Ever wondered how to roast a jalapeño? If you’re like me, you love the flavor of jalapeño, but find its spiciness a bit overwhelming in certain dishes. Roasting jalapeños mellows their spiciness a bit and gives them a nice, smoky flavor. It’s a pretty simple process. I’m providing two methods here– one for under the oven broiler, and one for on top of the gas stovetop or grill flame.
These methods can actually be used for any kind of medium sized chili pepper (the ones that are around the same size as a jalapeño). Make sure you use gloves whenever you work with jalapeños, or you’re in for a world of hurt, especially if you have sensitive skin. Chilies contain capsaicin, a secondary metabolite produced by the chili that makes it spicy. The more capsaicin a pepper has, the spicier it is. Jalapeños have quite a bit of capsaicin, which can transfer to your skin and cause a burning sensation/irritation. Disposable gloves will protect you from the capsaicin. One more tip–never rub your eyes when you’re working with chilis– they will burn/sting for several minutes if you do!
Why in the world did I decide to write a blog about how to roast jalapeños? Great question! There’s a method to my madness. Sunday’s recipe will feature roasted jalapeños and lots of cheese. Stay tuned! 🙂
How to Roast Jalapeños
Ingredients
- 2-8 each jalapeños *however many you need at once
- long metal skewers or heat-safe tongs
NOTES
Instructions
To Roast Jalapeños on Gas Stovetop or Grill Flame
- Turn your gas stove flame on medium, or light your grill. Roast peppers one at a time. Spear the pepper with a long skewer. Hold the pepper 1-2 inches over the open flame, being careful to keep your hands far from the heat source.
- Hold the pepper over the flame for 60-90 seconds until the skin on one side chars and blisters. It should be mostly black, with just a few areas of green. Do not let the pepper catch fire.Turn the pepper and let the other side roast for 60-90 seconds till evenly charred.
- After you roast the pepper, you will need to steam it. Steaming helps to loosen the skin and make peeling easier. I like to place the roasted pepper on a flat, smooth surface like a cutting board, then invert a large bowl over the top of it. The bowl traps the steam inside. Steam for 15 minutes. You can also place the pepper in a paper bag and seal. Repeat the roasting process for remaining peppers, adding each roasted pepper to the bag or under the bowl as you go. After the last roasted pepper is added, let the peppers team together for at least 10 minutes. After steaming, remove the stem and peel the charred skin from the peppers. Be sure to wear gloves; even after roasting, the capsaicin can still burn, especially if you have sensitive skin. Remove the seeds by slicing the pepper open and gently scraping the seeds out with your fingers. If you want your dish really spicy, you can keep the seeds in there... careful, they are very potent!
To Roast Jalapeños in the Oven
- Preheat your broiler. Make sure you put on your disposable gloves before you begin. Slice the stems from the jalapeños, then slice them horizontally in half.
- Scrape the seeds out of the jalapeños. If you want your dish really spicy, you can keep the seeds in there... careful, they are very potent!
- Line a small baking sheet with foil. Place the seeded jalapeños open side down, skin side up onto the baking sheet.
- Place the baking sheet in the oven, 3-4 inches from the broiler. Let the peppers roast for 3-4 minutes till they are charred and the skin is blistered. The skin should be mostly black, with just a few areas of green. Watch them closely and don't let them roast too long, or they will dry out and become difficult to peel.
- After you roast the pepper, you will need to steam it. Steaming helps to loosen the skin and make peeling easier. I like to place the roasted pepper on a flat, smooth surface like a cutting board, then invert a large bowl over the top of it. The bowl traps the steam inside. Steam for 15 minutes. You can also place the pepper in a paper bag and seal. Repeat the roasting process for remaining peppers, adding each roasted pepper to the bag or under the bowl as you go. After the last roasted pepper is added, let the peppers team together for at least 10 minutes. After steaming, peel the charred skin from the peppers. Be sure to wear gloves; even after roasting, the capsaicin can still burn, especially if you have sensitive skin.
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
Note: Nutrition facts above are for 1 jalapeño.
do you have to steam and peel if the are being cut up in a dip?
It really depends on the dip recipe, but generally speaking if you have roasted the jalapeños, you are going to want to peel them. The roasted skin produces a strange, grainy texture.
Super simple and delicious. Thank you!
This recipe is perfect because it actually tells you to steam the peppers to release the skins. This was what I had been missing all along! Thanks so much
Happy I could help!
Thank you for making this! I do meal preps for the week for my fiance and this helped me add some spunk to his rice and bean dishes! Adds little to no time to my prep but adds lots of brownie points!;)
I cooked these in the oven on my pizza stone. They were excellent!
Best instructions on the web! Great job, Tori! Will attempt your broiler instructions tonight and report back to you. Thank you! Bill
Happy it’s helpful! 🙂