Spanish Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. 
Serving Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Pimientos de Padrón
Blistered in hot olive oil and showered with coarse sea salt, these little green peppers are mostly mild with the occasional fiery surprise.
No common allergens detected
Based on this recipe's ingredient list. Always verify with your own brands and labels.
Good to know
- Ready in under 30 minutes
Matched from this dish's own ingredients and timing. Browse more: 30-minute meals
Instructions
7 steps- 1
Rinse the Padrón peppers and pat them completely dry.
- 2
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat until it just starts to shimmer.
- 3
Add the peppers in a single layer, being careful of splattering, and cook without moving them for about 1 minute to blister the skin.
- 4
Toss the peppers and continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes, until blistered and blackened in spots on all sides and the skin looks wrinkled.
- 5
Remove from the heat and transfer to a serving plate.
- 6
Shower generously with coarse sea salt while still hot.
- 7
Serve immediately, warning guests that about one in ten will be surprisingly spicy.
Images are for illustrative purposes only, may be inaccurate, and do not guarantee the presence or absence of specific ingredients. Listahan Family Score™
74/100
Good fit for most families
Score reflects how well this recipe fits a typical busy household. In the app, your Family Score is personalized to your household's allergens, kids, and pantry.
Nutrition
per serving215
Calories
6 g
Protein
40 g
Carbs
9 g
Fat
Estimated per serving. Actual values depend on the brands and portions you use.
Listahan cooking guide
Chef notes & practical guide
Technique notes, ingredient swaps, serve-alongside ideas, storage guidance, and equipment for this recipe.
Cultural context
Pimientos de Padron are small green peppers from the town of Padron in Galicia, blistered whole in hot olive oil and showered with flaky salt, famous for the roulette that roughly one in ten or so is fiercely spicy while the rest are mild. The saying goes that Padron peppers, some are hot and some are not. They are one of the simplest and most popular tapas in all of Spain.
Listahan note
This version blisters the peppers fast in screaming-hot oil until the skins char and pucker, then finishes with nothing but flaky salt. It is built to be the easiest possible tapa, ready in five minutes with only three ingredients.
Technique cues
- Get the oil genuinely hot before the peppers go in so they blister and char quickly instead of steaming soft.
- Do not crowd the pan; cook in batches so each pepper touches the hot oil and chars properly.
- Salt the peppers immediately out of the pan while they are glistening so the flakes stick to the oily skins.
Kitchen flow
- Parallel prep
- Rinse and thoroughly dry the peppers ahead so the moment the oil is hot you can blister them in quick batches.
- Make-ahead
- These are meant to be eaten hot and fresh, but you can wash and dry the peppers earlier in the day and keep them ready.
- Leftover move
- Chop leftover blistered peppers into scrambled eggs or a tortilla espanola for a next-day twist.
- Cleanup rhythm
- Wipe the pan while warm to clear the spattered oil, and keep a splatter screen handy to cut the mess.
Ingredient brief
Role, handling, and swap guidance for each key ingredient.
Padron peppers
The whole dish
Purpose: These specific small Galician peppers, with their mild-with-occasional-heat roulette, are the entire point.
Handling: Leave whole with stems on, rinse and dry well so they blister rather than steam.
Adaptation: Shishito peppers are the closest widely available substitute with a similar size and roulette.
Olive oil
Blistering medium
Purpose: Hot olive oil chars the skins and is the only cooking fat the dish needs.
Handling: Heat until shimmering before adding the peppers.
Adaptation: Any high-heat oil works, but olive oil adds flavor and is traditional.
Flaky sea salt
The only seasoning
Purpose: A generous shower of flaky salt over the hot peppers is what makes them irresistible.
Handling: Sprinkle the moment the peppers leave the pan so it adheres.
Adaptation: Any coarse salt works; fine salt dissolves and loses the crunch.
Garlic clove (optional)
Optional aromatic
Purpose: Some Galician cooks toss a smashed clove into the oil to perfume it before the peppers go in.
Handling: Smash a clove into the hot oil and remove it before it browns and turns bitter.
Adaptation: Leave it out entirely for the purist three-ingredient version.
Technique notes
- Dry the peppers completely before frying, since any surface water makes the hot oil spit dangerously.
- Use tongs to toss the peppers in the pan so every side blisters evenly.
- Finish with a squeeze of lemon if you like a brighter edge, though purists keep it to just salt.
Ingredient swaps
- Shishito direction
- Use shishito peppers, which blister and behave almost identically when Padron peppers are out of season.
- Lower-oil direction
- Char the peppers in a dry cast-iron pan or under the broiler with just a light brush of oil.
- Smoky direction
- Finish with a tiny pinch of smoked paprika alongside the salt for an extra layer of warmth.
Serve alongside
- A plate of Manchego
- Marinated olives
- Pan con tomate
- Croquetas
- A chilled Albarino
- A glass of cava
- A cold Spanish lager
Serving suggestions only — check pairings for your household's allergens.
Storage & reheating
- Pimientos de Padron are best eaten within minutes of cooking and do not store well. Leftover blistered peppers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to two days and chopped into eggs or rice, but they lose their fresh-charred appeal. Do not freeze.
Equipment
- A heavy skillet or cast-iron pan
- Tongs for tossing
- A splatter screen
- A clean towel for drying the peppers
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