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Spoonful of red pepper almond romesco sauce being lifted from food processor.

Easy Vegan Romesco Sauce Recipe (2 ways)

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 2 cups
Author: Tracy Halasz

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 3 roma tomatoes (or 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes)
  • 2 small red peppers (or jarred)
  • ½ cup raw almonds
  • 2-3 cloves garlic
  • 2-4 tablespoons breadcrumbs*
  • ¼ cup parsley, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (more to taste)
  • ¼ cup less 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2-3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher salt (to taste)
  • 1-2 pinches cayenne pepper (optional)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 450º F.  
  • Place the bell peppers and tomatoes (cut side down) on a baking sheet and roast until charred and softening ~30 minutes. If using cherry tomatoes, leave them whole.
  • Remove from oven, cover with a kitchen towel and let steam while they cool. Then peel off the red pepper skins and seeds.
  • Breadcrumbs: use any breadcrumbs you have on hand or lightly oil a couple slices of a baguette and place in the oven with red peppers until crisp (5-7 minutes), let cool, and add to the blender.
  • While the red peppers and tomatoes are cooking, toast the nuts in a small, dry skillet over medium-low heat, shaking the pan frequently until fragrant and lightly toasted.
    Remove from heat and let cool.
  • Add the roasted vegetables, almonds, and everything else to the bowl of a food processor. Blend into a coarse sauce stopping to scrape down the sides a required. I leave some texture for a rustic sauce.
  • Taste and adjust seasonings to your taste. Add more breadcrumbs if needed to thicken the sauce.
  • Smooth Option: if you prefer a silky smooth romesco sauce, add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
  • Cover and store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week.

*5 Minute Express Option

  • Sub in 1 cup of fire roasted canned tomatoes and 2 roasted red peppers from a jar. Add the nuts and remaining ingredients and process as per recipe.

Notes

Roasted Red Peppers - Roast red peppers from scratch or for convenience, use 2 red peppers from a jar of roasted red peppers.
Tomatoes - swap out freshly roasted tomatoes for ~1 cup of fire roasted canned tomatoes.
Can't find Sherry Vinegar? - try using fresh lemon juice or red wine vinegar.
Gluten-Free - to keep your romesco gluten free, choose gluten free breadcrumbs/crackers or skip them all together.
Breadcrumbs - breadcrumbs thicken the romesco sauce. For a looser sauce, use less breadcrumbs. For a thicker sauce, use more. To make your own: toast 2-3 slices of baguette alongside the red peppers and tomatoes. Flip when golden. Let cool and then add to food processor or blender (one at a time until desired consistency).
Oil-free Version - oil adds richness to the romesco sauce. If you are oil-free, skip the oil and adjust the liquid as necessary (increase sherry vinegar or number of tomatoes or decrease breadcrumbs).
Flavor - make the recipe as written, taste, add more ingredients to suit your preference: tangier, more sherry vinegar; smokier, more paprika; spicer, more cayenne; runnier, more tomatoes; saltier - you know what to do . . .