P is for PEPPERS

I've learned that many of my friends have a haaaaate relationship with peppers and onions.  :(  I don't understand that because I LOVE them!  They are so good and say Mexican (as in, fajitas) to me!  I can understand people's negative views on onions a bit more because they do cause bad breath, but I can eat an onion, especially a purple onion, like an apple.  :)

I won't say anymore about onions since today's letter is "P," which means this post will talk a bit more about a "p" food peppers, bell peppers specifically.  Apparently, these lovelies are called capsicum in Australia.  Who knew?  I already knew that they are sometimes called sweet peppers because they don't provide much of a spicy kick.  (Another reason why I don't understand why people loathe them!)  Anyway, bell peppers come in a variety of colors, including green, red, yellow, and orange.  Whenever I made pasta primavera in the past (when I lived in central AR), I always would pick up Kroger's Stoplight Peppers because they contained one each of red, yellow, and green bell peppers--just like a stoplight!  In researching bell peppers, I also learned that red bell peppers are just ripened green ones.  AMAZING!  I liked a mix of peppers because of the color combo and taste variety.  The green ones are less sweeter than all of the others on the color spectrum; I'd say most people prefer the green ones to the rest, probably not just because of taste but because they are the cheapest.  ;)  Bell peppers are rich in lycopene, carotene, and vitamin C with red peppers having the highest amounts and green ones having the lowest.

I made some sweet and sour lemonade chicken from Six Sisters' Stuff, and I decided to serve it with rice, peppers, and onion for a pseudo-Chinese meal.  I'm not much on Chinese, but I did LOVE this chicken!  Zach said it was a bit too lemony for him, so next time I won't use as much lemonade.  I know white rice isn't the healthiest, but it is my favorite and easier for my tummy to digest.  I haven't had peppers and onions in FOREVER, so these were a real treat!

To make the peppers (and onion), I remove the caps from two peppers and slice out the white insides to remove the seeds.  (I've also found that holding a pepper half or quarter over the trashcan with the inside facedown and taping the back with a utensil helps the seeds fall out.)  Then I slice them into strips and half the strips.  I slice the ends off the onion, remove its peeling, and then slice it into strips.  I heat 1-2 Tablespoons of vegetable/olive oil into a skillet over medium-high heat, add the peppers and onions, and sauté until the onions are translucent and the peppers are tender and browned.  So good!