Blistered Shishito Peppers

These blistered shishito peppers make perfect little snack bites! Its preparation takes less than 10 minutes. All you need are those Shishito peppers, olive oil and saltand maybe some balsamic to drizzle if you want a little fancy.

What are shishito peppers?

They are a thin-skinned, sweet pepper from Japan. I say sweet but About every tenth pepper is hot. Not as spicy as a jalapeño, but enough to get your tongue tingling. They are about the same size as a Padron pepper, the ones I’ve seen on the market are between 1 and 5 inches long.

They’re in season from summer through early fall, so grab a crate at the local farmers’ market while you can. Our local Whole Foods stocks them too.

The perfect appetizers

Honestly, shishito peppers are kind of boring raw. But so scorched that the skin appears in dark, bubbling patches? So good!

Shishitos with bubbles are perfect little appetizers. They even come with their own handle. Just hold them by the stick and pop them in your mouth. Eat them seeds and all.

You can eat the blistered shishitos plain, or you can toss them in a balsamic glaze, or sauté them as instructed in this recipe, then add some soy sauce and mirin to the pan (2:1 ratio) to coat them.

Can Padron peppers be substituted for shishitos?

While shishito peppers are almost all very mild, with each in ten peppers being medium hot, padron peppers are almost all somewhat hot, with each in ten being flaming hot.

You would make padrons the same way, blowing them in a hot pan with some oil. While shishitos are often eaten plain, you might want to serve padrons with a sour cream-based dip to temper the heat.

What Else Can You Make With Shishito Peppers?

You can use shishito peppers for tempura, just like green beans or asparagus spears. You can blow them up and put them in tacos, quesadillas, or a grilled cheese sandwich.

You can sauté them with other vegetables. You can put them in a gazpacho with the tomatoes. You can sauté them and then puree them with yogurt, olive oil, lime juice, and garlic for a slightly flavorful creamy sauce.

Dipping sauces for shishito peppers

While shishitos have a delicate flavor and are excellent on their own, they have a handle of their own. If you want, you can simply serve them with a dip. Here are a few ideas:

• Greek yogurt or sour cream mixed with lemon juice and herbs or garlic
• Sour cream or mayonnaise mixed rice vinegar and some hot sauce
• Creamy peanut sauce made with peanut butter, sesame oil, soy sauce and lime
• Aioli – a homemade mayonnaise with garlic
• ranch dressing

Have your own shishito pepper dipping sauce you’d like to share? Tell us about it in the comments!

More favorite appetizers

• Hot air fryer Crispy cauliflower
• Fresh Tomato Salsa (Pico de Gallo)
• Baked Stuffed Jalapeños
• Baba Ganoush (eggplant dip)
• Eggs with guacamole devil