Sweet Peppers
Sweet peppers, capsicums or pimentos have thick, mild flesh, unlike their cousins, the hot chilli peppers.
Columbus found them in the New World and introduced them to Europe. Sad to think that the sailors were dying of scurvy while the holds held this vitamin C-rich vegetable that could have saved them.
Most green ones are simply unripe peppers that have not yet developed their full sweet flavour, and may even be bitter.
Green bell peppers will continue to first turn yellow and then red if they are left on the plant to mature.
Red peppers are rich in carotenoid phytonutrients and contain almost eleven times more beta-carotene than green bell peppers as well as one and a half times more vitamin C.
Choose peppers that are smooth and shiny, without blemishes, soft spots or wrinkles.Check that they are firm and feel heavy for their size.
Store them unwrapped in vegetable compartment of the fridge for up to a week.
Look out for midi peppers, newcomers on the local market. They are half the size of sweet peppers.