Learning to Love the Shishito

The Japanese pepper has a rightful place in the chile pepper pantheon—especially if you give it some time

Blister shishitos in a pan on the stovetop or under the broiler until they have charred, smoky skins and soft insides. KendellKreations/Shutterstock

It wasn’t love at first bite, but I finally warmed up to the shishito pepper.

The name is an abbreviation of “shishitogarashi,” which is Japanese for “the tip of this pepper looks like a lion’s face.” This description is as fanciful as looking for faces in clouds, but you don’t need to imagine a lion in order to appreciate the shishito.