just put this together and had to come to the computer to send you my highest praises!! Looked through so many recipes online and thought your recipe had such a complementing array of ingredients. I and my husband both said WOW! that is fantastic!! Printed the recipe and it will definitely go in my most precious recipes folder. Thank you so much for sharing this. Btw the only thing I did different was put the cut lemon on the grill to char before using. My hubs is making a list of all the things he wants it on!! LOL Beautiful!
Really glad to hear this, Patty! Enjoy!
This is a delicious tasting sauce and so versatile. I first tried it a few months back because I can no longer tolerate tomatoes. I’ve made it several times to put on Pasta dishes, and veggies. I love it so much I even got a little creative one evening and added some cream cheese to make a variation. It was fantastic too. Thanks for such a wonderfully delicious and versatile recipe!
pardon me, but could i use something else, like olives in place of capers? this sounds delicious, thank you!
You can leave them out, or you can try the substitution since that might be really good!
I add a little bit of honey and it just takes the whole thing up a notch. So delicious! Quinoa, black beans, pico, avocado with this sauce on top. My favorite lunch.
Excellent the first time I made it. The second time I added a 1/2 cup + of almonds to add a pesto/crunch thing. Great stuff.
Made this tonight for the first time. Both my husband and I have chronic kidney disease, thankfully, we are in the low risk group – but not wanting to get worse. We both love pasta but now need to truly limit sodium and tomatoes. Red peppers are a kidney friendly veggie, and your recipe was SUPER delicious! It is perfect!
It came together in a snap, which is another bonus. We are going to be enjoying this recipe over and over and over again! I’m definitely sharing it with my cooks club on Facebook and my friends. Thank you so much!!!
Instead of peppers from a jar, can one use fresh raw peppers? Also, can one make the sauce with green peppers?
I love this sauce. Thank you!!