Taktouka — Moroccan Roasted Pepper and Tomato Salad

Roast the red and green sweet peppers under the grill or in the oven at 240°C, turning them regularly, until the skins are charred black and the flesh is soft; this will take 20–25 minutes.

Transfer the hot peppers to a bowl, cover and leave for 10 minutes to steam. Peel off the charred skins without rinsing the peppers, remove the stems and seeds, and cut the flesh into thin strips.

Score a cross on top of each tomato, drop them into 1 L of boiling water for 30 seconds, then cool, peel and deseed them. Cut the flesh into chunks.

Transfer the tomatoes to a wide, dry frying pan, add the crushed garlic and cook over medium heat for 15–20 minutes, until most of the excess liquid has evaporated; stir in the paprika at the end.

Add the roasted peppers, olive oil, white pepper, cumin, chili pepper and salt. Stir well and simmer gently for another 8–10 minutes, until the vegetables are soft but still retain some texture.

Finely chop the parsley and stir it into the hot taktouka, then remove the pan from the heat and let the salad rest for 5 minutes.

Serve the taktouka warm or at room temperature; traditionally it is eaten with bread.