Oh, Shishito!

Grow these trendy mild-spicy peppers in your garden or find them in abundance at regional farmers’ markets this summer.
technique & recipes Rita Heikenfeld

My first taste of blistered shishito peppers a few years ago convinced me that this was a pepper I needed to grow in my vegetable garden. Yes, I was that smitten with the mostly mild and smoky pepper flavor of shishitos. I say ‘mostly’ because every once in a while, I’d bite into a shishito with a burst of heat. Why was that?

After doing research into this Japanese native, I found that about one in 10 of these will have a fiery taste. That’s because shishitos typically have a Scoville heat unit on a scale of 50–200. But then again, that one rogue shishito you bite into can register as high as 1,000 Scoville heat units. Compare that to jalapeños with an average Scoville heat of 5,000 and you’ll understand why shishitos can become addictive. It’s the element of surprise that keeps one noshing on these wrinkly, thin-skinned, tender peppers.

Plus, they’re good for you! Shishitos contain Vitamin C along with other vitamins and minerals.

How to Grow

Like all peppers, shishitos thrive in hot weather with consistent moisture and full sun. If you grow shishitos from seed, plan on 8 weeks of indoor growth for them to be sturdy enough to plant outside. My friend and colleague Ron Wilson of Natorp’s Nursery advises outdoor planting when both the soil and air temperatures remain above 60°.

In our garden, we plant peppers several feet apart, fertilized with well-rotted chicken manure. If growing in containers, use one large enough for peppers to spread their roots. A 5-gallon container with good soil, fertilizer, and drainage works well.

Shishito plants tend to flower even when quite small. Pinch off those early flower heads; this bit of pruning allows the plant to get to a healthy size before developing fruit.

The peppers grow to about 4 inches in length. Toward the end of the season, they tolerate drier soil and start maturing to a bright orange and red. To my palate, those riper shishitos are hotter than their younger, green siblings.

Use scissors or a knife to harvest your shishito peppers. Don’t pull the pepper from the plant, since this could break the stem or the entire plant. Harvest everything before the first frost of the cold season.

Buy the Freshest

In mid-June, you may still have time to tuck a couple of shishito plants into your garden, but if you’re too late, don’t worry. Local farmers’ markets will begin stocking these summer delights soon enough. When purchasing shishitos from the grocery or farm stand, look for shiny, somewhat plump, green or orange/red peppers. Shishitos look like wrinkled jalapeños but are thinner-walled and pliable.

Storing Shishitos

In the refrigerator: Count on up to 2 weeks stored in a paper or reusable produce bag in the vegetable drawer. Plastic bags allow air to be trapped inside, causing the peppers to spoil more quickly.

In the freezer: An airtight container is best. I freeze shishitos whole and then slice them as needed while they’re still partially frozen. Frozen shishitos are best used in cooked dishes like soups and stews. They’ll keep up to 9 months in the freezer.

Cooking with Shishitos

You can substitute whole, sliced, or diced shishitos for other hot peppers in recipes. I’ve switched shishitos for jalapeños and serranos for a more mild, yet sometimes surprisingly spicy, flavor.

Dial the heat up just a tad in salads made with whole grains by tossing in some sliced fresh shishitos.

Shishitos take well to tempura batter. When you make a batch of tempura deep fried veggies, add shishitos to the mix. Serve with ponzu sauce for dipping.

Toss shishitos in a little oil and broil on high or roast with high heat (450°). It takes about 5 minutes.

Shishitos sliced in half horizontally are unusual and tasty replacements for bell peppers on chicken, pork, or beef kabobs.

Save Seeds!

Plan now to reserve a collection of seeds from your garden or purchased shishito peppers for planting next season. There are a couple of popular ways to save pepper seeds.

My preference is to hang the ripe peppers up in a dry place. When dried completely, the outside will be brittle and you can then open the pepper and retrieve the seeds.

You might prefer removing the pepper seeds from the fresh ripe pepper by slitting the pepper down the middle carefully to expose the seeds. Remove the seeds and place on paper towels or parchment to dry. Store seeds in containers away from heat and light. Seeds remain viable up to 2 years. 

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