Nothing adds hot spice and flavour to any dish like these hot crispy chilli peppers preserved in oil. This is no simple chilli oil but is packed with tiny crispy pieces of chilli and onion for the most amazing flavour bomb experience.
The Inspiration
Personally I blame Nigella Lawson for getting me hooked on this fabulous crispy chilli in oil. She is a total chilli fan and when I was watching her latest TV show before Christmas she was singing the praises of Lao Gan Ma crispy chilli in oil.
She said she used it in lots of her cooking and went on to make her fried chicken sandwich and a lamb shank dish with noodles including this fiery chilli preserve. Here is a link to her fabulous fried chicken sandwich recipe.
I sent away for a jar of the crispy chilli in oil and was promptly looked myself. So it was just one step further for me to want to make some for myself.
After all, why buy something when you can make it at home!
Chili crisp oil/crispy chilli oil
Whatever you want to call it these tiny chips of chilli madness swimming in flavour packed oil will soon have you hooked too.
This is a very popular condiment in China and used for everything from firing up plain noodles to adding to soups.
But we all know that chilli appears in so many different cuisines so this amazing crispy chilli oil can be used in all sorts of ways. Anywhere that you want a bit of heat from dips to stews, veggies to sandwiches.
So what are the ingredients for crispy chilli in oil
Well chilli peppers of course. I just used our basic jalapeno chilli peppers from the supermarket.
There is also red onion finely chopped and lots of garlic. It is the jalapeno chilli, onion and garlic all fried up that give that all-important crispiness to this amazing condiment.
Other ingredients are the spices; ginger, cinnamon, black peppercorns, star anise and smoked paprika. Oh and chilli flakes too, just in case you didn’t think there was enough hot stuff in this chilli oil already!
And finally, there is soy sauce, sugar and that all-important oil. Simple sunflower oil is just fine.
How to make hot crispy chilli peppers in oil
Finely chop the jalapeno chillis, red onion, ginger and garlic and heat these in a pan along with about 300ml of oil and some black peppercorns, a cinnamon stick and the star anise.
Let this simmer away for half an hour. You want to do two things here, infuse the oil with all that amazing flavour and also fry the chilli, onion and garlic.
Meanwhile mix all your other ingredeints in a heat-proof jar/jug and once that chilli oil has cooled for about 5 minutes pour it through a sieve into the jar.
How does the chilli go crispy?
Leave the chilli, onion and garlic bits in the sieve to cool down completely and you’ll find that they go crispy.
Now pick out the cinnamon stick and star anise. Next add the crispy chilli and other wee bits to the jar with the oil and spices and give it a good shake.
Pop it into the fridge for 24 hours to let all those amazing flavours dance and mingle and develop into something truly amazing.
How long does crispy chilli oil keep?
This will keep in the fridge for up to 3 months.
How much crispy chilli do you use
I just use a teaspoon of the crispy chilli and oil (make sure you get some of both oil and bits) to add to a single portion of anything from a stirfry to a toasted sandwich.
Of course when I’m making and pot of stew (or chilli con carne) or soup I just add more to suit. Be aware that this is hot stuff so err on the side of caution when serving this for other folks!
Can you use the chilli oil
Yes, use the extra oil in the jar for cooking and in sauces and salad dressings etc
How to use crispy chilli peppers in oil
On noodles or rice, this really brings a simple bowl of noodles to life.
The same applies to pasta. In fact I like to add some of my crispy chilli to my Seafood Arrabbiata recipe.
Of course I add this to my simple chilli con carne taco bowls and to my spicy fish tacos too.
Mix some with yogurt for a super simple hot and spicy cool dip.
Mix in some with your salad dressings. I always make my salad dressings in a jar so it’s dead easy to throw in a teaspoon of this as well and shake it up in the mix.
Spooned over a fried egg. And boy those this ramp up the flavour on your Huevas Rancheros!
I’ll be honest with you I add this chilli crisp to everything from a bowl of soup to a toastie. Told you I was addicted to it!
Looking for more fun spicy goodies to make at home? Then check these out before you go;
How to make hot and spicy chilli salt
Finally, if you do try this recipe don’t forget to leave a comment/star rating below as I just love to hear from readers. Want more Larder Love? Then follow me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter and sign up for my newsletter too of course.
Hot Crispy Chilli Peppers In Oil
Ingredients
- 300 ml sunflower oil
- 2 jalapeno chilli peppers
- 1/2 red onion
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 tsp ginger grated
- 2 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick
Spice mix
- 4 tbsp chilli flakes
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
Instructions
- Finely chop the chilli peppers, onion and garlic and add these to the oil ginger and peppercorns in a small pa and simmer for 30 minutes
- Remove pan from heat and cool for 5 minutes
- Mix together all the other ingredients that make up the spice mix and put this in a heatproof jar
- Pour the chilli oil through a sieve into the jar and leave the chilli, onion and garlic bits to cool completely and they will crisp up
- pick out the cinnamon and star anise and discard
- Put lid on jar, give it a shake and set aside in fridge for 24 hours for the flavours to develop
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