This chili oil recipe has become one of the most popular on the blog—and even on the internet—and for good reason! Use this chili oil as an ingredient for many of our recipes like Mapo Tofu and Dan Dan Noodles or as a condiment for dumplings, noodles, and rice! Kaitlin breaks down everything you need to know from almost a decade of making homemade chili oil!
Full recipe here with measurements and a detailed rundown on everything we talk about in the video!
https://thewoksoflife.com/how-to-make-chili-oil/
Product links:
(*includes affiliate links from which we receive a small profit if you make a purchase)
– The chili flakes we use: https://tinyurl.com/2w86x5ma
– Our favorite spoonula: https://amzn.to/41rWQeD
– The food thermometer we use: https://www.thermoworks.com/shop/products/thermapens/
If storebought is more your speed, we reviewed some commonly available chili crisps and chili oils!
0:00 Intro
1:17 How did chili oil become so popular?
4:05 What chili flakes to use for chili oil?
5:11 Can I use Korean chili flakes (gochugaru)?
5:46 Can I use homegrown chilies?
6:43 How to make you chili oil even hotter
7:24 Spices for making chili oil
9:40 What if I don’t have all the spices?
10:56 What oil to use for chili oil
12:09 Quit talking and start cooking!
12:35 How to keep your chili oil food safe
13:30 Infuse the oil
17:06 Find the recipe in our cookbook!
17:55 Prepare the chili flakes
19:30 How hot should the oil be? (Use your senses!)
20:36 Oil temperature GUIDE
20:45 Our favorite instant read thermometer
22:44 Pour the oil over the chili flakes
25:30 How to salt your chili oil
25:50 Taste test
27:08 Bloopers
Thanks for watching!
– Bill, Judy, Sarah, and Kaitlin ❤️👨👩👧👧
Check out our NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING cookbook:
https://thewoksoflife.com/the-woks-of-life-cookbook-now-available/
For all of your questions on Chinese ingredients:
https://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-ingredients-glossary/
For more tips on Chinese cooking methods:
https://thewoksoflife.com/category/how-to/cooking-methods/
For The Woks of Life’s complete wok guide:
https://thewoksoflife.com/wok-guide/
Thinking of buying a wok? These are the best!
https://thewoksoflife.com/best-wok-to-buy/
Got questions on how to maintain your wok? (See here if you have a rusty wok!)
https://thewoksoflife.com/how-to-season-a-wok/
Stay connected!
https://www.instagram.com/thewoksoflife
https://www.facebook.com/thewoksoflife/
Music:
Querido/Cornelio/epidemicsound.com
Some/Hara Noda/epidemicsound.com
Lost in Translation/Wendy Marcini/epidemicsound.com
13 Comments
oh, so excited to see a video for this recipe I've used!
Sand ginger, aka Laos or Galangal. Available fresh or frozen in Asian grocery stores.
My first taste of my chilli oil was in Mauritius in 1991, made by my Chinese Friends Mother. We did smuggle several jars home as well as some absolutely amazing Mango(UNRIPE raw) chutney. Chilli oil we mastered but we were NEVER able to reproduce the amazing grated mango chutney……😊
I found the Mala market Caiziyou takes this recipe to another level. just remember that to use one must take the oil to the smoking point to reduce the stronger notes. Western canola oil has almost all these flavors removed making it pretty neutral.
So excited for this video!! I have the cookbook and really wanted to make it, but was a little intimidated before watching this… I can’t wait to get all of my ingredients together. Thank you, I love you guys!
Do you need to stir the mixture while it’s simmering
14:48 I want to see the guy that’s making all the noise 😂
Thank you littler hopper, but I don't cook spice dishes, the reason is that some members of my family has what is call map tongue (is crack tongue) and people with this condition can not take spice food. Another reason is that I cook with a litter amount of oil. another reason is that to me that red color oil on my food looks so unhealthy that I don't like it. jajajaja. but thanks anyway is always good to know methods of cooking. Cheers.
I LITERALLY just shared this recipe with a bunch of friends on X 2 days ago! I've been making it for awhile now. It's the best one I've found. 😊
I really really want to know what the temperature of the oil is during the hour.
Whats best way to store the oil and how long will it keep?
Just made this recipe to the letter minus the sand ginger and it is amazing. Thank you so much for all your efforts and for sharing.
Would recommend adding ginger, soy sauce, and vinegar to balance it?