Shishitos: don’t worry about the seeds

Detroit Free Press

Shishito peppers seem to be gaining popularity in recent years.

Native to Japan, they are often served as a snack as they are relatively mild. While the seeds of chili peppers may contain some heat, it’s the inner ribs of peppers that contain the fiery spice. So it is not necessary to remove the seeds from these peppers before using. Raw shishito peppers have a hint of sweetness, and a crisp texture that are similar to a green bell pepper.

Shishito peppers are light green and average 3 to 4 inches long. They are about ½- to 1 inch in diameter, and the outer skin has small ridges. The compact and sturdy plants are easy to grow even by rookie gardeners. The plants adapt well to container gardening, raised beds, and planted directly soil.

On the Scoville heat units scale, which measures how hot chili peppers are based on their capsaicin content, shishito peppers fall near the bottom, at 50-200. Jalapeno peppers (1,000 range) are a few notches above shishito peppers. But there’s a bit of a catch: About one out of 10 shishito peppers have some heat — right there with jalapeno.

While you can slice, dice, chop and mince shishito peppers, they are best served whole. You can serve them raw or cooked. As with any raw vegetable, rinse the peppers first.

One of the most common ways to prepare shishito peppers is lightly sauteing them in a skillet with a bit of olive oil to blister and slightly char the skin.

Before you add them to the skillet, it’s best to poke them a few times with a fork so the steam inside vents — otherwise they might split. Once the peppers begin to char, shake the skillet to move them around and char the other sides. Once blistered, sprinkle them with coarse or regular sea salt.

Shishito peppers take to all methods of cooking: grilling, sautéing, battering and deep-frying. You can also use them in stir-fries. When grilling shishitos, it’s best to put them on two skewers so you can easily turn them.

Use streusel as a topping on fruit pies instead of a top crust, or on a crisp, Betty or muffins to give them a crunchy finish. Template: Use 1 recipe, or about 2 cups of this topping, for an 8-inch square baking dish or an 8- or 9-inch pie. ½ cup brown sugar 1 cup flour 1 cup flour ½ cup old-fashioned rolled oats cup granulated sugar cup firmly packed brown sugar ½ teaspoon cinnamon ¼ teaspoon salt ½ cup butter, melted In Stir

½ cup butter, chilled and cut into small cubes.

In a medium bowl, mix brown sugar and flour until blended.

Rub butter into the flour mixture with your fingers, or cut in with a pastry blender. Another great way to “rub in the butter” is to make a fist, pushing and twisting it in the bowl until the ingredients are homogeneous.

a large bowl, stir together flour, oats, white and brown sugars, cinnamon and salt until blended. in melted butter until evenly moistened crumbs form. Transfer to a labeled jar or plastic bag and freeze until needed. When needed, take as much as seems...