Chilli crisp

Huile pimentée croustillante (chili crisp)

What it is

Tao Huabi sold noodles in Guiyang and gave away the chilli oil she made to go with them; when customers began coming only for the oil, she started bottling it in the mid-1990s. She could not read or write, and had her own face printed on the label so buyers would know the jar was hers.

In the kitchen

The crunch is the product and it does not survive the pan, so spoon it over food that is already plated. Keep the solids submerged in the oil and the jar lasts months; a spoon that has touched a hot dish goes back wet and softens it within a week.

Goes with

Egg Rice Silken tofu (kinugoshi) Cucumber Pak choi Avocado

Same species

Ají amarillo Ají panca Ajvar Aleppo pepper Ancho chilli Bell pepper

Also used with

Shanxi aged vinegar Calcium sulfate Ya cai Chinkiang vinegar

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