Adapted from a Saveur article about Nîmes, in which the recipe was called Poivrons Rouges Grillés et Marinés. I like to keep these peppers in the fridge for salads and pizza and just to make a plate look pretty with a tastier garnish than parsley. The peppers are plump because they’re allowed to finish roasting gently in a cooling oven. Of course you may use other colors of bell peppers, but yellow and orange and green peppers turn dull. Red stays red. You really do need bell peppers for this recipe, because the walls of bell peppers are thick enough to roast.
6 red bell peppers
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
salt to taste
Preheat oven to 400°F. Put the peppers on a sheet pan and roast, turning once, until they begin to soften, about 20 minutes. Turn off oven, leaving peppers inside to continue softening for 1 hour.
Stem, skin, and seed peppers, then thickly slice lengthwise. Put peppers into a colander to drain for 1 hour, then transfer to a deep dish. Add garlic and red wine vinegar. Season to taste with salt. Pour enough extra-virgin olive oil (Saveur advises “preferably a fruity one from Nîmes” though few of us have such a choice) over peppers to cover. Gently toss. Cover and let marinate at room temperature for at least 3 hours before serving. Peppers will keep in the refrigerator, covered, for a long time. Saveur says “up to 10 days,” but I have kept them for weeks and weeks and they are still delicious. Serve at room temperature.