Simple sandwich update that Philadelphians has been sure for years

When people think of Philly’s food, they jump to the usual suspects: our beloved cheese, or – my personal favorite – the juicing roast pork. But the thing that connects these sandwiches together, the thing I dream of, hunted on crisp bread with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of puff pastry, is not meat. It’s long hots. These bright and wrinkled green peppers are the most humble movement of power in the city: a simple garnish that transforms a good sandwich into a large one.

But this philly icon is not only for sandwiches. I grew up with long hot on the Sunday table – next to Sharp Provolone and olives. They are a luminaire at the counter of the sandwich and a beloved ingredient on the menus of Philly. The roast pork of Dinic and John keeps them in rotation because the philadelphians know a truth which rarely makes postcards: long hots make the bite.

What exactly are the long hots?

If you are new in Long Hots, here is the quick start: these are thin Italian peppers that range from the heat of the “sweet flirt” to “, I sweat now”, and you cannot say which you have drawn until you take a bite. This roulette is part of the pleasure.

You will often see them labeled simply as long hot, but they can appear as long Italian peppers or green finger hots. They are generally sold fresh in large bins on the Italian markets, in the producer markets during the summer and in well -supplied supermarkets. If you cannot find them, search for other thin and medium green peppers – Fresno or Anaheim Peppers can be held in it, although their flavor is a little different.

In Philly, they are most often fried in olive oil until they are wrinkled and deeply flavored or roasted until they collapse and blist. Anyway, they are served whole, the skin and the seeds intact. In my version, I take the roasting road. The high heat softens the peppers, the brown in places and cajères their natural sweetness while keeping their edges smoked and salted.

The only thing you need to do first: confit garlic

Before they can even talk about roasting of peppers, their database of oil-oil flavor must be established. Too many home recipes tell you to simply throw whole garlic on the pan with the peppers, as if they soften and flavor the dish as if it is for the same 20 minutes to make the peppers blister. But preparing them in this way does not really add many flavors: the peppers come out roasted and delicious, while the garlic is generally half, hard and soft. Instead of soft and soft wealth, you get a sharp bite that distracts everything else.

My solution is to give garlic the time it deserves with a slow confit. I break and peel eight pods, immerse them in half a cup of good extra virgin olive oil and put the pot to simmer. Not a fried, not a sizzling, just tiny bubbles by working lazily on the edges. More than 20 to 30 minutes, cloves are completely softening, becoming pale, buttered and sweet tanning throughout the path. Remove from the heat, I slide in a bit of rosemary to infuse while the oil cools, because why would I not? The result is twofold: the garlic turns into a spread and fluffy condiment in its own right, and the oil becomes deeply seasoned, carrying all this flavor in the peppers. No bitter and insufficient pods here, just silky garlic and fragrant oil which is the foundation of large hot long.

Roast

Once the garlic is ready, the peppers get their turn. The oven must be hot – 450 ° F – with the grid placed near the top. I throw the hot longs with a few spoonfuls of infused oil and a good pinch of kosher salt, spreading them so that they roast rather than steam. After 20 to 30 minutes, they are collapsed and golden in places, with a perfume that could attract anyone directly to a South Philly sandwich counter.

This combination of low and flowing garlic confit and low and torque torque is the heart of the technique. We bring softness and complexity; The other builds a smoked depth. Together, they create long hots worthy of Philly.

The final touch

The peppers come out of the oven already good, but finish them correctly is what makes them great. I will put the garlic confronted on top, I stop everything with more than this oil infused with garlic and rosemary and add a touch of red wine vinegar. This vinegar is not negotiable for me. He sharpens flavors and balances wealth.

They are simple but daring, not a reflection afterwards but a basic food for roasted pork sandwiches, alongside Antipasti, or served directly with the pot with bread. Long hots bring depth, occasional heat and garlic wealth, which makes everything they touch more incredible. So take the time to confide the garlic, roast the hot peppers and finish with vinegar. This is everything you need to recreate the long hots with which I grew up – soft, shiny, and precisely what your sandwich has missed.

Cook mode
(Keep the screen awake)