Sticky Honey Garlic Blistered Shishito Peppers with Bacon
Blistered to perfection and tossed in a sticky, homemade garlic-honey glaze, these shishito peppers hit every single craving. Top them with crispy bacon crumbles for a 15-minute, sweet-and-smoky umami bomb.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15-20 minutes
- Yield: 8 appetizer servings
Ingredients
- 16 ounces (about 6 heaping cups) of shishito peppers
- 5 slices bacon (chopped small) or 1/3 cup pre-cooked bacon crumbles (not bacon bits)
- 1 Tablespoon Olive oil (if using raw bacon) or 2 Tablespoons if using pre-cooked bacon crumbles
- 1/3 cup honey garlic sauce
Instructions
If starting with Raw bacon
- Add the raw bacon to a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the bacon until it’s crispy. This will take about 5-8 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan and set it aside.
- Discard all but 1 Tablespoon of the bacon drippings from the pan. Add the 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to the pan over a medium-high heat. Watch the surface of the oil as it heats. It will begin to shimmer and ripple, resembling waves. You do NOT want it to smoke.
If starting with Pre-Cooked bacon crumbles
- Add the pre-cooked bacon crumbles to a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the bacon until it’s crispy. This will take about 3 minutes. Remove the bacon from the pan and set it aside.
- Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan over medium-high heat. Watch the surface of the oil as it heats. It will begin to shimmer and ripple, resembling waves. You do NOT want it to smoke.
Blister the Shishitos
- Add the peppers to the pan in a single layer, making sure not to overcrowd them. Cook for about 4-5 minutes per side, until they are tender and charred. Remove from the pan and repeat the above step in batches until all of the peppers have been cooked and charred.
- Add all the peppers back into the hot pan and spoon on the honey garlic sauce (it will sizzle and spatter, but that’s OK). Gently stir the peppers, ensuring the glaze coats every pepper.
- Transfer the peppers and any remaining sauce from the pan to a serving platter and top with the crispy bacon.