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Sichuan Chilli Crisp

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This spicy, numbing chilli crisp might be your new favourite condiment. It uses two types of dried chillies: sichuan peppercorns, which add a numbing spiciness, and crushed red chilli flakes, which bring the heat. The crispy element comes from the shallots and garlic, which get fried with aromatics until golden.

This crispy chilli is great on just about everything – dumplings, eggs, meats, roasted vegetables, soups, you name it. It’s so good you may even be tempted to eat it straight out of the jar!

  • Author: zenak
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
  • Yield: 1 jar 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 heaped tbsp sichuan peppercorns
  • 2 heaped tbsp crushed red chilli flakes
  • 2 heaped tbsp toasted sesame seeds
  • 2 heaped tbsp fresh ginger root, peeled and very finely chopped
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 2 echalion shallots (banana shallots), thinly sliced
  • 2 heads of garlic, separated into cloves, thinly sliced
  • 4 star anise
  • 4 x 2-inch cinnamon stick
  • 6 dried bay leaves
  • 500 ml vegetable or sunflower oil

Instructions

  1. Place the sichuan peppercorns in a mortar and pound with a pestle until ground. Transfer to a large heatproof bowl and add the crushed red chilli flakes, toasted sesame seeds, fresh ginger, soy sauce and sugar. Place a fine-mesh sieve over the bowl and set aside.
  2. Place the shallots, garlic, star anise, cinnamon sticks, bay leaves and vegetable oil in a medium saucepan. Set it over a medium heat and bring to a simmer.
  3. Reduce the heat to low/medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots and garlic are lightly browned (emphasis on the lightly). Don’t be tempted to turn the heat up to high to speed up the process. Extracting the moisture from the shallots and garlic, which is key to crisping them up, takes time – anywhere from 25 to 35 minutes.
  4. Strain the shallot-garlic-oil into the heatproof bowl with the chilli mixture and stir to combine.
  5. Let the shallots and garlic cool in the sieve – this will help them fully crisp up. Once cooled, discard the star anise, cinnamon sticks and bay leaves then stir the crispy shallots and garlic into the chilli oil.
  6. Once the chilli crisp is fully cooled, transfer it to a jar and store in the fridge for up to a month. Stir well before serving. You can use it as soon as it cools down, but it’s even better the day after once the flavours have had a chance to develop and meld together.

Notes

Note: If you increase the amount of chilli crisp you’re making, you’ll also need to increase the amount of time you spend cooking the garlic and shallots. And likewise, if you decrease the amount chilli crisp you’re making, you’ll also need to decrease the amount of time spent crisping up the garlic and shallots.

Find it online: https://zenaskitchen.com/sichuan-chilli-crisp/

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