Name: Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 4 red peppers; 1 tsp fennel seeds; 2 handfuls of Basil leaves - roughly chopped; 1 clove garlic - finely chopped; 80g Parmesan cheese - grated; 1 tbs olive oil; Pinch sea salt; Pinch ground black pepper

A super easy roasted red pepper pesto recipe that’s perfect served with freshly cooked spaghetti. Made with flavoursome roasted red peppers.

Really make the most of the big juicy red peppers with this delicious Italian style red pesto recipe with roasted peppers.

I often cook this as an easy weeknight dinner – I make the roasted red pepper pesto up before-hand then all that’s left for me to do for dinner is toss it through freshly cooked spaghetti.

I make the red pesto recipe with freshly roasted peppers, but if you’re short on time you could always use a jar of chargrilled peppers instead.

roasted red pepper pesto on a board with red pesto ingredients - parmesan, basil leaves, fennel seeds and olive oil. Pack of linguine is spilled open

Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Ingredients

4 red peppers

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 clove of garlic – minced

2 handfuls of basil leaves – roughly torn

80g Parmesan cheese – grated

1 tbs olive oil

pinch of sea salt

pinch black pepper

Equipment Needed

Roasting tin
Sharp vegetable knife
Chopping board
Frying pan
Pestle and mortar
Food processor
Teaspoon
Tablespoon
Grater
Small mixing bowl

How To Make Roasted Red Pepper Pesto

homemade roasted red pepper pesto in a bowl being stirred with a spoon

How To Roast Peppers

If you’re making the red pesto using peppers you’ve roasted yourself – here’s how to roast peppers, the easy way!

Preheat the oven -heat the oven to 200C and place the peppers in a roasting tin, don’t add oil or seasoning.

Roast the peppers – put the tray of peppers into the hot oven for around 30-40 minutes or until the start to soften and brown.

four roasted red peppers in an enamel baking tray

Let the peppers cool – once the peppers are roasted – remove from the oven and leave them to cool down for around 10-15 minutes until they’re cool enough to handle.

Remove the pepper skin – once the peppers are cool enough – sliced them into quarters, scrape out the seeds and the charred skin will gently pull away from the pepper flesh easily.

Red pesto recipe

Once the peppers are roasted and the skins and seeds removed you can get on with making the red pesto.

Toast the fennel seeds – tip the fennel seeds into a dry frying pan and gently toast over a medium heat until they give off a warm spicy scent. Then grind them up using a pestle and mortar into a rough powder.

Make the red pesto – to make up the red pepper pesto first tip the peppers, garlic, basil, fennel and salt and pepper into the blender, pulse to a rough puree.

blended red peppers ready to make red pesto, block of Paremesan and Basil leaves on board next to pesto bowl

Add the Parmesan – and the olive oil, pulse again until you have the consistency you like.

grated Parmesan being added to red pesto

And… that’s it – your red pesto is ready to serve

Make Roasted Red Pepper Pesto Your Way

Make chilli pesto – go spicy with a pinch of chilli flakes or drizzle of chilli infused olive oil to your red pepper pesto

Use different herbs – switch the basil for finely chopped rosemary or thyme