TtoE Roasted shishito peppers

I never turn my nose up at a deal on the 見本, mihon, the discounted produce that supermarkets often place on carts. This time, I scored a handful of giant shishito for 50 yen. I suspect the deal is the result of the varied colour. But to my mind, that’s a feature, not a flaw.

Have you tried these peppers before? Shishito - look out for 獅子唐辛子, shishitogarashi on the label - are usually mild Japanese chili peppers. They’re typically green, slender, and wrinkly. But these guys were as long as my fork.

A little Google-jutsu suggested that they’re best pan-roasted. I put a drizzle of oil in the pan and blistered them. Then dressed them with a sprinkling of furikake. In my case, I gave some aonori a good shake over them.

But beware, as some shishito can bite back. Depending on growing conditions, some are pungent and even spicy. Some sources I read suggest you can avoid spicy “food roulette” by avoiding the ones that don’t have a lot of seeds. The ones I prepared were sweet and flavorful, but not hot. Get them now, as the harvest wraps up in November.

How do you prepare your shishito?