Bobby Flay Always Keeps This Canned Pepper On Hand

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Bobby Flay's love for peppers is no secret. Some of the former Iron Chef's favorite ingredients to incorporate into his cooking are Calabrian chiles, chipotle, and gochujang. Chances are, you've seen him turn to one of these to kick things up a notch during an intense episode of "Beat Bobby Flay." But there's one pepper that he always keeps stocked in the pantry — and surprise — it's not a spicy one.

As the chef-in-residence at Misfits Market, Flay gave the grocery delivery service a tour of his pantry on Instagram, where he introduced the viewers to a can of piquillo peppers. The name of this pepper, which is traditionally cultivated in a region in the north of Spain called Navarre, translates from Spanish to "little beak." The peppers are harvested and processed entirely by hand. Though the ones Bobby Flay uses are packed in olive oil, they are also commonly packaged in a jar or can with their own juices, rather than water or oil, which helps preserve the flavor.

Unlike other peppers that Flay likes to keep stocked, piquillos are not spicy, but rather have the sweetness of a bell pepper and a smoky flavor, since they are roasted before being processed. They come sold without skin or seeds, and are therefore ready to eat out of the package. Although not as readily available in American grocery stores as they are in Spain, piquillo peppers can be found in gourmet stores, online, and even on Amazon, like the Zona Organic Spanish Fire Roasted Piquillo Peppers.

Because there is no prep work needed for these peppers, like removing the skin or seeds, these make for an easy snack. In Spain, it is very common to see piquillo peppers layered into bocadillos (sandwiches) and as a part of tapas (small snacks made for sharing). As they are often packaged as a whole pepper, a popular Spanish recipe is to stuff them with fish, like tuna, or meat. For a vegetarian version, rice or cheese can be used as the filling.

As Bobby Flay mentions, these are a great ingredient to have on hand to quickly chop up and incorporate into a flavorful sauce. They could easily be blended into homemade hummus, or chopped and added on top of store-bought hummus to make it taste gourmet. These flavorful peppers can even be blended into a tomato-based sauce for pasta for a bit of variety.

Any way you might use red bell peppers, piquillo peppers could be substituted for a more unique flavor, and to also minimize chopping. They work well sliced up and added to a salad, veggie-filled sandwich, wraps, a potato salad, an omelet, or a plant-based grain bowl.