One of the Deli’s most delicious treasures comes in a modest, two-inch-tall jar—so unassuming that most people are likely to walk right past it. Still, there it sits on the retail shelves, a short, squat little glass bottle, holding some of the most incredible roasted peppers you’ll find anywhere. If you’re like 99.7 percent of Americans who haven’t yet tasted Cristal (pronounced “kree-STAHL”) peppers from Spain’s Basque Country, consider this your invitation to explore. If you enjoy roasted peppers even a fraction as much as I do, it’s worth it to treat yourself to these deep, dark-red jewels. They’re a special treat that might just elevate your day. I’ve been known to finish off the entire jar in one sitting!
Oddly enough, I actually discovered these for the first time about 25 years ago when I was in, of all places, Australia. I’d never heard of Cristal peppers, even though we’d been buying from the supplier for something like years! Piquillo peppers had become pretty popular but I’d no idea that Cristals existed. Even in Spain, the Cristals are hard to come by.
Although they come from the same area (Navarre), the Cristal is a completely different pepper from the Piquillo. In their fresh state, the Cristal peppers are actually larger, with four little bumpy points up at the top. After being picked each autumn, they’re roasted over beechwood as they have been for many centuries. “Everyone makes Piquillos,” one local told me. “But only a few do the Cristals.” Their high cost is, not surprisingly, tied to the rarity of the pepper, and even more especially so, to the labor involved in preparing them. “When it’s roasted the flesh is so thin it’s like paper,” my source said. “We use tiny little knives to scrape the skins off.” And it’s a lot of scraping—each little jar contains an entire kilo (over two pounds!) of raw red peppers.
To get to the heart of the matter, the Cristals are super rich and delicious. When you take one or two out of the jar to eat, the rest look a bit like a deep red rose in a bottle. I like to empty the bottle into a white bowl (the better to appreciate their color), sprinkle on a pinch of fleur de sel and some great black pepper, and drizzle a bit of olive oil. Try it with Marqués de Valdueza oil from further west in Spain, or with the inspiringly good Navarino Icons oil from the southwest of Greece. Put them on slices of toasted Farm bread if you like. Or add them to softly scrambled eggs. They are great with the Detroit St. Brick cheese that the Creamery crafts so carefully. That’s it. You could also just eat them right out of the jar with a loaf of warm Paesano bread alongside to tear pieces off of. They’re smoky, rich, and buttery. Something special to grace any table.
