This steak and shishito pepper stir fry recipe is full of umami flavor and it's so quick to make! It's the perfect balance of savory and spice, and the steak and shishitos are delicious served with rice.
A few years ago, I brought you a recipe for a blistered shishito pepper appetizer that I LOVE, but I wanted to do something different this time and incorporate shishito peppers into a main dish. So hello steak and shishito peppers that are stir fried to perfection. Yum yum yum.
This steak and shishito pepper dish comes together so quickly. It's kinda like a version of pepper steak, beef and broccoli, or even Mongolian beef (I love this Instant Pot version), but with a kick. The shishito peppers add a nice flavor and touch of spice, while the soy adds that umami flavor we all crave. It also has a touch of brown sugar for sweetness.
I love slicing up the shishito peppers in this recipe to create a sort of shishito pepper salsa, but you can leave them whole if you prefer.
Ingredients:
- Steak (round, top round, or flank), sliced into thin strips
- Shishito peppers
- Canola oil (or other neutral oil)
- Garlic
- Soy sauce
- Light brown sugar
- Water
What are shishito peppers?
Shishito peppers are used a lot in East Asian cooking and are pretty mild in terms of spiciness... most of the time. About 1 in every 10-20 peppers will have a bit of a kick to them. And that's part of the fun in eating them!
Of course, in a dish like this steak and shishito peppers, you cut up all the shishito peppers, so it should balance out the spicy ones, so you're not suddenly surprised with a mouthful of heat.
Where can you find shishito peppers?
I've seen them all around the farmer's markets here lately in Austin. You can also find them at Trader Joe's when they are in season (which is usually where I wind up getting them, thanks to my frequent Trader Joe's runs). I've also spotted them at Whole Foods.
So just check your local grocery store and/or farmer's market and see if you can find them! They are harder to find when they aren't in season, of course, so get some now while you can! Their peak season is summer and early fall.
How to serve:
The steak and shishito pepper stir fry can easily feed 4, and is great served over white rice, brown rice, or quinoa.
Steak and Shishito Peppers
Ingredients
- 1 pound steak (round, top round, or flank steak) sliced into thin strips
- 6 oz shishito peppers
- 2 tablespoon neutral oil (such as canola) divided
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup water
- 2.5 tablespoon light brown sugar
Instructions
- Prep the steak by slicing into thin strips against the grain.
- Slice the shishito peppers, discarding the top stems and mince the garlic cloves.
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat.
- Add the steak to the pan and cook until browned. Remove the steak from the pan, and wipe the pan clean.
- Add 1 tablespoon oil to the pan. Add the garlic and the shishito peppers. Saute for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the steak back to the pan. Cook everything for 3 minutes.
- In a bowl, add the soy sauce, water and brown sugar. Stir to combine. Then pour into the skillet. Cook for an additional five minutes.
- Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, or quinoa.
Notes
- Use any neutral oil you wish, such as canola, vegetable, or sunflower. These won't introduce additional flavors to the dish that could affect how it tastes. Try to avoid using oils like olive oil that can impart their own flavor into the dish.
- I like to slice the shishito peppers, but if you like, you can leave them whole when cooking.
Mary
Great recipe. Easy, not many ingredients. My husband grows the peppers and we too were looking for something else to do with them.
Karla
Looks good! Also looks easy to make. Thank you