Growing up in Malaysia with a mom that has a penchant for spicy food has exposed me to chilli & spices from a young age. Szechuan food has a special place in my heart. Although Szechuan cuisine uses different ingredients and methods than Malaysian cuisine, my love for spiciness has attracted me to it.
Chilli oil is essential in Szechuan cooking and it's used extensively in a lot of the popular Szechuan dishes. To name a few, Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐), Kung Pao Chicken (宮保雞丁) and Red Oil Wonton (红油抄手). It's used to add a gorgeous red hue to the dishes and also to add a wonderful flavour. Not limited to Szechuan dishes, you can also use it to spice up the temperature of your noodle, salad and even stir-fry dishes.
You can easily buy chilli oil from Asian supermarkets but it's also very easy to make it at home. It can be made ahead and stored in a closed container at room temperature for up to a month.
Homemade Szechuan Chilli oilMake 500 ml
Ingredients
500 ml canola oil, vegetable oil or other flavourless oil
2 spring onions, tied in a knot
50 g ginger, slightly bruised with a cleaver or meat mullet
100 g chilli powder
2 star anise
Method
- Mix the chilli powder and star anise in a medium size heatproof bowl. Set aside.
- Add canola oil, spring onions and ginger in a medium saucepan.
- Heat under medium high heat until the oil is smoking and fragrant.
- Remove the oil immediately from the heat and discard the green onions and ginger.
- Let the oil cool down a little and pour it in the heatproof bowl with chilli powder and star anise.
- Stir to mix well and let it sit and settle for at least 12 hours until the oil is separated and float on top.
- Gently pour the oil into a container, covered and keep in room temperature for up to a month.
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61 comments:
Oh how simple =) and the colour is so gorgeous! I would have thought they made it with whole chillies. I'd probably end up just buying a bottle out of pure laziness =D
Wow, Ellie, its just so pretty. I can just imagine the taste!
A great recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Rosa
Seeing as how I have all of these ingredients on hand, I have no excuse not to make this! I can't wait to add all this spice to my meals.
I didn't realise that ingredients in addition to chilli could be used. That also looks like a nice glass of tea - I wouldn't want to make the mistake:)
Great!! It would be so handy and can use whenever you need.
These oil can come in handy in case some nasty people or animal breaks into the house.
i actually (years ago) made my own chili oil. And it was good. It tasted so different (better) than the bottle version. I mean really different. The freshness was there. So I can appreciate this post.
Homemade szechuan chilli oil looks awesome. Love it.
Yum. I love chilli oil , gonna have to try this I think.
Wonderful step by step photos on how to make chili oil. I love your blog because it has so many things I know nothing about. Tomorrow, I am going to make a rosemary olive oil for my fish dish. Should be fun...
Great!! It's so easy!! Thanks for share!! xx
This is one of those things I have never thought of making myself- I've always just bought a bottle from the shelf. I'm sure the homemade is much tastier though- sounds good and spicy! :)
I just cooked with Szechuan peppercorns for the first time this weekend. Fabulous! Thanks for the recipe
This is why I love your blog. The range of recipes are so wide from eatern to western, cooking to baking, and now simple household ingredients that we use everyday. Amazed by this and your condensed milk recipe are seriously awesome. Thanks for sharing with us that things like these are really not hard to make and more enjoyable when homemade! =)
thanks!is so simple and you so kind to share this!:)
I love chili oil! I can mix it with any condiment I have on hand and it makes the food extra yummy, thanks for sharing this recipe, I didn't realize how simple it is to make :)
@ Winston: So my readers won't get bored :) Thanks fit your kind words.
Mmmm, love the hit of that chilli oil, nice to see the process behind it.
Looks like you've put it in a shot glass.... anyone up for a dare? :D
Thank you! Love this. Definitely bookmarking the recipe.
I do love chili oil and would love to make my own. Thanks for this post, what a fun and rewarding project this will be.
Wow I've never thought of making myself! How very simple :) Thanks for the tip!
Love it I do...and it's simple too!
Hmmm. it's really easy to make! Thanks for the recipe!
Wow! Thank you for this recipe...!!! This sounds simple to make. I would defintely give this a try :D).
I would never have thought of making this myself. I love the gorgeous colour, it's just so pretty.
Wow, that sounds and looks fantastic. I love purchasing ready-made asian cooking oils, but have never thought to try making one myself. Definitely feel inspired to do so!
Hmm. I never thought it would be made that way. The colour is soo pretty. My mum likes to make spicy oil to sprinkle on her food as well, by suspending halapenos in soy bean oil.. But I'm too scared to touch it! haha
Brilliant Ellie! The color is gorgeous and there are so many variations one can experiment with :-)
Yay!!
Finally.. a post that is worth waiting for. Making this today! Will be adding this oil for my kon-lo noodle tomorrow for sure ;)
Will you send me a bottle of this oil Ellie?I love such spicy condiments to dress up salads..it looks beautiful.Love the first picture.
Gorgeous! I dig having a variety of homemade oils in the cupboard. This sounds fantastic! :) Ellie it is a pretty colour. I'm gonna make me some. Cheers, Anna
Fabulous! so simple to make. I love to just drizzle this onto noodles.
I didn't know it was so simple! Thanks for sharing.
Gorgeous color! If I saw that glass on the table I might just accidentally drink it, and it'd be... ouchhh! heheheh
This oil looks so lovely! I must try this out sometime.
P.S. I've never seen "chili/chilli" spelled with two "t's". So cool!
It never come across to me to make chili oil and now, I know it is not difficult. Thanks for sharing.
I haven't made homemade chilli oil before but it's something that I want to make. I always thought that it would use dried chilli or chilli flakes to infuse the oil with colour and flavour, wouldn't think to use chilli powder. Looks like the chilli powder gives an intense colour.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I have too many recipes of yours I want to try out, I don't know where to start! :D
Thank you so much for this!! My mother has been wanting chilli oil for years - we tried buying the premade stuff at the Chinese grocery store but it tastes so awful that it sits barely used in the pantry!
My husband would be very happy if I make this. He loves chili oil. I think he can survive on just chili oil and rice...haha. I am the one who jam the brake every time. Maybe I can make this and then ration it. Just can't give him the whole bottle :P
I am always amazed and impressed when someone takes something that I am used to buying in the store and would never ever think of how it is made and actually making it at home! Your homemade chilli oil must be fabulous! Oooh so inspiring!
I use a lot of chilli oil so I'll definitely try this.
Ha ha, in that shot where you are holding the glass, looks like you're about to drink it! Imagine if you did...wooo. Love the fiery red colour.
Never would have thought it was that easy, Ellie. It's always better to make your own seasonings, I find. And I bet your homemade chili oil tastes nothing like the bottled! Can't wait to try it.
Nice post! That photo was a delight.
great recipe! i wouldn't have guessed the other ingredients were involved. one question, is there any special reason for using canola? grapeseed has a mild flavor and is much much healthier.... saving to my online cookbook! (http://cookmarked.com) can't wait to try.
I would never ever have thought of making chilli oil. But I like the process of it and the colour somehow seems more brilliant than the store bought ones.
I love the spiciness szechuan chili oil imparts but have never been able to get a deep, fiery red oil like yours. Thanks for the step by step photos, Ellie- beautiful photos as always! :)
This is so much better than the store bought version. The spicier the better!
That sounds so simple! I can't handle much chilli, so maybe the tiniest drop of this would be enough for me :-)
I never thought to make this! It looks like it would make a perfect hostess gift in a pretty jar or bottle! Thanks for the inspiration!
@ Laura: grapeseed oil is fine. There is no particular reason that I use canola oil. You can replace it with vegetable oil or other flavourless oil.
Our family favorite. I make this at home; but I just made up my recipe since I did not have an authentic one. I add garlic cloves too along with the ginger, but never added the anise. have to try it with the anise next time. Thank you again for a wonderful recipe.
I never knew how to home make this oil. Yours look amazing!
So yummy, but so easy! Thanks for demystifying such a great ingredient. I usually get my fix at Chinese takeaways by filling a little pot with twice as much chilli oil as I need so I have extra for next time. This is a much simpler solution!
usually what i did just fry dried chili with oil to get chili oil. Yours version sound better than mine with more ingredients, must try you recipe soon.
Very glad to have stumbled upon your blog - so different to so many others I browse.
Great recipe.
simple, indeed! I still remember a Szechuan meat soup I had in Hong Kong two years ago...
Ellie: i can say thank you from my husband for this recipe: he is a fanatic of spicy oils and I can't wait to make this for him.
Love all the pictures and I love chilli oil!
Szechuan is my favorite kind of Chinese food. Glad to have your instructions so I can make my own chili oil. Can you provide a few vegetarian recipes that use this oil as an ingredient please? I'd find that very useful.
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