Chilli Oil

Chilli oil — crispy chilli, chilli crunch, whatever you call it — is chilli-infused oil loaded with crunchy fried garlic, shallot and chilli flake settled at the bottom of the jar, in the same style as Chinese chilli crisp condiments. It's a spoon-in finisher, not a cooking oil, meant for the finished plate rather than the pan: spoon it over noodles, dumplings, fried rice, a fried egg or avocado toast at the table.

Start with DC Cartel's award-winning Original 1983 Crispy Chilli Oil for the benchmark fried-garlic crunch, or Uncle Mungos' Crispy Chilli Oil for an easy everyday jar. Foo Chilli Company's Ma Foo and Blend Smoked Honey's BLING lean Sichuan-style with sesame and star anise, while Nomad Chilli Co's Salsa Macha swaps garlic-and-chilli for peanuts, pepitas and smoky Mexican heat, and Proud Phoenix & Co runs a whole sambal-style sub-range from Mild through to Hot. Heat runs from Uncle Mungos' mild jar to DC Cartel's Carolina Reaper Extra Hot.

Most of the range is Australian-made — DC Cartel, Uncle Mungos, Nomad Chilli Co and Foo Chilli Company all bottle locally, several small-batch — with genuine gluten-free and vegan options throughout, not just a token jar or two. Crunch first, chilli close behind.

Explore more: our chilli crunch and hot sauce collections.