Fried Garlic Chili Oil

I’m one of those people who add hot sauce to everything. So, when my mom first started making this chili oil, I was obsessed. This stuff is good on everything… and I mean everything. It adds the perfect level of spice, salt, and umami flavoring and is super customizable!

Honestly, the hardest part about making this is the prep. This recipe requires you to slice a large amount of garlic, shallots, and peppers. The recipe makes about 2 medium jars of oil, so make a half recipe if needed. I used 7 heads of garlic (yes, you read that right) but it really just depends on how garlicky you want it to be. Personally, the garlic is my favorite part, so I decided to really pack in as much as possible.

If you have a mandoline, prep will be much easier. I don’t own one, so I just sat and hand-sliced garlic for what felt like hours. You want to make sure that you’re slicing everything evenly because you want it to cook evenly! Once everything is sliced, it’s just a matter of crisping everything up.

Not only is this chili oil good on everything, but it will last forever. Keep it stored in jars in your fridge and you’ll have a delicious topping whenever you need it!

Fried Garlic Chili Oil

My mother's go-to recipe for garlic chili oil that's way better than the store-bought versions. Perfect on everything!

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Prep Time 45 mins

Cook Time 50 mins

Total Time 1 hr 35 mins

Servings 2 medium jars

Ingredients

  

• 3 cups vegetable oil
• 3 serrano or jalapeño peppers
• 6 shallots
• 7 heads garlic
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 1/2 cup red chili flakes
• 2 tbsp smoked paprika (or cayenne)
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp MSG (you can use mushroom powder or umami seasoning instead)
• 2 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 or 2 dried chili peppers

Instructions

 

• Slice the peppers, shallots, and garlic cloves. The peppers can be roughly chopped, the shallots should be thinly sliced and chopped, and the garlic should be thinly sliced. It helps if you have a mandoline.
• Add the oil to a shallow pan or pot and heat to medium high.
• Add the sliced garlic and fry until crispy, about 20-30 minutes. Scoop out of the oil and place onto a paper towel when golden brown. Don't cook until dark brown because it'll darken while it cools. If your garlic doesn't get crispy (mine didn't the first time), you can place into a separate pan with no extra oil to crisp it up a little (it'll taste good no matter what).
• Once the garlic is taken out, add the sliced pepper, shallots, sesame oil, peppercorns, and salt to the oil. Add more oil if too much was wasted when you removed the garlic.
• Cook until peppers and shallots are crispy, about 20 minutes. About halfway through cooking, add the soy sauce and sesame seeds. Like the garlic, it should be golden brown but not too dark.
• While the peppers and shallots are cooking, place the red pepper flakes, paprika, sugar, and MSG (or umami/mushroom seasoning) in a heatproof bowl. Mix to combine.
• When shallots and peppers are crispy, strain them out over the red pepper flake mixture. Mix until well combined. Set aside the crispy bits that you strained out of the oil.
• Allow everything to cool a little, about 10 minutes.
• Portion the garlic, shallots, and peppers into jars. Add 1 to 2 dried chilis. Then, pour the seasoned oil into the jars. Mix slightly, cover with lid, and refrigerate overnight (to let the flavors develop even more). Stir before serving and enjoy!

Keyword garlic, hot, peppers, red pepper, savory, spicy, topping, vanilla sauce