SPICY CHINESE CHILE CRISP
About 2 cups
Chile crisp, or Lao Gan Ma, was invented by a woman named Tao Huabi in Guizhou, China, in 1997. We developed this recipe out of necessity: We routinely crave Lao Gan Ma, but its growing popularity in the United States has led to shortages. For an even crispier texture, fry the shallots called for here separately as for Crispy Fried Shallots, and proceed as directed, adding them to the food processor with the other ingredients. Serve this condiment with rice, noodles, dumplings, stir-fries, and soups.
Combine in a large saucepan:
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 6 ounces shallots (3 to 4 large), thinly sliced
- 5 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 ¼ ounces dried red chiles (such as árbol), toasted, stemmed, seeded, and broken into pieces (or ½ cup red pepper flakes)
- ¼ cup roasted peanuts or soy nuts
- 2 tablespoons fermented black beans
- (2 tablespoons Sichuan chili bean paste)
- (2 tablespoons chopped dried shrimp or anchovies)
Heat over medium heat until just beginning to simmer, then reduce the heat to maintain a lazy bubble. Cook until the shallots have softened and shrunk and the whole mixture has darkened somewhat and become very fragrant, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Stir in:
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground Sichuan peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon salt, MSG, or mushroom seasoning
- ½ teaspoon sugar
Once cool, transfer the mixture to a food processor and pulse until ground into a chunky paste (about 3 long pulses). Transfer to a glass jar or container. Store refrigerated.