Escalivada

Ingredients

Vegetables

• 3aubergines
• 4red peppers
• 2onions, unpeeled
• 4tomatoes, optional
• 4 clovesgarlic, unpeeled

To dress

• 100 mlextra virgin olive oil
• salt
• a little sherry vinegar

To serve

• bread
• anchovies
• olives

Directions

1. Cook the vegetables whole and unpeeled, directly over embers if you can. The name comes from the Catalan escalivar, to cook in ashes, from caliu, meaning embers.
2. Over coals, turn them until the skins are blackened all over and the flesh has collapsed, which takes 30 to 45 minutes for the aubergines and about 20 for the peppers.
3. In an oven, roast at 200°C (400°F) for about 50 minutes, turning once.
4. Let the skins blacken properly. The point is not merely to cook the vegetables but to smoke them, and pale evenly roasted vegetables have missed what the dish is for.
5. Put everything into a bowl and cover it with a cloth or a plate for 15 minutes, so the trapped steam loosens the skins.
6. Peel everything while still warm, working with your fingers rather than under a running tap.
7. Do not rinse them. Washing off the char takes the smoke with it, and that smoke is exactly what you spent forty minutes making.
8. Tear the flesh into long strips with your fingers rather than cutting it with a knife.
9. Strain and keep any juices that have collected in the bowl, which are worth more than the oil.
10. Arrange the strips on a platter, pour over the reserved juices and the olive oil, and season with salt and a very little sherry vinegar.
11. Leave it for an hour at room temperature before eating, and serve with bread, anchovies and olives.

Technique

• It is better at room temperature than warm, and better again the next day.
• Tearing rather than slicing gives ragged edges that hold the oil, which is the whole reason it is done that way.
• Keep the vinegar to almost nothing. This is a dish about smoke and oil, not about acidity.

Substitutions

• A gas hob with the vegetables set directly on the burners, if you have no coals.
• A very hot grill, turning frequently, which chars well though less evenly.

Variations

• Escalivada amb anxoves, served on toast with anchovies as a tapa.
• With the garlic mashed into the dressing.
• Served alongside grilled meat or salt cod, which is the usual Catalan pairing.

History

The name comes from Catalan escalivar, to cook in ashes, from caliu, embers, recalling vegetables buried in the hearth.

Frequently asked questions

What is Escalivada?

Escalivada is a salad & side from Spain: catalan salad of peppers and aubergines roasted whole in embers. The name comes from Catalan escalivar, to cook in ashes, from caliu, embers, recalling vegetables buried in the hearth.

How long does Escalivada take to make?

Escalivada takes 20 min of preparation and 50 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Escalivada?

Yes, within limits. A gas hob with the vegetables set directly on the burners, if you have no coals. A very hot grill, turning frequently, which chars well though less evenly.

What is the most important thing to get right in Escalivada?

Let the skins blacken properly. The point is not merely to cook the vegetables but to smoke them, and pale evenly roasted vegetables have missed what the dish is for.