This vibrant Red Pepper Coulis sauce is remarkably easy to make and is an excellent partner for seafood, steak, chicken or even eggs. Using Pernod liqueur elevates this sauce to restaurant quality.
What Is A Coulis Sauce?
A coulis is simply a thick purée of cooked fruit or seasoned cooked vegetables. Coulis can be used as a savory sauce, a sauce for dessert recipes or an ingredient in soup. And roasted red bell peppers are a perfect choice to make a vibrant flavorful savory coulis.
What You Can Expect From This Recipe
In this post you'll learn how to roast, blend, and prepare a vibrant, versatile coulis better than any recipe online. Why better? This red pepper coulis recipe is a recipe from Culinary School. And one of the first sauces (and there were many) that we learned to make, a lead-up to the onslaught of the classic 5 Mother Sauces and their variants.
- Roasted Red Pepper Coulis is snappy easy little sauce, the first time we made it we served it swirled on a plate with seared scallops. They make a great flavor partnership, I’ve served it that way since.
- Thinking outside the box, Red Pepper Coulis can go with about anything, and a vegetable coulis is especially fun drizzled over poached eggs served with rustic toast. And this roasted pepper sauce can be served as a sauce for roasted pork loin.
- It’s stunning in color, exquisite in flavor, and so simple to make …and once you serve it, your family will think you just graduated from Culinary School.
Why Homemade Beats Store Bought?
You can possibly find jarred roasted red pepper coulis in a specialty market, but you just won’t experience the flavor depth of making it homemade. And why not, this is an easy sauce to make. With homemade, you can control the ingredients, no excess salt and no preservatives.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Roasted Red Bell Pepper. Either roast your own red bell peppers, or easier yet, purchase them from the olive bar at your super market.
- Shallots: A flavor mix between garlic and sweet onion, if you’ve never used them, you’re in for a treat.
- Pernod: Pernod is an important ingredient to the overall flavor of red pepper coulis. Pernod is an anise flavored liqueur from France. It has a strong black licorice flavor with fennel, coriander and mint. There really isn’t a good substitute, so please take the time to purchase a bottle.
- Smoked Paprika: My favorite paprika to use in savory dishes. Rich in color and smoky in flavor, it’s a kitchen VIP.
Ingredient Substitutions
- Broth: Substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth.
- Paprika: You can substitute plain sweet paprika for the smoked paprika, but be warned, you’ll be losing an important piece of the flavor by doing so.
How To Make Red Pepper Coulis … Its Easy
Roasting and Peeling Peppers
Pro Tip: I used a pound of roasted red peppers from the olive bar at my supermarket. For maximum flavor, roast your own red bell peppers. To make things easy, I use a 16-ounce jar of roasted red bell peppers, drained. I truly feel the flavor is not compromised. If you want to roast your own red bell peppers, do so on top of your gas stove directly on the grates. Turning often until skin is started to blacken (not burnt). Place the peppers in a plastic bag and let them steam for about ten minutes. Remove the blistered skin with your hands. Cut the top and bottoms off the peppers, slice open and remove the veins and seeds. Slice the peppers and proceed with recipe instructions.
I prefer the open flame method as it’s easier to control even blistering on the peppers. Use tongs to move them around for even cooking. This will take about 10 – 15 minutes per pepper.
- Step 1: In a large fry pan, melt the butter over medium high heat. Once the bubbles start to subside, add the diced shallots. Cook for about 3 to 5 minutes, stirring often, until tender.
- Step 2: Cut the roasted red bell peppers into strips and add to the cooked shallots. Stir and cook until heated through. About two minutes.
- Step 3: Add salt, pepper and chicken broth.
- Step 4: Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the broth has reduced by half. This will intensify the flavor and thicken the sauce.
- Step 5: Transfer mixture to a food process and pulse until desired texture is achieved. I like a more rustic or coarse sauce, so I pulse, instead of pureeing, until the pepper sauce is just blended.
- Step 6 : Immediately stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and the Pernod. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve with seared scallops or pork roast.
You’ve got a vibrant red sauce that has a perfect balance combining sweet pepper, plus fat, plus acid, plus seasoning. All the components of a great sauce.
Adjusting Texture and Taste
- Simmer longer for a thicker sauce, or thin with more chicken stock or even a drizzle of cream.
- Use a mesh strainer colander to create a smoother sauce. Just set the colander over a large bowl and use the back of a wooden spoon to push the sauce through.
Storing and Freezing
- How Long Will Red Pepper Coulis Last? Store in the refrigerator in an air tight container for up to three days.
- Freeze: This sauce will freeze very well. Just place it in a freezer safe zip-lock style bag. Squeeze the air out, and lay it flat in the freezer to maximize freezer space.
Creative Uses for Red Pepper Coulis
- Serve with seared scallops as shown in this photo.
- Drizzle a tablespoon or so over rustic toast topped with a poached egg. I love it drizzled over scrambled eggs.
- Use as a topping for individual servings of sliced pork roast.
- Red pepper coulis is a great partner for thin sliced grilled or roasted chicken.
- Try some with baked or grilled seafood.
- Stir some into a neutral savory soup, like this Chicken Pasta Butternut Squash Soup.
- And don’t forget about a pan seared steak. Perfect.
- We’ve even spooned some over Baked Potatoes. The fluffy white flesh of a baked potato is a great partner for this vivid red sauce.
Variations and Flavor Twists
- Spicy: Spice things up by adding a pinch or two of New Mexico Red Chile Powder.
- Italian: A tip from the Italians, add some cream to the sauce for a creamy version.
- Romesco Style: Blend in some toasted chopped almonds.
Tips For Success
- Don’t under roast the fresh red bell peppers. The skin won’t remove easily and the flavor will be a bit bitter.
- Simmer long enough: If you don’t simmer the sauce long enough, it will be watery.
- Butter: Don’t skip using butter. It’s the fat that make the sauce smooth and irresistible.
Questions You Might Have
Roasting red bell peppers intensifies their already sweet and earthy flavor. Shallots add a delicate sweet onion flavor. The Pernod brings a subtle licorice layer of flavor. And the smoked paprika not only adds to the vibrant color but infuses a smoky aroma and flavor.
Use a blender or an immersion blender.
This is a great meal prep idea. Yes. Place the cooked sauce in small freezer safe containers and use as needed. Just thaw in the refrigerator and gently reheat.
It is, but you’ll be happier with the end flavor result if purchasing them from an olive bar or fresh roasting your own peppers.
Presentation Tip:
Place a spoonful of sauce on the plate. Use the back of the spoon and press into the middle of the sauce. Drag the back of the spoon in a curve shape to make the pattern in the photo.
Recipe for Red Pepper Coulis
I hope you give this easy Red Pepper Coulis recipe a try. It’s an impressive little sauce that will make an ordinary meal turn into a special event.
More Homemade Sauce Recipes To Elevate Meal Plans
And don’t miss the most popular sauce recipe on my site for New Mexico Red Chile Sauce. it’s a very special New Mexican Southwestern sauce that every serious home cook should learn to make. And don’t miss my category for Sauce Recipes, you’ll find lots of recipes to elevate flavors.
If you liked this recipe, please leave a star ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the recipe card below and leave a comment. I always appreciate your feedback and hearing how everything went.
And, don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter for more delicious recipes and cooking tips. Make it a delicious day … every day.
Roasted Red Pepper Coulis
Equipment
- Food Processor or Blender
Ingredients
- 3 shallots Peeled and diced. About 3 Tablespoons.
- 2 Tablespoons Butter divided
- 2 – 3 Roasted Red Bell Pepper cut into strips. Or 1 16-ounce jar roasted red bell peppers, drained.
- 1 ½ Cups Chicken Broth
- 1 Tablespoon Smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Pernod
Instructions
- Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter and melt. Once the butter melts and bubbles begin to subside, add the chopped shallots. Sautee until tender. About 3 – 5 minutes, stirring often.
- Add the strips of roasted red bell pepper and stir well. Cook for about 1 minute.
- Add stock and simmer 10 – 15 minutes, until the liquid has reduced by half. This will thicken and intensify the flavor of the sauce.
- Puree the pepper/broth mixture in a blender or food processor. You can puree it to a smooth sauce or simply use the pulse feature for a thick rustic sauce.
- Immediately and while the sauce is still hot, add the remaining tablespoon butter and the Pernod.
- Use as a sauce for seared scallops or even roasted pork roast.
Notes
Nutrition
Roasted Red Pepper Coulis … It’s What’s For Scallops
Why Trust My Recipes? I am a Culinary School Graduate and a lifelong student of home cooking. I hope to inspire you try to cook as often as you can. I’ve been cooking for 50 years, and my recipes are tried and true tested and tested and then tested again before published. To read more take a look at my About Page.
I couldn’t find shallots so I used minced garlic, I had no access to permit so I ground up some fennel seed and sprinkled it in sparingly with paprika. I only used jarred peppers. And still, this came out yummy!
This was amazing. Salty, sweet, and aromatic. A really nice sauce to accent pretty much any kind of protein. I made this to accompany the crab cake Benedict that I made for Easter brunch. My husband and I went to a restaurant called 82 Queen down in Charleston, South Carolina several years ago. We’ve been there twice for their crab cake Benedict. This is a stack of cheesy grits, a crab cake (Maryland style), a fried green tomato, a poached egg, hollandaise and fresh green onions. Around the perimeter, some red pepper, coulis and bacon. This sauce provided the perfect punch that all those ingredients needed to really shine. Well done.
Good Morning Sara
And thanks so much for the glowing review for this recipe. I simply love how you used this sauce and must try the combo soon. I too like recreating recipe from restaurants and this Benedict sounds like some amazing cuisine.
Make it a delicious day.
Looks delicious Chef and I like the “over eggs” use.