Shishito Tsukune (Stuffed Shishito Peppers)
While doing my research for this article, I came across a very intriguing recipe by Caroline Phelps – The Pickled Plum (see the posting at The Pickled Plum). We were inspired to look for a stuffed version by our waitress Lori at Jack Dusty – so try this one (we will eventually publish another stuffed pepper version once we do our kitchen testing).
Ingredients
- 2 tbsps vegetable or canola oil
- ½ lb ground chicken
- ½ medium onion, finely chopped
- ½ thumb size ginger, grated
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1½ tbsp sake
- ½ tbsp soy sauce
- ½ tsp kosher salt (or ¼ tsp table salt)
- Shishito peppers (about 20-25), cut in half, seeded and membranes removed
- For the Dipping/Brushing Sauce:
- 1 tbsp sake
- 3 tbsp mirin
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a pan over medium/high heat, add oil, ginger, garlic and onions. Cook until onions are transparent (about 3 minutes). Transfer mixture into a bowl and let cool (put in fridge or freezer to speed up the process.) When the mixture is room temperature, add ground chicken, sake, soy and salt . Mix well with your fingers (not for too long.)
- With a knife, spread a generous amount of the mixture on each piece of shishito pepper. Discard the rest or save for later (if I have any left, I’ll usually make mini burger patties or eat it on top of Japanese rice with ichimi and soy sauce). Lay each piece on a tray covered with aluminum foil (or parchment paper). Bake for 15-17 minutes, until chicken has cooked through. While shisihitos are cooking, make your sauce.
- Mix all the ingredients and microwave for 20-30 seconds (to melt the sugar). Take shishitos out of the oven and with a basting brush, dab the sauce over each piece. Put leftover sauce in a small bowl and serve next to shishito tsukune (people can use is as a dip).
Our Readers: Let us know if you have any ideas & recipes. We’d be happy to publish the good ones!
Shishitos with Tomatoes and Olives
Recipe by William Porter. Serves 4.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons grapeseed oil1 pound shishito peppers
Dash rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon minced shallots
1 clove minced garlic
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
½ cup cured and pitted black olives, preferably a Greek variety.
Kosher salt to taste
Directions
Heat the grapeseed oil in a 10-inch pan over medium-high heat. Add the shishitos and sauté 2-3 minutes. Stir in the vinegar, shallots, garlic, tomatoes and olives, and cook 2 minutes. Sprinkle with salt to taste after plating. Serve hot or chilled.
