Cooking with Cannabis: Blistered Padron Peppers

These individual little games of Spanish heirloom pepper roulette are about two elongated inches long and are a beautiful bright shade of green. The peppers are usually picked in mid-May through October. Their taste is mild but beware — and here's where the roulette comes into play — some can be quite hot, even ass-burning hot.

Yeah, you read that right.

Ten to 25 per cent of these bright, pickle-color beauties are hot—hot—hot, and it’s impossible to tell which ones will blow your top. So, I say, roll the Padrón dice carefully, play Spanish pepper roulette... but remember that pepper punch is going to be as hot as a raw jalapeño.

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I've had the pleasure of growing several seasons of these tasty treats, and although fairly creative as a chef, I come back to the same preparation I experienced in Spain over 20 years ago. I find myself repeating this same method of preparation to patrons at one of the three weekly farmers markets I sell Padróns at with confidence in the outcome.

These beauties deserve the simplest of attention. Blistered in oil in a hot cast-iron skillet over a hot flame, finished with a drizzle of quality piquant full-spectrum cannabis infused extra virgin olive oil, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, and a liberal sprinkling of sea salt flakes.

With absolutely no way of telling which one of these little spice bombs is “the one,” consumers usually approach the Padrón-piled plate with caution. Even though your game of blistered Padrón roulette may not end well and you get that hot one, the game must go on and any game that includes blistered heirloom Padrón peppers, quality olive oil, sea salt flakes, and clean cannabis consumption through food is a win-win-win situation.

Read also: Cooking with Cannabis: Oven-Melted Heirloom Tomato Soup

Recipe: Blistered Padron Peppers

PREP TIME: 5 minutes
COOK TIME: 8 -10 minutes
YIELD: serves 4 to 6
TOTAL THC/CBD: 15 mg THC / 15 mg CBD

EQUIPMENT NEEDED

• cast iron skillet
• tongs
• serving platter
• chef's knife
• cutting board

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lbs organic Padrón peppers
• 2-3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tsp THC/CBD olive oil (1 TSP = 5 mg THC + 5 mg CBD)
• 1-2 tbsp sea salt flakes
• Juice of one organic lemon
  
  

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the regular olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking.
2. Add half the peppers to the hot cast-iron skillet, sauté, stirring occasionally until the skins are blistered and the flesh is soft. (5-6 minutes)
3. Transfer cooked peppers to a serving platter.
4. Repeat the cooking process with the remaining peppers, cooking until done.
5. Sprinkle the peppers with the sea salt flakes, cannabis olive oil, and squeeze fresh lemon juice over the peppers.
6. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

If you can't find Padrón peppers in your local farmers market or grocery store, try to look for shishito peppers, the Japanese equivalent.