Charred Pepper Salad with Feta

5 from 4 votes

Sweet bell peppers and blistered shishitos are tossed with red wine vinegar, garlic, and olive oil, then finished with creamy feta, fresh basil, and mint.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time20

Course: Side Dish, Salad

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Servings: people

Author: Gaby Dalkin

Ingredients

3 pounds bell peppers and some shishito or padron peppers
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic chopped
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
12 ounces feta in the brine, crumbled or torn into small pieces
fresh basil and mint for garnish

Instructions

Prep the peppers. For the large peppers: cored and quartered. For the shishitos or padrons, leave them whole.
Prepare a grill for high heat.
Grill the peppers, turning occasionally, until charred in spots and nearly cooked through, about 10 minutes. Shishitos or padrons will cook faster, so remove them once grill marks appear.
Let the peppers cool slightly. Slice the larger ones into 1-inch strips. You can peel off some of the charred skin if desired.
In a large bowl, toss the grilled peppers with olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper.
Arrange on a serving platter. Top with crumbled feta and garnish with torn basil and mint. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

Get your grill screaming hot before the peppers touch the grates. High heat is what creates true char and caramelization on the pepper skin. A medium or low fire just steams the peppers, and you lose that signature smoky depth.
Core and quarter your bell peppers before grilling. Flat, even pieces make direct contact with the grates, which means better char coverage and more consistent cooking throughout. Whole bell peppers take longer and char unevenly.
Grill the shishitos and padrons separately from the bell peppers. Their thin skins blister in 3 to 4 minutes, while bell peppers need closer to 10. Mixing them on the grill at the same time almost guarantees the small ones will burn before the big ones are done.
Leave the shishito and padron peppers whole. Cutting them releases their moisture too quickly on a hot grill. Leaving them intact keeps the interior juicy while the exterior blisters and chars perfectly.
Dress the peppers while they are still warm. Warm peppers absorb the olive oil, red wine vinegar, and garlic much more effectively than cold ones. The heat opens up the pepper flesh and lets the dressing penetrate deeply instead of just coating the surface.
Use feta that comes packed in brine, not the pre-crumbled dry kind. Brine-packed feta is creamier, saltier, and more intensely flavored. Pre-crumbled feta tends to be chalky and dry, which does not complement the juicy charred peppers.
Peel the larger pepper pieces after grilling, not before. The char loosens the skin as the peppers cook. Trying to peel raw peppers is tedious and unnecessary. Once grilled and slightly cooled, the charred skin slips off easily if you want a silkier texture.
Skip the green bell peppers entirely. Green bell peppers are unripe and significantly more bitter and vegetal than red, yellow, or orange varieties. They do not caramelize well under high heat, and their flavor actively competes with the sweetness and smokiness you are building.
Tear the herbs instead of chopping them. Tearing basil and mint releases their oils more gently and keeps the edges from bruising and oxidizing. Chopped herbs turn dark and limp much faster, especially in a warm dish like this one.
Serve this salad at room temperature, not cold from the fridge. Cold temperatures dull the smoky flavor of the charred peppers and cause the olive oil to solidify slightly, which makes the texture feel heavy. Room temperature lets the full range of flavors come forward.

Nutrition (estimated)