The combination of the sweet and spicy—including both sriracha sauce and sweet chili sauce—makes this sausage & peppers with sweet chili aioli dish the perfect appetizer that will add both intimacy and spice to your next gathering.

Recipe courtesy of Chef Steven Richards at Paddlefish Aioli

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup Mayonnaise
• ¾ cup Sweet chili sauce
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
• Salt & ground pepper to taste

AIOLI PREPARATION:

• Whisk all ingredients together in a mixing bowl until combined.
• Season with salt and pepper to taste and store in refrigerator. Paprika oil

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup olive oil
• ¼ cup paprika

PAPRIKA OIL PREPARATION:

• Combine the oil and paprika in a small but heavy saucepan
• Heat the mixture gently over low to medium heat while stirring
• The mixture should be heated enough to extract the color and flavor from the paprika but not hot enough to cook it. (150 – 160 F)
• Stir the mixture a few times over the course of a half hour until the oil takes on a deep red color
• Let the mixture sit at room temperature until all of the paprika settles into a cake at the bottom of the pan. This will take as much as an hour or two
• Without disturbing the paprika at the bottom of the pan, pour the oil gently into a squeeze bottle or other container. Discard the settled paprika left in the bottom of the pan

SAUSAGE & PEPPERS INGREDIENTS:

• 28 whole shishito peppers
• 12 oz chorizo sausage
• ¾ cup of the sweet chili aioli (from above recipe)
• Paprika oil (from above recipe)
• Vegetable oil

SAUSAGE & PEPPERS PREPARATION:

• Heat oil in a table top fryer to 360 degrees following device instructions
• Meanwhile, prepare the chorizo by cutting it into slices that are as thin as possible
• Working in batches so as not to overload your fryer, cook the sausage slices with the whole peppers just until the peppers blister and the sausage crisps up a bit It will take about 30 seconds for each batch
• Drain and hold the product on a rack, over a sheet pan
• Distribute the sausage and peppers evenly on 4 plates … each with a ramekin of sweet chili aioli
• Drizzle each plate with a bit of your paprika oil.

TIPS:

• This dish will work with a variety of chorizo products. Choose your favorite fully cooked and ready to eat product. Do not use a raw product
• Shishitos are a small green pepper with a mildly spicy character
• This works well as a tapas item, served with a variety of other small plates
• The recipes for sweet chili aioli and for paprika oil will make more than you need. Both will hold very well under refrigeration for at least a week. Try the paprika oil on grilled fish or pork. The aioli works well with a variety of fried items

Servings: Makes 4 appetizer portions