When my friend Laurel came into town last month, we went to Zengo to meet up. A new-to-me recommendation made by her friend Zach, I fell in love with this hotspot pretty quickly… especially after Zach insisted we try the Shishito Peppers on the Happy Hour menu.
These tasty, sometimes spicy peppers are popping up all over menus all over town. And, they’re delicious!! To prepare them, chefs simply pan-fry or wok-fry them until they begin to blister, and then serve them with their choice of dipping sauces. Easy peasy!!!
Now… here’s the catch with these peppers. 9 out of 10 of them are mild and tasty… and then that 1, 1 of 10 is fiery hot to the point of making me ask for milk in the restaurant. WOW.
It creates almost a fun challenge with the peppers… and makes them a great dish for entertaining. You’ll not understand the HEAT associated with these guys… until you get lucky enough to pick the hot one…
After trying them at Zengo, I’ve wanted to have them again… they were THAT good; however, it wasn’t until I saw them at the local Farmers Market that I had a chance to make them at home!
This weekend after snagging the last basket, one of my fellow shoppers told me that they’ve bought them at Whole Foods. Another option if you’re looking for these tasty Shishitos.
I’m sharing today how I prepared them at home. Cook time was roughly 7 minutes, but that included rinsing the peppers and whipping up the sauce and cooking them. Try these bad boys… and watch out for the hot one!
Pan-Seared Shishito Peppers with Yogurt-Sriracha Dipping Sauce
Serves 1
INGREDIENTS
10 fresh shishito peppers
cooking spray
1 1/2 Tbsp. lowfat plain yogurt
1 – 1 ½ tsp. sriracha sauce
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Mix your yogurt and sriracha in a small bowl.
2. Heat your pan to medium hot, coated with cooking spray. Add your peppers, and cook about 5 minutes, turning about halfway through and when they start to “sing” from the heat. Note: You’ll want them to have bubbly blisters on them on both sides. Turn accordingly, and cook until done.
3. Serve with the dipping sauce, and roll the dice to see how HOT yours will be.
4. To eat, pick the pepper up by the stem, and eat the entire pepper minus the stem.
Note: In my first batch of peppers, all of them were mild. I’m fully expecting to be fired up in the next round.
Per entire recipe serving:
CAL 61; CARB 53g; FAT 1g; SAT FAT 0g; PROT 3g; FIB 40g; SUG 8g
WW Points Plus: 3; WW Smart Points: 3