Green Bell Peppers: Way or No Way?
I know they're not ripe, but I've been eating them my whole life and I like them. I also like the pretty colors they can turn, but I don't have to wait. I use them in cold salads, on hot sandwiches with onions and mushrooms (like sausage or steak), and the little bit I add to tomato sauce/gravy adds a lot to the flavor. If I'm out and skip it, I miss it. And don't forget stuffed! I love it as is, or with a dip. If you vote Way, tell us what you put them in, or how you enjoy them. We'd all love any recipes you'd care to share!
I'm WAY!
You???
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
Start Talking!
Need a question answered? Have advice to share? Start a Talk topic now!
Sign up to get your questions answered and share advice.
55 Comments:
ever since i was a little girl, ive always loved eating green bell peppers raw, with a little bit of salt n pepper sprinkled on. i find that when you cook them the texture changes and i dont like them as much
listener at 10:26PM on 01/11/09
I can only eat bell peppers when you cook the crap out of them and caramelize them, or completely raw in a crudite platter. That "in between" stage is so unappealing to me. Just thinking about stuffed bell peppers makes me sick.
BangieB at 10:28PM on 01/11/09
WAY!
When I grew up, that's what I thought bell peppers were.
Stuffed with rice and ground meat w/tomatoes was how my mom made them.
Now, I buy all colors, cut them into strips and they're snacks. The boys will only take a rainbow bag in their lunch. They explained it to their dad when he was helping them make lunches. It has to be a rainbow. He said "What?". ALL colors. DUH.
I always put pepper strips on snack trays for the kids or cheese/antipasti trays for the "adults".
Of course, grilled with onions for fajitas.
Chopped, for kick, in a salad.
Last week I used them as "nachos". REALLY good! I just used them in place of chips and added shredded cheddar, grilled chicken and jalapenos w/a little chipotle powder and broiled them until the cheese melted. I am a genius.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 10:30PM on 01/11/09
Way!
Like you, while I love peppers in all shapes and colours, I don't turn my nose up at plain old green peppers. I use them in all kinds of salads (especially, Israeli salad or a simple platter of thinly sliced vegetables with salt, olive oil and minced fresh herbs), caramelised onions & peppers (usually, a mix with the reds) are good with so many things, my cabbage/vegetable soup wouldn't be the same without them, they are good in omelettes and fantastic in fried rice and I always add them to tomato sauce. And yes, stuffed - with either meat or cheese. Interestingly, when I was little, I would only eat the stuffing from stuffed peppers - I love the flavour imparted by the peppers, but disliked their texture when they were cooked. I certainly got over it.
I can probably say that peppers in general belong to my "basic vegetables" group.
brooke29 at 10:36PM on 01/11/09
I like them best when they become red peppers, but occasionally eat green. Sausage and peppers are a favorite and I love roasted red peppers on pizza. Actually, make that roasted red peppers, sausage and smoked mozz on pizza:-).
dmcavanagh at 10:39PM on 01/11/09
Way when cooked, No way when raw.
We often use them chopped in various soups (gumbo, vegetable, chicken noodle), spaghetti, and chili. I use bell peppers sparingly, even in chili, because it has an extremely strong flavor, e.g., 1/4 of a bell pepper is more than enough to flavor a large stew pot of chili.
I don't use them when I am roasting peppers as a side. I only use red, yellow, and orange, along with zucchini, yellow squash, mushrooms, fresh basil, etc.
They're great in stuffed pepper soup and in Mexican rice.
Cassaendra at 10:52PM on 01/11/09
absolutely no way.
cybercita at 10:57PM on 01/11/09
red, yellow, orange? WAY.
green, purple? NO WAY.
sailordave at 11:03PM on 01/11/09
No way, never. One little chunk that accidentally makes it's way onto a pizza by hiding as a stowaway in the cheese will ruin a good 6 inch diameter piece of said pizza.
Heatherdee at 11:06PM on 01/11/09
Way! Love them raw or cooked. Terrific grilled for fajitas. Love to take small pieces and stuff with minced shrimp dumpling mixture and pan fry.
hungryinhouston at 11:11PM on 01/11/09
I'm with BangieB -- only cooked to obliteration or totally raw. Even that's a concession -- I used to hate them when I was little, and only now have I come to accept them in my salads, etc.
kfarrel3 at 11:46PM on 01/11/09
Any way, any color, any time.
dbcurrie at 11:54PM on 01/11/09
Good one Perkster!
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 12:02AM on 01/12/09
nope, nope, nope no way on green peppers in any way, shape or form.
Yes, yes, yes to red, yellow and orange peppers in any way, shape or form!
ChelleyD01 at 12:37AM on 01/12/09
WAY, anything with the word "pepper" in it I love.
pjracz10 at 12:38AM on 01/12/09
Way, Way, what about fajitas and gumbo and stuffed peppers? Yes way. Freeze those sucker so you will never be without them.
vickiee at 12:44AM on 01/12/09
WAY, and I'm actually really excited to know I'm not the only one who feels like something is just *missing* when I make spaghetti sauce (gravy, whatever you prefer) without them, no one ever mentions them when people request red sauce recipes, I thought I was alone! I have to go get them or I'm just not happy with it. Like brooke29, when I was a kid I hated the texture, I'm still working on liking the texture of raw peppers. Always love them cooked to death, tho!
NicMarie at 1:10AM on 01/12/09
Way, I love them cooked in spaghetti sauce, pot roasts, fajitas, soups...and then sauted with onions for brats, burgers, quesadillas..everything!! Love them.
lamora at 1:27AM on 01/12/09
Way! Sauteed with lots of s&p is my favorite obligatory veg when it's steak or pork chop night. ;)
mikaque at 3:13AM on 01/12/09
Love them raw, but that being said, the greens have a way of revisiting that the other colors, for some reason, do not.
dhorst at 7:03AM on 01/12/09
NO WAY. (That's only on the GREEN bells.)
Both BF and I really hate green bells. They bear no resemblance to their sweeter bretheren, the red, orange or yellow bells.
I always sub poblanos for green bells in just about any recipe. They're not quite as punchy as jalapenos but definitely have more personality than green bells.
A friend where I used to work said she hated green bells because when cooked, they reminded her of slugs. ROFLMAO.
therealchiffonade at 7:16AM on 01/12/09
Not just NO, but HELL NO!!!!!!
izatryt at 8:14AM on 01/12/09
No way. Green means agida. Any color but green.
JerzeeTomato at 8:39AM on 01/12/09
WAY!!!! just not on pizza unless its homemade, because partially cooked pepper destroy me. I can eat them raw and will often just snack on them with some dip. I add them to alot of dishes especailly things with onions, they just seem a natural together. I'm going to try growing my own in a pot this year, even the green ones are getting too dear for my wallet.
huneybumper at 8:42AM on 01/12/09
Absolutely NO WAY. Any shape, any color, any way. Great way to ruin any dish. Can not eat anything they touch either. I don't like them even if they are roasted. That might even be worse. Uhhh.
Butrflygirly at 9:28AM on 01/12/09
Simply........Way
Markbb at 9:37AM on 01/12/09
I'm way too Perk! Mmmm...raw, braised, sauteed, steamed (I guess)..you name it.
I've noticed recently though that green-bell-peppers need extra cleaning in comparison to yellow, orange and red because of a thicker waxy buildup?
Ps. @ Perky, thanks for adding me! I try to post recipes on my Facebook often :)
hungrychristel at 9:45AM on 01/12/09
p.s. hungry ~ ditto! can't wait to see your recipes, and try them.
I would love to see some stuffed pepper recipes. Does everyone use ground beef, rice and tomatoes? Any variations, like lamb or couscous?
The No Way responses have cracked me up. Not much middle ground for green bells, eh?
Keep 'em coming!
PerkyMac at 10:00AM on 01/12/09
WAY!!!
hungrygrl7 at 10:03AM on 01/12/09
Used to be WAY, all the way. But lately I've been noticing that I get heartburn from them, and so have been opting to leave them out of more and more of the recipes that I'd normally add them to. Even my sausages/peppers/and onions have been noticably green-bell-pepperless lately. Been sticking to the red, even though they are stupidly over-priced most of the time.
juliebugsmama at 10:30AM on 01/12/09
@ Perk - Check this super-easy (and I mean SUPER easy) stuffed pepper recipe that I use for a "template" - food tv Canada
I usually add extra bean types, some cilantro or parsley (or whatver herbs), you can pre-cook some couscous or barley and substitute for the rice, and I try different cheeses too (but this recipe is a good guideline) SOO MANY POSSIBILITIES!
hungrychristel at 10:48AM on 01/12/09
way- suasage and peppers @ fenway, in spaghetti, on pizza, pepper steak with cheese sub at Lenas. I think I could eat them anytime.
nhfoodie at 11:00AM on 01/12/09
@Juliebugsmama: Isn't it amazing how much more they cost? I often find the price gap of red/orange/yellow to be $1-3/lb more than the green ones.
Cassaendra at 11:08AM on 01/12/09
@Perky - I usually stuff them with ground chicken, or turkey-pork mixture, brown rice, garlic and herbs...sear (under the broiler, usually), and cook in tomato sauce.
brooke29 at 11:15AM on 01/12/09
NO WAY! Like Jerzee it's no way only for the green ones. When I was a kid I used to eat the stuffing from bell peppers and then sit and stare at the yucky green pepper shell until my mother gave up and sent me to bed. Even the dog was not interested.
Blue Iris at 11:22AM on 01/12/09
way
blankplate at 11:22AM on 01/12/09
Way for me No way for DH. I will eat them raw or cooked. DH cannot stand to smell them cooking or smell them in the fridge raw. Years ago he had a business in the same shopping center as a Chili's. Whenever he had to go outside after 12 noon he would always return saying the same thing "F*****g fajitas!"
finsbigfan at 11:41AM on 01/12/09
I really don't like them except for on one occasion: pizza. They are my favorite topping. I just adore them when they're mostly raw, but just slightly charred from the pizza oven. I pick them out of everything else.
Kerry Saretsky at 2:09PM on 01/12/09
Sadly, I think I'm a "no way" on this one. I'll handle eating them if necessary but I hate them on my pizza and in my salads.
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 2:12PM on 01/12/09
@Kerry ~ that's how I like them on pizza, too. Some pizzerias have green peppers that taste boiled. I have to pick them off, and make a note not to order them from that place anymore.
PerkyMac at 2:12PM on 01/12/09
Way. (Green and other colors) I like them as raw and crunchy as possible, even in my eggs. If they're cooked to sliminess as is so often the case on delivery pizza and also on fajitas, I don't like them as much.
CooksForOne at 3:09PM on 01/12/09
Way. My chili would not be the same!
stacemace at 3:44PM on 01/12/09
No Way on green bell peppers. I don't like tasting them the entire rest of the day. Red, yellow, and orange, however.... Way! If they're cooked.
buffy at 4:06PM on 01/12/09
Way for green
bessfour at 4:06PM on 01/12/09
Way! Way times 1000! I love them raw, cooked, or any way I can get them. I use them in gumbo, chili, and sausage dishes of any kind. They're really the only vegetable I like on pizza. My mom used to make stuffed peppers, but I've never been ambitious enough to try that. And they're great raw with dip!
minstrel at 4:32PM on 01/12/09
green no way unless raw with salt an pepper. red any way.
dearrie at 6:24PM on 01/12/09
ALL THE WAY!!!!!
MadelynRodriguez at 6:38PM on 01/12/09
way.... but only when raw...love them raw... can't stand them once heat has been put to them.
Alm25 at 6:43PM on 01/12/09
Gosh, I keep saying that there aren't any veggies I don't like, but this way/no way reminded me--I loathe, loathe peppers, especially green bell peppers. I'm sure the only thing more loathsome is for my dining companions to watch me pick apart a dish until the offending green is in a nice little pile on my plate.
I always wonder if Perky is keeping a tabulation on all of the responses of everyone and will someday release personality profiles of say, the people who hate peppers and anchovies versus the ones who really like fruitcake.
HeartofGlass at 6:44PM on 01/12/09
Nope...no way
foodismyspeciality at 6:51PM on 01/12/09
My Mother used to mix a little mustard in leftover meatloaf and stuff raw green peppers with it. It makes an amazing, crunchy, delicious lunch.
ocarol at 9:34PM on 01/12/09
@honeybumper~SUPER easy to grow in a pot.
carolrsfMISSESTEXAS at 2:43PM on 01/13/09
@Heart - that would be really interesting!
brooke29 at 2:52PM on 01/13/09
No
PattyC at 6:50PM on 01/13/09
No
PattyC at 6:51PM on 01/13/09