5 Minute Chili Crisp Recipe (Chili Crunch)
This quick and easy chili crisp recipe comes together quickly with six simple pantry ingredients including olive oil, dried onions, dried garlic, and red pepper flakes. Choose a 1-minute microwave option or 3-minute stovetop method, plus options to add more umami flavor. It was inspired by Trader Joe’s Chili Onion Crunch and adds wonderful flavor to everything from eggs to noodles.
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When chili crisp first came on the culinary scene, both Brian and I were intrigued as lovers of spicy, flavorful foods, like spicy plum sauce, tomato chutney, and soy sriracha marinated chicken or sriracha beef and veggie bowls.
But it wasn’t until we tried Trader Joe’s Chili Onion Crunch and we realized all the things we could use it on that were hooked. A simple fried egg took on a whole new flavor when cooked in a teaspoon of chili crisp (and actually any egg was that much better). We drizzled it on hummus, added it to egg or chicken salad, and spread it on burgers or grilled cheese.
But we don’t make it to Trader Joes all that often and we’d run out, and while we tried a couple other brands, they were more expensive and sometimes had ingredients we’d rather avoid (mainly sugar and MSG). So I started searching for a recipe – it seemed like dried ingredients in oil, right?
Um, sort of. So many recipes call for you cooking fresh garlic – but carefully or it may burn. Or they called for a ton of spices that had to be ground and called for a lot of steps that could take an hour or more (looking at you, Serious Eats…) and resulted in a condiment with large chunks and slices – hardly what we were used to.
So I found a couple recipes that used mostly dried ingredients with minimal cooking and adjusted the ingredients to resemble TJs crunch with a few optional ingredients to add more umami flavor. AND I discovered that a minute in the microwave was sufficient to heat the oil and peppers so it could be ready in just 5 minutes. Sold!
Why make your own chili crisp?
Since a jar of TJs chili crunch isn’t that expensive – and you use only a little at a time – why bother making your own? Three reasons:
- Convenience, since we don’t live that close to a Trader Joe’s and we’d like to have this as a pantry staple.
- Control of the ingredients, since other brands contained things we don’t want.
- Cost – it turns out you CAN make it for less.
In researching the cost of the ingredients for this recipe, I discovered that making your own chili crisp is half the price of TJ’s crunch! Even though buying bulk ingredients is a lot more money up front, when I priced it out by ounce, one batch of my recipe costs just $1.94 for the ingredients and results in about the same 6-ounce jar of chili crunch that TJs sells for $4.49.
So if this spicy condiment is something you use often, making this chili crisp recipe is significantly cheaper than store bought!
Recipe Ingredient Notes
The basic recipe is similar to Trader Joe’s Chili Onion Crunch with optional ingredients you can add that are often included in Asian-style chili crisps.
- Oil: I use olive oil mainly because that’s the first ingredient in TJs product, but many other chili crisps on the market use other oils. I would stick with quality oils like avocado oil or expeller pressed sunflower oil, though.
- Dried minced onions: This is one of the key ingredients for the chili onion crunch copycat. You’ll need minced for this, not flaked or granulated.
- Dried minced garlic: Another key ingredient, you again want minced for this and not flaked or granulated.
- Red pepper flakes: This gives the chili crisp it’s spice and you can adjust this as need for the spice level you prefer. (TIP: the pepper flakes I’ve linked to are about half the price of any others per ounce – and a LOT less than a large bottle I saw in Grocery Outlet recently, so check around for prices.)
- Salt and paprika: salt is obviously for flavor and I use a fine sea salt. The paprika is a standard ingredient in most chili crisps I researched that is used mainly for color, though I do think smoked paprika adds a nice flavor.
Optional Ingredients
- Dried red bell peppers: TJ’s product lists this as the fourth ingredient (before red pepper flakes) so if you’d like to create more of a copycat you’ll want to use them. I list them as optional for two reasons, 1) dried bell peppers are more expensive per ounce than any of the other ingredients and 2) they don’t make that much of a difference in taste to us.
- Sesame oil and mushroom powder: After researching Asian style chili crisp ingredients I added these as optional to increase the “umami” flavor that many of the brands promote. They do add to the cost and I’m not sure of the taste difference (we couldn’t really tell), but if you’re looking for more traditional flavor, adding these may be the way to go.
What you WON’T find in popular chili crisp brands (that you may see in other recipes):
- Soy sauce: Only one of the top five brands I found uses this and only as the last ingredient in powdered form. I’ve seen some homemade recipes use soy sauce as the first ingredient, which would make it taste a lot different than any of the top brands.
- Nuts: No brand I saw contained any type of nut, including peanuts or soy beans.
Let’s Talk About Sugar
Some homemade recipes and one of the most popular brands (Momofuku) list sugar as one of the main ingredients. I’m of the mind that store bought foods often utilize sugar to make their foods more appealing to the masses, but I don’t want sugar added to things that don’t need it, and chili crisp is one of these, in my opinion. Thankfully, TJ’s Chili Crunch doesn’t include sugar and it was the first brand we tried when it came out and we learned that it’s not needed to give all the chili-onion-garlic goodness we love to our food, so you won’t find it in this recipe.
Make this Chili Crisp Recipe in 5 Minutes (or less)
Step 1: Add the oil, red pepper flakes and paprika to a half pint jar (or to a small skillet or saucepan).
Step 2: Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir and heat another 30 seconds (or heat over low heat on the stovetop for 2-3 minutes).
Step 3: In both the microwave or stovetop methods, you should see some bubbling, but you don’t want hard boiling.
Step 4: For either method, add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Let cool and add a lid to the jar (or transfer the chili crisp from the pan to a jar for storage).
What about cooking fresh garlic?
I did try a technique that cooked minced, fresh garlic until it “crisped” which was then added to dried garlic and the other ingredients and to be honest, we couldn’t tell much of a difference between it and this streamlined, all dried garlic version. So the easiest version won!
Storage
- Refrigerate this after making it – even though it doesn’t have fresh ingredients, it will retain it’s flavor best if refrigerated.
- The chili crisp keeps for 1-2 months in the fridge. It may solidify a bit if you used olive oil, but we’ve found it’s fine and actually makes it easier to spread on things.
Ways to Use Chili Crisp
- Spread on tortilla before making any type of wrap.
- Spread on bread before making any type of sandwich.
- Fry eggs in a teaspoon of chili crisp (our favorite – just cook on low to medium-low and turn the fan on!).
- Drizzle on pizza, over noodle or rice bowls, on roasted vegetables or salads.
- Add a bit of honey to make your own “hot honey.”
- Spoon on hummus before serving.
- Add a teaspoon to chicken salad or egg salad.
I hope you enjoy this chili crisp recipe – if you make it, be sure to leave a rating and review so I know how you liked it and what you like to use it on!
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Easiest Chili Crisp Recipe (Chili Crunch)
Equipment
- 1 half pint (8-ounce) jar and small pan if using stovetop method
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil or avocado oil or sunflower oil
- 1 to 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes or to taste (1 TB = medium spice; 2 TB = spicy)
- 1 teaspoon paprika or smoked paprika for extra flavor
- 3 tablespoons minced dried onions
- 2 tablespoons minced dried garlic
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (use 1.5 teaspoons if using kosher salt)
Optional Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons dried red bell peppers (to mimic Trader Joe's Chili Onion Crunch more)
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil or to taste (to provide more Asian umami flavor)
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon mushroom powder or to taste (to provide more Asian umami flavor)
Instructions
Microwave Method
- Add oil, red pepper flakes, and paprika to a half pint jar.
- Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir and heat another 30 seconds. You should see a few bubbles on the top but not hard boiling (if your microwave is stronger, cook for a 10-20 seconds less or lower the power setting).
- Add remaining ingredients – dried onion, garlic, salt and any other optional ingredients – to the jar, stir well, and let cool.
Stovetop Method
- Add oil, red pepper flakes, and paprika to a small skillet or saucepan and heat over low heat for 2-3 minutes, just until a few bubbles start to appear around the edges.
- Remove from heat and add the remaining ingredients – dried onion, garlic, salt and any other optional ingredients – and stir well. Let cool and transfer to an 8-ounce jar with lid.
Storage
- Store the jar with an airtight lid in the refrigerator. The chili crisp will keep for 1-2 months.
Notes
- Spread on tortilla before making any type of wrap.
- Spread on bread before making any type of sandwich.
- Fry eggs in a teaspoon of chili crisp (our favorite – just cook on low to medium-low and turn the fan on!).
- Drizzle on pizza, over noodle or rice bowls, on roasted vegetables or salads.
- Add a bit of honey to make your own “hot honey.”
- Spoon on hummus before serving.
- Add a teaspoon to chicken salad or egg salad.
Nutrition
More Easy Condiments You Can Make
- Homemade Mayonnaise Recipe – Two Easy Methods
- Quick Honey Sweetened Homemade Ketchup Recipe
- Easy Thai Sweet Chili Sauce Recipe – Honey Sweetened
Super easy to make and addictive! I found a tablespoon of the flakes was too hot for me so I used 1/2 Tbsp. Will keep this made up in my fridge-LOVED IT!
Yay! So glad you gave this a try, Pat!
This is a great idea Jami and I look forward to trying it. Aside from the mentioned uses, do you plan on publishing any recipes that include Chili Crisp? I have seen numerous ones but never tried them as I felt the condiment was too expensive. Now I have this option! Thx!
I hope you do try this, Norma! I may do something in the future, though we mainly use it as a drizzle and added condiment. Good idea, though!