Anyone who often visits Bulgaria knows that the first dish on the menu of almost any restaurant is Shopska salad, this is the hallmark of modern Bulgarian cuisine. Once people try it, they become fans for life. There are as many varieties of Shopska salad as there are chefs who prepare it, just like. For example, a salad with baked peppers and feta cheese fits well into the concept of a special Shopska salad.
I remember once in Bulgaria, we ran into the famous singer Demiss Roussos. It turns out he stayed briefly at a multi-star hotel next door. We were told a story about a famous singer ordering breakfast. The order is something like this: something from local food at your discretion. Usually the “discretion” comes down to local pastries, coffee and Shopska salad. The great Greek tried Shopska salad and... the next morning the order sounded like this: “. Three!".
Although, to be honest, as a rule, Shopska salad is eaten at the beginning of lunch, accompanied by an almost obligatory glass of grape rakia. Shopska salad (Bulgarian: Shopska salata) is a vegetable salad made from fresh vegetables (cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, peppers), generously seasoned with fresh cheese, seasoned with olive oil. An excellent dish known far beyond the borders of Bulgaria. Shopska salad is also popular in Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, the Czech Republic and even in Ukraine.
I read somewhere that the Shopska salad dish is not historical and does not have ancient roots. And the Balkantourist chefs prepared it somewhere in the mid-60s. The authorship of the Shopska salad, meanwhile, is disputed by many, declaring that such a salad is their national one and was invented by them.
If you look closely, Shopska salad has a lot in common with Greek salad, with shepherd’s salad, and you can still remember quite a few options, the same. Shopska salad with baked peppers is a simple dish; if you have all the vegetables, it can be prepared in half an hour, no more difficult, and most of the time is spent on baking the peppers.
Step-by-step recipe for Shopska salad
Ingredients (2 servings)
- Cheese cheese 100 gr
- Tomatoes 2 pcs
- Cucumbers 2 pcs
- Sweet red pepper 2 pcs
- Sweet purple onion 1 PC
- Parsley 4-5 sprigs
- Olive oil 2-3 tbsp. l.
- When ordering Shopska salad in a Bulgarian restaurant, you can never be sure what kind of salad you will get. Or rather, the salad will always contain tomatoes, cucumbers and feta cheese. But different ways of cutting vegetables, the presence of onions, peppers, sometimes black olives, dressing - and the salad becomes completely different. In the vast majority of cases, Shopska salad is served without dressing, and everyone pours olive oil over it themselves - to their own taste.
Vegetables for salad
- We prefer to prepare Shopska salad with onions, sometimes with green onions, and sometimes with sweet onions. Shopska salad with roasted peppers and green or sweet purple onions - we really like it.
- To prepare a salad with baked peppers, you need the freshest vegetables. Cucumbers should be crunchy, green, and ideally fresh from the garden. The freshest cheese is needed.
Delicious cheese
- The tomatoes are exceptionally red and ripe. It is important. Large ripe tomatoes should even be peeled. Cut the tomatoes into four parts, cut out the white growth zone, remove the seeds and cut them into slices or cubes.
- Remove seeds and tails from red bell peppers, coat with a little olive oil and bake in the oven or microwave. Then cool and chop finely. In Bulgaria, most often, peppers are baked whole on a grill (skara) or in a special electrical appliance - chushkopek, I dream of bringing myself one, but it is very heavy. Cut the baked pepper into small pieces.
- Cucumbers can be peeled if you are afraid that they will taste bitter. Next, cut the cucumbers into quarters lengthwise and cut them into small pieces. However, in Bulgaria you can find very large cuts, almost into cubes.
- Take a sweet purple onion, such as Yalta, and cut it into thin strips. By the way, it’s very tasty if the salad with baked peppers is made using both green and onions.
- Parsley, leaves only, finely chopped.
Chop all the vegetables and grate the cheese
- Brynza (Bulgarian sirene), preferably fresh brine, and not the hardest, grate on a fine grater or crumble with your hands - at your discretion. The density of feta cheese should be like that of homemade cottage cheese.
- Shopska salad with baked peppers can be mixed immediately and placed on plates, but it is better to lay out the vegetables in layers or “sectors” and mix on the plate.
Place fresh vegetables on a plate
- The second method is preferable, because at the same time, the vegetables do not release juice.
- Place cucumbers and tomatoes one by one. Add onion and sprinkle with parsley.
Arrange the chopped onions then the roasted peppers
- Arrange the roasted peppers. If desired, you can add a little pepper or a pinch of dry savory. Sprinkle with grated cheese - in the form of a white cap of cheese on top of the salad.
Arrange the roasted peppers
- Already on the table, everyone will mix the salad for themselves and dress it to taste. The dressing is regular olive oil. You can add a little wine vinegar and pepper. Often 2-3 black olives are added to the salad. But, in my opinion, only olive oil is appropriate there.
Salad with baked peppers has a very delicate taste. In addition, such a salad will not harm your figure, since it is low-calorie and all the products in it are perfectly combined. You can add a wide variety of greens to it, depending on your taste. With different greens you will get completely different salads, but still very light and tasty. To make the salad beautiful, it is advisable to use bell peppers of different colors.
Prepare the necessary products.
Wash and dry bell peppers. Brush the peppers with olive oil and place on a baking sheet or in a frying pan. Bake the peppers in the oven at 200°C for about 15 minutes.
Place hot peppers in plastic bags. Tie the bags tightly. Leave the pepper in them for 15 minutes. 
Meanwhile, wash and cut the tomatoes into large cubes. 
Chop the greens.
Finely chop the garlic with a knife.
Remove the pepper from the bags. After the pepper has been in the bag, the skin should be quite easy to peel off. Peel the peppers. Remove the seeds. Cut the pepper into large pieces. 
Mix cooled peppers, tomatoes, garlic and herbs. Salt the salad to taste. Season the salad with olive oil and lemon juice. Stir.
Cut Feta cheese into small cubes.
Transfer the salad to a salad bowl and top with pieces of Feta. Decorate the salad with herbs. 
A light, healthy and tasty salad is ready.
Bon appetit!
Peperoni arrostiti con pomodori is one of those classic dishes that captures the spirit, flavors, textures and colors of the cuisine of the Italian South.
Once again I praised myself for buying the book Recipes from my Italian Grandmother. Since we returned from our trip to Campania, Italy, I have been cooking the precise recipes in this book every week and finding it more and more useful each time.
If we talk about today’s dish, it is both a salad and, if desired, homemade. I rarely manage to cook something at once. In this case, this is not a problem at all: peppers and tomatoes baked in this way can be stored in the refrigerator for several weeks. I suspect that olive oil acts as a natural preservative here.
Roasted pepper and tomato salad
Ingredients:
- 3 bell red peppers;
- 6 large plum tomatoes or 12-15 cherry tomatoes;
- ½ tsp. red hot pepper flakes;
- 1 sweet red onion, thinly sliced;
- 3 cloves garlic, minced;
- zest and juice of 1 lemon;
- 3 tbsp. parsley leaves, chopped;
- 2 tbsp. olive oil;
- salt, ground black pepper;
- olives.
Preheat the oven to 220C.
Place the peppers on a baking sheet and roast in the oven, turning occasionally, for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the peppers are charred. Add tomatoes to the baking sheet and bake for another 5 minutes.
Transfer the peppers to a plastic bag and let cool.
Peel the peppers, remove seeds and cut into slices. Cut the tomatoes into pieces or leave whole if they are cherry tomatoes.
In a bowl, combine peppers, tomatoes, red hot pepper flakes, onion, garlic, lemon zest and juice, and parsley.
Details
Baked bell pepper salad is very easy to prepare. To prepare it you need a minimum of simple ingredients. But despite this, the salad turns out surprisingly tender and tasty. Delight your family with an excellent roasted pepper salad that is easy to prepare. The salad is so delicious that everyone will love it. Try making this salad. You definitely won't regret it.
Roasted pepper salad with garlic and parsley
Required ingredients:
- bell pepper – 4 pcs.;
- parsley – 1 bunch;
- dark balsamic vinegar - 2 tsp;
- garlic – 2 cloves;
- salt and pepper - to taste;
- olive oil – 20 ml.
Cooking process:
Dry well-washed bell peppers with a paper towel. After this, make several punctures in the peppers with a fork. After brushing the peppers with olive oil, place them on a baking sheet.
Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, turning on the appliance at 200 degrees. Place hot peppers in a bag or baking bag. Close the bag and leave the peppers in it for 20 minutes. This is done so that the peppers are thoroughly peeled.
Once the time is up, remove the peppers from the bag and peel both seeds and skins. Cut the pepper into large strips.
Mix the juice remaining in the bag with chopped garlic and finely chopped parsley. Add balsamic vinegar to the resulting mixture and stir.
Pour the prepared dressing over the chopped peppers. Stir, not forgetting to add salt and pepper. Place the salad in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to soak, then serve as a delicious vegetable appetizer with a side dish or meat dish.
Salad of baked peppers with feta cheese
Required ingredients:
- bell pepper – 3-4 pcs.;
- salt and pepper - to taste;
- vegetable or olive oil;
- garlic – 1 clove;
- feta cheese – 100 gr.
Cooking process:
Wash the bell peppers well, then pat dry with a paper towel to remove excess moisture from the vegetables. Place the peppers on a baking sheet and place in an oven preheated to 200 degrees.
Bake the peppers for 15-20 minutes until black spots appear. Then, after removing the peppers from the oven, immediately transfer them to a bag and leave them there to cool. Thanks to this, the peppers will peel well.
Peel the cooled peppers and then cut them into long slices or strips. Place the peppers in a salad bowl or on a plate. Now get to the garlic. Peel it and finely chop it or put it through a press.
Add garlic to peppers. Stir by pouring oil over the salad and seasoning with salt and pepper. Crumble the cheese on top.
The salad can be served immediately, but it is better to let it brew for at least a little time.
Salad of baked peppers and tomatoes
Required ingredients:
- bell pepper – 3 pcs.;
- salt - to taste;
- garlic – 2 cloves;
- olive oil – 3-4 tbsp;
- tomatoes – 3 pcs.;
- olives – 0.5 cans;
- Italian herbs – 1 tsp;
- purple onion – 1 pc.;
- greenery;
- soft cheese - to taste;
- pepper - to taste.
Cooking process:
The first step is to bake the bell peppers. Wash them well and dry them, and then place them in a hot oven for 30 minutes.
Place the baked peppers in a bag and, having tied it, leave for 20 minutes. After this, peel and seed the peppers. Cut the pepper into strips.
Prepare a dressing from olive oil, to which you need to add salt, pepper, as well as dried herbs and chopped garlic. Pour the prepared mixture over the chopped peppers and mix gently. Place the peppers in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.
Peel the onion and then cut into thin half rings. Cut the tomatoes into slices. Place onions and tomatoes on top of peppers. Then add the whole olives.
Sprinkle the salad with chopped herbs. Crumble the soft cheese on top and serve the salad.
I love the end of summer for the abundance of delicious vegetables. Today I suggest you cook roasted bell pepper salad. The highlight of this salad is its dressing, as with most salads.
Baked bell peppers go well with meat, pasta, and potatoes. But the tastiest thing is to make toast with it, preferably from black bread. By the way, if you like dishes made from baked vegetables, I highly recommend it.
Roasted Pepper Salad Recipe
Ingredients: 10 pieces. bell pepper, 100 ml olive oil, 3 large cloves of garlic, a couple of sprigs of basil, salt, red pepper, 50 ml balsamic vinegar.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
Place the washed bell peppers on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and bake in the oven for 40 minutes.
For this salad, choose red and yellow peppers. Firstly, the salad will be beautiful, and secondly, for some reason the skin of green peppers is very difficult to clean.
After 40 minutes, when the skin of the pepper turns black in many places, remove it from the oven and transfer it to a bag. Tie the bag and wait for the pepper to cool.
Then easily and quickly peel the peppers from skins, stalks and seeds.
Cut the pepper into strips, diamonds or squares and place in a salad bowl or jar.
How to Make Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar Dressing for Roasted Bell Pepper Salad.
Pour olive oil into a small saucepan, crush the garlic, finely chop the basil.
Then heat the dressing slightly over low heat.
No need to bring it to a boil, just heat it up. Our goal is for the garlic and basil to release their flavor into the oil.
Salt and pepper the pepper and mix gently.
Then pour aromatic oil over it and lastly add balsamic vinegar to the salad. If suddenly you don’t have balsamic vinegar, then you can safely replace it with regular or apple cider vinegar.
And now, most importantly, you need to be patient and let the salad brew for 12 hours. This is perhaps the most difficult step in preparing this Roasted Bell Pepper Salad.
