Lecsó or Letscho (pronounced LETCH cho) is a lovely thick vegetable ragout featuring peppers, onions, tomatoes, and paprika. This recipe is traditionally found in Hungary, Austria, Poland, Czech and further east in Europe, you can see variations in a number of countries such as Ratatouille in France and Shakshouka in Israel.
Lecsó recipes can vary in heat depending on the peppers and the chilis used. This spicy sauce is excellent served with rice or crusty bread, as a vegetarian main dish or a hearty side accompanying fish, roast chicken, pork, or beef. Lecsó easily transitions between summer and winter seasons being served warm or cold and breaking away from tradition can offer a wonderful base for a plethora of additions.
INGREDIENTS
- 6 peppers: a combination of red, yellow & green bell peppers, Hungarian wax peppers or banana peppers cored and sliced into medium size strips.
- 1 onion chopped
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- A few chilis minced
- 3 tbsp paprika smoked, sweet, or both
- 6 ripe tomatoes cored and chopped
- Olive oil
- Salt and Pepper to taste
EQUIPMENT
- Large pan or pot
METHOD
- Heat oil in pan.
- Add onion and sauté.
- Add garlic, chili, and paprika and stir until fragrant.
- Add peppers and sauté for a few minutes.
- Add tomatoes and cook until broken down and saucy roughly 30 minutes.
- Season to taste and dish out hot or let sit and serve cold.
Lecsó has such a delicious and wonderful base for creativity and variation, below are some additional options you can include to change it to your tastes and preferences.
Extra goodies:
Olives, Capers, feta, sour cream, basil, kielbasa, sausage, bacon, zucchini, eggplant, or crack a few eggs and bake them right in the sauce.
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