SHISHITO

Many, many moons ago a young Mad Meat Genius took a driving test at the Oakland branch of the Department of Motor Vehicles. Fast forward and now every Sunday, in the parking lot of this D.M.V. the ‘Temescal Farmers Market’ takes place. Things sure have changed in the old neighborhood. A working class predominately Italian community has been transformed into a yuppie wonderland. This market is a showcase of high end vegetables and food products. Today we found, a new to us, chile pepper called Shishito. It is a funny name for the pepper that claims to be a Japanese cousin to the Spanish padron. We could not resist.

To be honest I am not all that familiar with the padron pepper. People rave about their flavor. A simple sautéing in olive oil and dressed with salt is the consensus of preparation. Of course we will have our Chilebrown twist to this process. Our peppers will be oiled and salted but they will be grilled over a hot mesquite fire. We just blistered the oiled peppers and dusted them lightly with a sprinkling of sea salt.


Yes, these peppers are delicious. We picked them up by the stem and plucked them in our mouth. They were slightly sweet with a smoky flavor from the pepper and the fire. I did not notice any heat but did experience a fresh vibrant green pepper flavor. What ever you want to call these peppers they are yummy.