And how do you make it? A first-time poster here, I want to recreate a dish simply called “pimentones,” from a favorite Peruvian restaurant: padron peppers, ciruela rocoto miso, bonito flakes. I’m thrown on the rocoto miso. Thanks for your help!
Welcome to Hungry Onion!
I’m just guessing, ciruela rocoto chili paste mixed with red miso paste.
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I agree with naf that it sounds like it’s “flavored” miso, though without knowing more, there’s no way to know which type of miso the restaurant uses - could be red, or white, or somewhere in-between (e.g., saikyo miso).
Also, unless there’s a comma missing there, it’s not just “rocoto”-flavored miso, it looks like it’s also flavored with the fruit most commonly known in the US by its Mexican name “jocote” (but also known as “ciruela” elsewhere, and among other names)…
ETA: On the other hand, it looks like “ciruelas” (or more properly “ciruelas japoneses”) may also be
a Peruvian-ism for what are known in Japanese as “umeboshi” (a specific variety of apricot/plum preserved in salt), and that would no doubt taste quite different than fresh jocotes… (See, e.g., Nuestro Salmón Umeboshi.)
And if those answers raise the question “where can you get those ingredients?”, if you’re in or near L.A. (and based on the only hits I got when I tried a web search for the paste, at Rosaliné, I’m guessing you are) you might be able to find fresh rocotos at this time of year, but jarred rocoto paste and frozen rocotos should be available year-around anywhere there’s enough of a Peruvian population to create a market for them, and I can get fresh jocotes even in NYC when they’re in season (though offhand I don’t know when that is) and I’m pretty sure I"ve seen those frozen too at some grocery stores, so I’d imagine finding them there would be a no-brainer… And you can get umeboshi at any Japanese grocery store, and most Korean and “pan-Asian” stores, not to mention a lot of general “health food” stores and other stores that cater to the macrobiotic crowd.
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I’m curious, you can see this rocoto miso listed as ingredient only on restaurant menus, not in recipes.
I wondered about that, too. My only guess is that the whole Internet-culture of seeking out restaurant recipes isn’t quite as well-developed outside the US, and within the US, it’s not well enough known to have sparked copycatting? It does look interesting, though, and I’d definitely consider trying it. Though without knowing what the original tastes like, it would be like throwing darts in the dark…
Following! I still have some rocoto peppers to experiment with.
The last two, but the plant has carried on for its third or fourth winter.
Although doesn’t sound like “pimentones,” from a favorite Peruvian restaurant: padron peppers, ciruela rocoto miso, bonito flakes”, some of the recipes I saw were for a glaze, and I love a miso glaze, so I’m thinking of that as a jumping off point.
And wel Aviv om, @adalba!
Was supposed to say welcome.
Thanks so much for your help, everyone.
MikeG, your replies were very helpful. The restaurant where I tasted these peppers is indeed Rosaline. Next time I go back, I’ll ask about the “ciruelas” - whether they’re umeboshi or fresh jocotes.
I’m new to attempting to copycat restaurant recipes but excited to experiment with this one. If the sauce turns out well, I’ll certainly post my recipe here. Thanks again!
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