Amped-Up Red Pepper Paste

IngridH's Note:

Taken from The New Portuguese Table by David Leite . I love working out of this book! The recipes are laid out beautifully, and work very well. http://leitesculinaria.com Massa de pimentao forte is a pepper paste made with paprika, garlic and bay leaf (among other things). This version is mildly spicy, but you could as much piri-piri as you'd like to make it spicier. This is a staple that makes dinner easy- just rub a bit of the paste on a chicken, a steak, a pork chop, or a fatty flavorful piece of fish before roasting. It's also great tossed with potatoes and roasted!

• Total Time: 10 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 0 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 16

Yield: 1.0 cup

• 2 tablespoons sweet paprika
• 2 tablespoons hot smoked paprika
• 1/4 cup dry red wine
• 10 garlic cloves (more or less to taste)
• 2 bay leaves, well crumbled
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaf, lightly packed
• 1/3 cup flat leaf parsley, lightly packed
• 1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 dashes piri-piri, sauce (or to taste)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

1. Combine all the ingredients except for the oil in a mini food processor (or blender). Blend until a smooth paste forms.
2. Add the oil, and blend again to combine well.
3. To use: Coat your favorite meat or poultry product with about 1 tablespoon of paste per serving; then roast using your favorite method.

Reviews

[MsPia]

So flavorful! I think I want to make this for Christmas presents. Thanks for posting.

[Pesto lover]

I used this as a rub on bone-in chicken breast halves, with skin on. I let them sit for 1 hour and then put them on the grill. Wow! Great flavor. One son gave this 15 stars. The rest of us agreed that it was worthy of 5. We will use this often, I'm sure. Thanks for posting the recipe.