How to Make Chilli Oil
What to do with left-over chillies….
Here’s a post for a reader of this blog and a chilli grower in England called Guy who has grown some red hot varieties and wants to make some chilli oil…
There are lots of different chilli oils out there, some are no more than a fancy bottle with cheap olive oil and a couple of old, dried and pale bird’s eye chillies in them. Avoid these at all costs, they’re cheap and nasty and will put you off what can be a very useful commodity.
At its most basic chilli oil is nothing more than oil and dried chilli flakes, that’s it. You can be more adventurous and add other ingredients such as ginger, star anise, sechuan pepper and so on but for me the most important aspect is the quality of the chilli used.
I grow and dry all of my own chillies, a fresh batch every year and every year I grow and dry enough to see me through for twelve months, after that I want fresh ones again. For me the whole idea of drying chillies other than preserving them is to make the most of the wonderful deep red colour they take on which imparts into whatever dish you are cooking and the flavour compared to shop bought ones is incomparable. You see the problem with shop bought ones is that you really don’t know how old they are and they do lose their taste and vibrancy over time.
Before making your chilli oil you should consider what you want to use it for and how hot you think it should be. Try one of the chillies you intend to use before making it, that way you can better judge the amounts you will need. Don’t make too much either, a little goes a long way and it’s much better to make small amounts more often than have a large jar of the stuff stuck in your cupboard.
If you are using shop bought chilli flakes then I would put them in a jar and pour warmed oil over them, if you are using whole fresh chillies then use this method first before adding the oil.
Recipe for Chilli Oil
275ml of groundnut/vegetable/corn oil
50g chilli flakes or two to three medium sized dried chillies according to taste.
If using whole chillies then cut in half first, fry until crisp in a little oil (leave seeds in their pods) Take care not to scorch the skins, cool and crush in a pestle and mortar or food blender
Heat the oil, don’t get it chip frying hot because that will burn the chillies and leave you with a bitter tasting end product. Put the chillies in a clean glass preserving jar. When the oil is hot remove from the heat and allow to cool a little. Pour over the chillies, stir (I use a bashed lemongrass stick) until well mixed and leave to cool. I like to leave it for a couple of days minimum for the flavours to develop.
Guy, if you read this then watch those hotties, one should be plenty for this amount!
Miles,
It must be the cooking of the chillies themselves that keeps the finished oil in perfect condition… I’m sure in past years I’ve tried making flavoured oils which in the end went mouldy.
Today I made a tasty and very simple mushroom soup, laced with garlic, a splash of sherry and finished with a teaspoon of truffle oil. I recommend it to anyone caught without stock.
However my latest craze (probably won’t last long!) is to make a batch of macaron which look and taste as they should. I’ll let you know how it goes. Readers don’t hold your breath, I hear these little rascals are difficult to perfect… we shall see.
Cid
October 2, 2008 @ 5:41 pm
Cid,
Mushroom soup with a touch of sherry is perfect, try a little dried cep powder if you can find it. I look forward to hearing about the macaron.
Miles
October 2, 2008 @ 6:23 pm
Miles,
Like the sound of the cep powder… must try to find some. The future of my macaron however, lies with their ability to develop ‘feet’… as they say in the trade.
Not that these will mean a great deal to the doughnut loving locals of course…. instead I shall save them for the ladies who lunch 
Cid
October 3, 2008 @ 5:52 pm
Cid,
‘Ladies who Lunch’ glad to hear they still exist-no credit crunch where you are then
Miles
October 3, 2008 @ 6:26 pm
Miles,
Indeed tis the credit crunch that brings them to my door… a free crust and off they go to fight any injustices the afternoon may bring
Cid
October 4, 2008 @ 9:34 am
Miles,
thanks again. There are pleanty of sites offering advice that sounds less than credible. Want to avoid botulism at all costs! Will see about drying some of them but conditions in SE Eng dreadful…
Guy
October 4, 2008 @ 5:14 pm
Guy,
Stick them in your airing cupboard-they should be fine.
Miles
October 4, 2008 @ 6:11 pm