Meet Papaccelle peppers, the newest addition to the collection of Maida vegetables in extra virgin olive oil. Papaccelle is an heirloom pepper variety local to the Cilento area of Campania, south of Napoli.
Maida Papaccelle peppers are an agrodolce specialty inspired by the old traditional cuisine of Napoli. Farmer Franco Vastola has recreated his wife’s special recipe: he steams the peppers with a drop of high quality white wine vinegar, and jars them along with a few olives, garlic, anchovies, a pinch of sugar, and his own olive oil.
NOT YOUR ORDINARY PEPPERS
The perfect balance of the peppers’ sweetness, the vinegar’s acidity, and the richness of the oil make them shine both in an appetizer spread and as a remarkable side dish.
Flat and ribbed, these small peppers have a sweeter and more tender flesh than most bell peppers. Papaccelle belong on the Neapolitan holiday table, not only for their distinctively fragrant aroma, but also because they are remarkably delicate and digestible.