Chili oil; for a Malaysian girl like me… it goes on everything. On a good day I should have almost seven different hot chili concoctions in my fridge.
Here’s how I do it.
Ingredients:
- 5 star anises
- 3 tbsp szechuan peppercorns (do not use black peppercorns- it’s not the same) You’ll get the double whammy with the hot chillies and the szechuans spicy numbing effects.
- 2 cups chili flakes (or you can grind whole dried chilies)
- 4 one inch cassia barks or 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 bay leaves (I use fresh, but dried will do)
- 2 tsp five spice powder (I make my own) See the recipe below.
- 2 cups canola or peanut oil
- Other things you can use are one inch of sliced ginger and four tablespoons of toasted white sesame seeds and one teaspoon of salt but it’s not necessary. Mind you, the salt will not dissolve in the oil.
Method:
Firstly, gather all your ingredients.
Secondly, heat the oil and simmer the spices for 30 minutes.
Lastly, strain the hot oil over the chili mixture and enjoy. That’s all to it.
Let’s get started.
- Combine the five-spice powder and chili flakes together and leave it aside.
- Start to heat the oil and let it come close to a boiling heat and remove it from the heat, and let it cool.
- Return the pan of oil to the stove over very low heat and add all the spices and steep it for half an hour over the low heat.
- If you see the spices browning after twenty minutes, take the pan off the heat.
- Keep a watchful eye on it. Do not let the oil boil.
- After half an hour strain the oil mixture over the chili flakes.
- It will start bubbling so be careful. Mix it with a metal spoon to incorporate all the chilies and oil together.
- Let it cool and store in a jar in the fridge.
- Toast the sesame seeds over low heat and mix them into the oil if you like.
It takes about half an hour to make and keeps at least for a month.
Check out my Instagram handle and follow me on manecutagawri for a beautiful collage of Malaysian cuisine.
Have fun with the heat!
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