Fire Roasted Yumminess Tutorial

      When ever I go to the grocer's, I see cans of fire roasted tomatoes, red peppers, etc. and it always surprises me. I learned how to do this in my oven and, for the longest time, assumed that others knew how to do this, as well. After talking to a bunch of people, I found out that a lot of them do not know how easy it is to do this at home! I like to oven roast my own tomatoes, peppers, and chilies. I love how they taste (it is such an easy flavour booster), is cost effective, and it allows you more control over your ingredients.
     I prefer to roast my goodies with a gas stove because, well everything seems to be cooler on a gas cooker. A regular oven, however, works just as well and tastes just as amazing. I encourage you to try this at least once, you will not be disappointed!

         1.  The first step is on obvious one, wash all your veggies. While doing this, remember to (ahem) remove the produce stickers. They burn. >smile<
         2.  Next, arrange the veggies you want to roast on a cookie sheet. Please be sure that you use a cookie sheet that you don't care about!! It might warp or become discoloured. I have one that oven roasting veggies and such is its only job.

        3.When you go to broil your veggies in the oven, you need to put the oven rack in the top most slot, being as close to the top heating element or flame as possible without touching. I usually use the high setting, but you can use the low one, it just depends on your comfort level and whether or not you are multitasking (if I am cooking a meal on the stove top, I will use the lower setting because I am not always as attentive as  I would like to be).
        4.  The skin on most veggies will start to blister and char a bit as they are under the heat source. Don't panic, this is what we want to happen. Using tongs, flip and turn your veggies as needed to make them evenly roasted. You may need to move them around a bit as some pieces are going to cook faster than others.

        5.  When you are happy with how your veggies look, they are done. This should take 5 to 10 minutes, depending on oven temp and the vegetables you are fire roasting. Super easy, right?

       Tomatoes, chilies, and pepers store well in the fridge (as long as they are covered tightly) for about 5 to 7 days. This is a nice bonus because you can roast enough to last a week and have on hand to throw into what ever you are cooking to add flavour or nutrients. This is also an easy way to peel tomatoes. I like to use vine ripened tomatoes in recipes that call for canned ones. Not only does this lend any dish a more authentic taste, but it also ensures that they are made with quality ingredients.