Any shortcuts to peeling roasted peppers?

[Diane in Bexley]

Every time I turn on the grill, I throw some veggies on to roast for a later purpose. Adore roasted red, yellow, green, any kind of pepper. BUT..it's such a PITA to peel the skins once the peppers are charred. Anyone have any shortcuts/tips on how to do this quickly? Thanks!

[greygarious]

If you slice off the top and bottom, then slice down the length of the resulting "tube", you can then flatten the pepper and cut away the ribs and seeds. You can then grill or broil the skin side evenly without turning. The more or less flat surface also makes removing the charred skin easier.

[dave_c]

After you've bagged or covered the peppers as mentioned by the many replies, I've found using a spoon, which seem to work better for me, instead of using a paring knife to scrape the skin and the innards of a pepper. A spoon seems to conforms better to the pepper and seems to scoop/hold seed better than a paring knife, especially when making chile rellenos.

[LindaWhit]

I always roast pepper halves, so the innards have been removed already pre-roasting. I like the flesh to be roasted as well - not just the outside skin. I don't go overboard, but they definitely get flipped so the insides get a little roasty-toasty.

[shaogo]

I find the fire from my regular gas-fired grill isn't hot enough to char them without first burning the lovely tender flesh underneath.

Resist putting them on the grill and put them directly on the gas burner (take off one of the grates and put 'em right on the lava rocks) or put 'em on the stove. Then follow any of the recommendations hereinabove for removing the burnt skins (I, frankly, soak 'em with a blast of water from the sink and it rushes away all the black bits but also a bit of the flavorful juices, too).

[lidia]

I find the oven method heats the skins more evenly and is not too aggressive on the flesh. If you still want to use the grill, maybe you should look into indirect roasting.

[LindaWhit]

I like the black bits if they go through to the flesh! LOL

[pcdarnell]

I bought a case of Hatch chiles and grilled them, then froze them without peeling. I froze them in zip lock bags after they were cool enough to do so. When they thaw, the skin slips right off way more easily than when I do the paper bag-steaming trick. It doesn't sound like you use them immediately, so it might be worth a try.

[sparkareno]

That's a good idea. My problem is that they are usually too hot to peel and they are so messy.

[lidia]

You have to let them cool down until they are warm but manageable. Depending on the quantity at least 1/2 hour-45 min.

pcdarnell, that's interesting about the freezing!

[nemo]

Martha Stewart trick, if you don't mind using paper towels. Wrap each pepper in a paper towel, let steam/cool, use the paper towel to wipe off the skins. Saves your hands from getting stained.

[roxlet]

If you put the peppers in a paper bag to steam as soon as they are charred, they will steam and the skins will loosen making them much easier to peel. You could probably put them in a bowl and cover tightly for the same effect.

[cheesecake17]

I put the peppers in a large pyrex bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Less mess, and you can peel into the bowl.

[lidia]

I put them in a stockpot with lid. No plastic wrap to throw away.

[LindaWhit]

I use a ziploc bag that I don't seal shut - just fold the bag over a bit to keep the steam in. 10 minutes; peppers peel like a charm.