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Sweeten meals with peppers

July 19, 2009 3:42 am

SWEET PEPPERS are one of the most flavorful, vitamin-packed veggies. And they are so versatile: You can enjoy them in sandwiches, sauces and more.

For all you hear about oranges being rich in vitamin C, peppers, surprisingly, have more vitamins than citrus fruits. By weight, green bell peppers have twice as much vitamin C as citrus fruits; red peppers have three times as much.

Crunchy red peppers are sweet as candy this time of year, and ripe and affordable in the dog days of summer through early autumn.

And they pack such a nutritional punch. A cup of chopped red peppers has only 46 calories but 140 percent of your daily requirement of vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene. And a cup of chopped red peppers has twice your daily requirement of vitamin C.

People who eat more fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin A and C tend to have a reduced risk of infections, cancer, heart disease, asthma and arthritis, and red peppers are an easy way to get more of both.

Red peppers also contain about 15 percent of your daily requirement of vitamin B6, which is good for your heart and your mood. They also contain folate, another heart-healthy vitamin that also helps prevent birth defects. And, red peppers contain lutein and zeaxanthin, natural compounds that shield the eyes. People who eat more of these compounds have a lower risk of macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in old age.

GLOBALLY ENJOYED

Bell peppers, like their spicy cousins the chili peppers, originated in Latin America about 7,000 years ago. Christopher Columbus brought peppers to Spain in 1493, and from there, these fabulous veggies spread throughout Europe and Asia. Delicious dishes around the world now feature sweet peppers. A few examples:

Most Cajun dishes are based on the flavorful trio of sauteed bell peppers, onions and celery.

Gazpacho, the cold summer soup of Spain and Italy, includes sweet peppers, as does France's ratatouille stew.

Salsa has a mix of hot and sweet peppers.

There are at least four distinct types of sweet peppers: bell, pimento, banana and cubanelle.

The most familiar are bell peppers, so named for their boxy, bell-like shape. Pimento peppers, which can be hard to find, tend to be smaller than bell peppers. They have a rich flavor and are traditionally chopped and stuffed into olives.

Banana peppers resemble the fruit they are named after and have a delicate, thin skin. But be careful when buying banana peppers: They can be either hot or sweet. Cubanelles are similarly long and thin-skinned but milder than banana peppers.

While sweet peppers fall into these four types, there are hundreds of varieties and colors: green, red, purple, brown and more.

SUCCULENT AND SWEET

You can prepare peppers many ways. Cooking decreases vitamin C, although it makes beta-carotene easier to absorb.

You can eat peppers raw to get the most vitamin C. Cut raw peppers into strips and include in a veggie platter, or cut out the spongy core, slice the peppers horizontally, and use the scalloped rings to decorate a salad.

When red peppers are in season and thus inexpensive, it's nice to buy extra to roast. Roasted red peppers are deceptively rich tasting and even sweeter than the raw peppers. On a hot day, I prefer to roast red peppers on the grill, but it's easy to roast them in the oven broiler.

Either way, roast and turn whole peppers until the skins blackens and blisters, about 10 to 12 minutes. Then put the hot peppers in a heatproof bowl and cover with a plate or a towel and allow them to steam for another 10 to 15 minutes. When they're cool enough to touch, the skins peel easily with a kitchen knife. Discard the blackened skin and the seedy core--keep the ruby-red roasted flesh.

Slice the roasted red peppers and use them as a colorful side dish. You can also use strips of roasted red pepper to liven up pasta or perk up sandwiches. Or, puree them with olive oil and garlic to make a delicious sauce to serve over pasta or fish or chicken.

If roasting peppers doesn't appeal to you, consider sauteing them with garlic and onions, or add to a stir-fry. Whatever way you like your peppers, you're bound to boost your health, too.

Jennifer Motl welcomes reader questions via her Web site, brighteating.com, or mailed to Nutrition, The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401.