For roasting, select straight-sided peppers and chiles; avoid irregularly shaped ones as they are difficult to roast evenly. Place the whole pepper directly on the grate of a gas burner and set the heat to high, so that the flame is licking the pepper. If you don’t have gas, you can use a preheated broiler. Cook the pepper, using a pair of tongs to turn it, for 1 to 2 minutes per side.
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Continue until the skin is charred and blistered all over.
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The flesh of the pepper will still be relatively firm at this point. Transfer the pepper to a bowl, seal with plastic wrap, and let rest for about 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.
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The steam from the pepper will finish the cooking process and loosen the skin. Once it is cool, transfer the pepper to a cutting board and use a paring knife to scrape off its skin.
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Don’t worry about removing every last black speck.
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This can be a bit messy, but avoid any temptation to rinse the pepper off with water, or the flavor will disappear down the drain along with the skin. But using a small bowl to collect the waste can make it more manageable.
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Cut the pepper open.
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Cut out the seed pod.
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And then remove any remaining seeds.
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The roasted pepper is now ready.
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It can be used as is, julienned, diced, or pureed for a recipe.
Green, red, yellow, and orange bell peppers and fresh chiles such as Anaheims and poblanos can all be roasted this way. Roasted peppers and chiles will keep in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for several days.