Best Padrón Peppers Recipe - How to Cook Pimientos de Padrón - Spanish Sabores (2024)

FAQs

Are you supposed to eat the seeds in Padrón peppers? ›

Padrón peppers are often served as tapas or side dishes in Spain. They are loved for their easy preparation and the surprise elements that make eating them interesting. It is customary to eat the whole pepper, including the seeds and stalk.

They range from 500 to 2,000 Scoville heat units. If you happen to bite into one that's on the upper end of the Scoville scale, it'll rank about half as hot as a jalapeño.

Pimientos de Padrón or Padron Peppers in English are a small green mild pepper that originate from the Padrón region of Galicia in North-western Spain, bordering Portugal to the north. Some of you may not know that in 2010 I lived in Galicia for a year.

The primary location people tend to go wrong with Padrón peppers is in the cooking process. The peppers are not commonly deseeded due to their small size, but when cooked too long, they can sometimes become overly bitter.

Remove the Core

The core of the pepper is inedible, and while the seeds are edible, they don't add much to a dish, so most recipes will call for removing them. The easiest way to do this is to stand the pepper on its end, and slice off the outer layers in large pieces around the core.

It is a common misconception that the seeds contain the Capsaicin that makes the pepper hot. While they may have some superficially, it actually stores the Capsaicin in the placenta (white pithy part). Remove that to lessen the heat. Be sure to wear rubber gloves!

Padrons are a small green pepper - they're most often mild, but sometimes have moderate heat – and watch out for the occasional lurker with a really wild kick!

Most of these have a piquant, peppery taste that's pretty mild, with a slight grassy or nutty finish. But if you're lucky—or unlucky depending on your heat tolerance—you may get the one spicy pepper in 10 that can burn as much as biting into a jalapeño.

The unique characteristic of Padron peppers is their occasional surprise – one in every ten peppers packs a punch of spiciness, adding an element of excitement to the dining experience.

Perfect for Spanish Tapas Dishes. Quality Checked - Chosen with Care for Freshness and Taste.

What is Spanish pimiento? ›

"Sweet" (i.e., neither sour nor savory) pimiento peppers are the familiar red stuffing found in prepared Spanish or Greek green olives. Originally, the pimiento was hand-cut into tiny pieces, then hand-stuffed into each olive to balance out the olive's otherwise strong, salty flavor.

The dictionary lists "pimiento" as the first reference for spelling the pepper's name and lists "pimento" as a variant. Per Southern Living style, we choose to use the first-reference spelling listed in Merriam-Webster, so "pimiento" it is.

Remove the pith and seeds: Cut out the white pith and seeds, as they can contribute to bitterness. Rinse the inside of the peppers to remove any remaining seeds. Blanch the peppers: Briefly blanch the peppers in boiling water for 2-3 minutes and then plunge them into ice water. This can help reduce bitterness.

Use the freshest padron peppers you can find, it really does make a difference in the flavor, and don't sauté them too long or they will take on a bitter taste.

Green bell peppers are harvested before they fully ripen, which causes bitterness. Choose red bell peppers; they are fully mature and slightly sweeter than orange, yellow, or green varieties. Remove the seeds from the cores. The bell pepper seeds are mostly in the cores, and they are naturally bitter.

Eating the seeds of peppers is a common practice in many cuisines around the world, and it can add both flavor and heat to your dishes. Whether it's chili peppers, bell peppers, or any other variety, the seeds are often used in cooking.

Before using, make sure you know what variety of cherry pepper you're working with; while many have a much lighter, milder flesh, some varieties are on the hotter side. If you want to assure the lowest level of spice, remove the seeds before using.

Padróns should not be eaten raw. In fact, if you taste a raw Padrón, you will likely think I am a crazy person for singing their praises, but when cooked, and cooked well, they are completely transformed.