Blistered Shishito Peppers Recipe (5 minutes!)

This easy blistered shishito peppers recipe is so easy to make. These little mild peppers are perfect to snack on as an appetizer. Make sure your skillet is hot to have the perfect char on each pepper. 

If you’ve been following us for a while, you know our Spanish tapas game is getting stronger. We started with a simple aioli recipe and cooked our way into classic spanish tortilla, pan con tomate and salmon croquettes. Tapas is an important part of Spanish food culture and thanks to Mediterranean style of living, vegetables and wholesome ingredients are definitely a part of each tapa including this ridiculously simple, yet seriously delicious blistered shishito peppers recipe. Follow along and watch the video to learn all the tips and tricks on how to cook these peppers at home. 

About this recipe

When we were traveling in Spain a few months ago, we got to try these delicious blistered peppers called Pimiento de Padrón. They were charred and juicy, drizzled with delicious extra virgin olive oil and topped with some coarse salt, perfect Mediterranean appetizer! Serve these alongside our Mediterranean roasted vegetables for a delicious vegetarian spread!

I was determined to make them at home and share the recipe with you because they were too good to just hold them to myself! So after a bit of research, trial and error, we came to the conclusion that Pimiento de Padrón is a cousin to shishito peppers with the difference being that Pimiento de Padron is a tad bit spicier and shishitos are a bit thinner. However, the cooking method for both is the same and they can be used interchangeably. 

Are shishito peppers hot?

Shishito peppers are originally from Japan and are very mild and not hot at all. Maybe one out of 10 is spicy but usually, these peppers are not hot and are a bit sweet.  

Ingredients

Shishito peppers

These peppers are small and crisp. Good quality shishitos are bright green and have thin and wrinkly skin. They also should not have soft spots or brown or black spots on them.

Extra virgin olive oil

Use high quality extra virgin olive oil for sauteing shishito peppers. Olive oil is used religiously in Mediterranean cooking, from making basil oil to frying eggplants. Check out this article to learn more about choosing the right olive oil. 

Salt

Use fleur de sel or coarse kosher salt for this recipe. These little touches will take your food from meh to restaurant quality! 

Lemon

A squeeze of fresh lemon gives so much brightness and flavor to this dish.

How to cook shishito peppers

Heat up the skillet

Using a cast iron skillet is strongly recommended when it comes to blistering shishito peppers. To make sure the skillet is hot enough, pour a little water into the pan and if it turns into beads, the pan is hot enough. Keep the skillet on medium heat and not high heat. 

Prepare the peppers

In a large bowl, toss the peppers with olive oil and some salt. This is to make sure the peppers are rubbed with olive oil on all sides which will help them blister very well. 

Saute the peppers

Once the pan is hot, saute the peppers in batches. Don’t overcrowd the pan so you have enough room to move them around and blister them on all sides. The peppers blister and get charred on all sides and then deflate. It would take between 5-7 minutes to saute them. Finish with a sprinkle of salt and a squeeze of lemon. 

Other approaches

Grilling

If you have an outdoor grill, definitely try grilling these little peppers: 

• In a bowl, toss them with one tablespoon of olive oil and some salt.
• Place them on the hot grill and start grilling.
• Once one side is charred, flip and char the other side. 

Roasting 

You can also roast shishito peppers in the oven:

• Heat the oven to 425°F.
• Mix the shishito peppers with two tablespoons of olive oil and some salt. 
• Transfer them to a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 5-7 minutes. Stir the peppers halfway through cooking so they get roasted on all sides. 

Serving suggestions

As I mentioned above, these peppers are very similar to spanish Padrón peppers therefore I usually make this shishito peppers recipe as part of a tapas spread. You can serve them with the following Mediterranean appetizers:

• Oven roasted potatoes
• Easy roasted tomatoes
• Lemon garlic brussel sprouts
• Spicy hummus
• Mediterranean deviled eggs

Can I freeze shishito peppers?

The texture of the peppers, whether raw or blistered, would change once frozen so I wouldn’t recommend it. 

Notes and tips

• You can find shishito peppers in almost any supermarket including Trader Joe’s and Costco. 
• Toss the peppers in olive oil rather than sauteing them in oil. This would help with the skin being all charred since shishitos have irregular shapes. 
• Don’t overcook shishito peppers: Cook these peppers until they are charred and blistered on all sides. Overcooking them might make them bitter. 
• Leave enough room in the pan: Fight the temptation of filling the pan with shishito peppers. It’s important to leave enough room in the pan to be able to stir and move the peppers around. 
• Got leftovers? These peppers are best served right away. If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 2 days. You can heat them in a skillet with a bit of olive oil.