Ajvar, masarap itow!
I was getting tired of the usual eats, so I decided to pop in one of the euro delis around here.
Eto---Ajvar. Kung tipid ka at tamarichi ka minsan magluto, here. It works like pesto.
Ajvar or ayvar (IPA ['ajvar]) is a relish made principally from red bell peppers, with eggplant, garlic and chili pepper. It is predominantly popular in the Balkans, chiefly in former Yugoslav republics. Depending on capsaicin content in bell peppers and the amount of added chili peppers, it can be sweet, piquant (the most common), or very hot.
Ajvar can be consumed as a bread spread, an addition in sandwiches, a condiment (often used with grilled or roasted meat), or a salad.
Preparation of ajvar is somewhat difficult, as it involves a great deal of manual labor, especially as regards the peeling of the cooked peppers. Traditionally, it is prepared in mid-autumn, when bell peppers are most abundant, conserved in glass jars, and consumed throughout the year (although in most households stocks do not last until the spring, when fresh salads start to emerge anyway, so it is usually enjoyed as a winter food). Often, the whole family or neighbours gather to bake the bell peppers, peel them, and cook them. The principal cultivar of pepper used is called roga — it is large, red, horn-shaped, with thick flesh and relatively easy to peel. It typically ripens in late September.
In order to produce ajvar, bell peppers and eggplants are baked whole on a plate on an open fire, a plate of a wood in a stove, or in an oven. The baked peppers must briefly rest in a closed dish, to allow them to cool and to allow the flesh to separate from the skin. Next, the skin is carefully peeled off and seeds removed. The peppers are then ground in a mill or chopped in tiny pieces (this variant is often referred to as pinđur). Finally, the mush is stewed for a couple of hours in large pots, with added sunflower oil and garlic, in order to condense and reduce the water, as well as to enhance later conservation. Salt (and sometimes also vinegar) is added at the end and the hot mush is poured directly into glass jars which are immediately sealed.
Comments