This roasted red pepper sauce recipe, made with fresh red bell peppers and walnuts, is a nutritious and delicious plant-based sauce or dip.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Roasted red pepper sauce is healthy, flavorful, and can be used in so many ways! It is a simple sauce, requiring just a few ingredients, but has a complex flavor profile and it also provides many health benefits.
While creating this recipe, I tried this sauce in lots of interesting ways other than just adding it to pasta. I even made a savory waffle with it one morning for breakfast. Please don’t judge, I just wanted to see what it paired well with. So, I used it as a sauce, as a dip, as a topping… and to my delight, I can put this sauce on almost anything! This sauce is very versatile and a great way to add some healthy plant-based flavor and texture to various recipes. I did make this Creamy Red Pepper Pasta with it and it was so good! I have listed some more ideas for you to try below.
Whatever you decide to do with it, I hope that you enjoy the Roasted Red Pepper Sauce!
What to serve with Red Pepper Sauce
Red pepper sauce can be served hot or cold. It is perfect as a pasta sauce but can also be used as a topping or sauce for seafood, vegetables, and chicken, or it can be used as a dip for bread, veggies, and more!
- Almond Flax Waffles
- Baked Salmon
- Baked Tilapia
- Cheddar Bread
- Baked Tofu
- Parmesan Chicken Tenders
- Italian Roasted Shrimp
- Parmesan Garlic Bread
- Mushroom Omelette
- Parmesan Herb Tilapia
- Italian Herb Bread
- Cedar Plank Salmon
- Baked Chicken Breasts
- Roasted Broccoli
Red Pepper Sauce Ingredients
Below is the list of ingredients that you will need to make the roasted red pepper sauce. All of the ingredients are plant-based vegan. I used fresh ingredients to make my sauce, but you can easily adapt this recipe to use what you have on hand.
- red bell peppers – I roasted fresh red bell peppers. You can also use a jar of roasted red peppers that is well-drained for an easy alternative.
- walnuts – Italian Herb Walnuts or you can use plain walnuts as a substitute but I highly recommend using the herby nuts!
- garlic – I roasted fresh cloves of garlic. You can also jarred minced garlic as a substitute.
- vegan parmesan or nutritional yeast – You can substitute grated parmesan cheese for a non-vegan sauce.
- olive oil
- lemon juice
- salt & pepper
Optional:
- crushed red pepper – if you want to add a little heat!
- fresh herbs as a garnish or added to the sauce while mixing.
How to Make Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
To make the roasted red pepper sauce, I roasted fresh red bell peppers and fresh cloves of garlic. As an alternative, or if you are short on time, you can use a jar of roasted red peppers that is well-drained and jarred minced garlic. However, fresh always tastes better in my opinion. For the walnuts, I used my Italian Herb Walnuts that I had made in advance. You can use plain walnuts as a substitute but the Italian Herb Walnuts add so much more flavor and texture and I believe are worth the extra effort. If you decide to use them in this recipe, make them first by following the instructions found here: Italian Herb Walnuts Recipe
Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic
First, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper. While the oven is preheating, slice and deseed the red peppers, then add the sliced bell peppers and whole cloves of garlic to the baking sheet. Drizzle the peppers and garlic with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and stir to coat or spray them with pure olive oil or avocado oil spray. Roast the red peppers and garlic for 15 minutes, or until they are cooked to your liking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Red Pepper Sauce
First, add the walnuts, salt, and pepper to the food processor. Secure the lid and blend for 15 seconds. Turn off and scrape the sides if needed.
Next, add the roasted red peppers and garlic to the food processor. Secure the lid and blend for 15 seconds, then switch the processor to the lowest setting and slowly pour in the lemon juice and olive oil through the feed tube. Add the vegan parmesan or nutritional yeast and blend in 15-second intervals, scraping the sides in between intervals, until it is blended to your liking. You can add more nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon at a time, if you want to thicken the sauce. Once thoroughly blended, do a taste test and add additional salt and pepper if desired. You can also blend in a little crushed red pepper and fresh herbs or use them as garnish when you serve the sauce to add a little heat and extra flavor.
This recipe will yield approximately 2 cups of sauce. If you will not be using all of the sauce immediately, store it in an airtight container, in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 large red bell peppers or a 16oz. jar of roasted red peppers (well drained)
- 1 cup walnuts Italian Herb Walnuts Recipe in Notes
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup olive oil plus 1 tablespoon for roasting peppers and garlic.
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast or grated vegan parmesan or grated regular parmesan for non-vegan.
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice or the juice of 1 lemon.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper or to taste
Optional:
- crushed red pepper to taste
- fresh herbs as a garnish or added to the sauce while mixing.
Instructions
- Please see notes regarding red peppers, garlic, and walnuts prior to making the sauce.
- Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper. While the oven is preheating, slice and deseed the red peppers, then add the sliced bell peppers and whole cloves of garlic to the baking sheet. Drizzle the peppers and garlic with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and stir to coat or spray them with pure olive oil or avocado oil spray. Roast the red peppers and garlic for 15 minutes, or until they are cooked to your liking. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
- Add the walnuts, salt, and pepper to the food processor. Secure the lid and puree for 15 seconds. Turn off and scrape the sides if needed.
- Add the roasted red peppers and garlic to the food processor. Secure the lid and puree for 15 seconds, then switch the processor to the lowest setting and slowly pour in the lemon juice and olive oil through the feed tube. Add the nutritional yeast and blend in 10-second intervals, scraping the sides in between intervals, until it is blended to your liking. You can add more nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon at a time, if you want to thicken the sauce.
- Once thoroughly blended, do a taste test and add additional salt and pepper if desired. You can also blend in a little crushed red pepper and fresh herbs or use them as garnish when you serve the sauce to add a little heat and extra flavor.
Notes
- Roasted Red Peppers and Garlic: To make the roasted red pepper sauce, I roasted fresh red bell peppers and fresh cloves of garlic. As an alternative, or if you are short on time, you can use a jar of roasted red peppers that is well-drained and jarred minced garlic. However, fresh always tastes better in my opinion.
- Walnuts: I used herb walnuts that I made in advance. You can use plain walnuts as a substitute but the herby walnuts add so much more flavor and texture and I believe are worth the extra effort. If you decide to use them in this recipe, make them first by following the instructions found here: Italian Herb Walnuts Recipe
- Storage: This recipe will yield approximately 2 cups of sauce. If you will not be using all of the sauce immediately, store it in an airtight container, in the refrigerator until ready to use.
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