Knife Skills: How to Cut Bell Peppers

Splitting fruits and vegetables is always divisive (see what I did there?), but splitting peppers can be especially so.

The goal when prepping a bell pepper is to remove the seeds and internal ribs and pith, which have a papery texture and not a lot of flavor.

Some folks like to use a method my friend Daniel Gritzer calls the “Round Robin”–you trim off the top and bottom, give the fruit a slit on one side, then run your knife around the interior to remove the seeds and the pith. This method is effective in that it gives you a single uniform slab of pepper from which to cut dice or strips out of. However, it also gives you a top and bottom slice that is difficult to cut in a uniform manner (and it takes a bit of finesse.)

I used to cut peppers by splitting them in half lengthwise, then using my hands to tear out the stem, ribs, and seeds before slicing or dicing. This method is less wasteful, but it’s more difficult to get uniform pieces.

These days, I use a technique that Daniel calls the “De-Lobe-er.” To do it, you hold the pepper by its stem, stand it on its end, then slice downward along its lobe lines to separate it into individual, mildly curved pieces. You’re left with the stem, pith, and seeds in a single, compostable piece, along with 3-4 curbed pepper filets that can easily be flattened against your cutting board to reduce further into slices or dice.

Slicing

Slicing a bell pepper is simple: Hold the pepper flat with the fingers of your non-knife hand curled into a “bear claw” position, rest the flat side of the knife against your knuckles with the tip against the cutting board, and draw it back, keeping contact with your knuckles the whole way. The rate at which you pull back the fingers and knuckles in your non-knife hand determines the thickness of the slices.

Folks will debate whether it’s better to hold the pepper flesh-side-up or skin-side-up when slicing. To be honest, so long as your knife is razor sharp, it doesn’t make much difference. However, most of our knives (including mine) are not quite that sharp. I find that cutting with the skin-side-down is easier. even a dull knife knife easily gains purchase in pepper flesh but can slip on smooth pepper skins.

Julienning

If you’ve ever seen a chef with a tall hat, a twirly mustache, and real fancy pants cutting a pepper, you may have heard the term “julienne” which is just a fancy pants way of saying “really thinly sliced.” To julienne a bell pepper is the same as to slice it. You just do it extra-thin.

Dicing

To dice a pepper, you can start by first slicing it then cutting those slices crosswise into dice. However, I personally find it easier to make the initial slices while leaving them connected at one end so that they stay perfectly parallel to each other and are easier to manage when you subsequently cut crosswise.

Brunoise

Slice:Julienne as Dice:Brunoise

A brunoise is simply an extra-small dice, typically 1/8th of an inch or less.

Skinning a pepper

The chefs who wear the absolute fanciest of pants may deign to skin their peppers before cutting them into a julienne or brunoise, so that the delicately-toothed patrons can gum down their garnishes with minimal effort. To do this, push a pepper filet flat against a cutting board, skin-side-down. Then, using an extremely sharp knife held parallel to the cutting board with the handle held off the edge of the counter (so that it doesn’t get in the way), carefully cut in between the skin and the flesh of the pepper.

I can’t imagine any situation in which a home cook would need to do this, but that’s how it’s done.

Buying Peppers

To pick the best bell peppers, look for:

Smooth, Firm Skin. This indicates freshness and good hydration. Wrinkles suggest the pepper is losing moisture and may be past its prime. Soft spots are a sign of rot. Coarse brown ridges that sometimes appear on otherwise firm peppers are not a sign of damage. They can be a little tough to eat but otherwise are nothing to worry about.

Bright Color. Green peppers are unripe versions of other peppers that have not developed their sweetness or full flavor yet (which is why green peppers taste grassier and more bitter than other peppers). For red, yellow, orange, purple, or any other-colored pepper, look for a deep, even color which indicates that they have fully ripened and will have the sweetest flavor.

Peppers that are heavier for their size. Weight is a reliable way to gauge density and moisture content. A heavier pepper will generally be juicier and have a better texture.