How to Make Your Own Chili Oil

Everyone loves spicy, flavorful, shelf-stable staples for buffets, but let’s be honest – we can’t survive on anchovies and tomato paste alone. Most of the key ingredients we will rely on in the coming weeks and months of quarantine are in need of significant refinement, and in a world where buying fresh ingredients is potentially dangerous, that means getting creative with homemade seasonings.

Chili oil is here for you during these wild, unpredictable times. In its simplest form, it’s just vegetable oil, garlic, salt, dried chili flakes, and about five minutes of real work. You will find that the fruits of your hard work are as intense and transformative as chimichurri or basil pesto, but made entirely with ingredients that can be stored for a long time. After you taste your first batch, you wonder why you bothered to buy it at all – that is, can you stop eating long enough to reflect on your past mistakes. Here’s everything you need to make your own:

• Large (at least 4 glasses) heat-resistant container
• 2 tablespoons – 1/4 cup dried chili flakes
• 2-4 cloves of garlic, minced or thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
• A pinch or two MSG (optional)
• 2 tablespoons of assorted whole dried spices (or more)
• 1 cup of neutral hot oil, heated to a high temperature

If the quantities seem a little weak, that’s the point. Everything but oil and chili flakes can be discussed, and even the ratio of these two key ingredients doesn’t really matter: if you crave pain relieving heat, use more chili flakes; if not, use less. As for the other flavors, you can use them as maximalist or minimal as you like. Whole spice from the kitchen sink turns into a fantastically complex condiment, but I think there is something to be said for the perfect simplicity of chopped paprika and garlic flakes too. Truly, there is no right or wrong answer – follow your heart.

Start by placing the chili flakes, garlic, salt and (if needed) monosodium glutamate in a heat-resistant container. As you will soon see, the mixture starts to bubble violently when you pour in hot oil, so use the largest container you have. Here I have 1/4 cup gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes – fruity, relatively soft and neon red), 4 small cloves of minced garlic, about 1/2 teaspoon table salt, and a pinch of MSG in a 4 cup pyrex measuring cup …

Be sure to install a stand under the container to protect the table or countertop; you are going to pour steaming hot oil into it and it will leave a mark.

Next, collect all your spices. I opted for star anise, Sichuan peppers, green cardamom pods, a few whole dried chili de arbol for extra heat, cumin seeds, and a cinnamon stick for good measure. (Pro tip: Divide the cinnamon sticks in half for easier storage.)

Toast everything in a dry skillet over medium-high heat for a minute or two until the spices begin to smoke, then add them to the measuring glass with the chili flakes, garlic, and seasonings.

Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat until it also starts to smoke slightly. Very carefully, pour the boiling oil over the spices and flavors in a measuring cup and stir gently to combine.

Allow to cool completely and transfer to an airtight storage container. The longer it stays on, the more fragrant it will become, but you can start pouring chili oil on anything and everything as soon as it cools. For food safety reasons, keep it in the refrigerator. As the University of Idaho Expansion Program helpful explains , raw garlic may be a source of Clostridium botulinum, or botulism bacteria. These bacteria thrive in mildly acidic, low oxygen environments, such as a can of chili oil.

If there is a bland food that can’t be improved with homemade chili oil, I haven’t met it yet – even a bowl of plain white rice with plain steamed tofu is addictive when drizzled a little over the top. Honestly, I mostly use mine to pep up the scrambled eggs (for whatever reason, that’s an extra right for cornstarch eggs ), but today I dug some homemade dumplings out of the freezer and absolutely poured them with spicy, garlic, electric orange gold. This was exactly what I needed and is probably what you need.

This story was originally published in March 2020. It was updated on March 3, 2021 to recommend refrigerator storage and reflect current Lifehacker style guidelines.