A good dose of chilli crisp, the popular Chinese condiment found “everywhere” these days, adds firecracker crunch into these Chili Crisp Noodles that’s astoundingly quick to make. Tastes like Spicy Sichuan Dan Dan Noodles – but much faster to make!
Chilli crisp, how I love thee!
Chilli crisp. That highly addictive Chinese condiment that’s the perfect blend of crunchy, spicy and savoury. Adds a stack of flavour into anything without overpowering heat.
Are you already familiar with it? If not, meet your new best friend!
But the best part about chili crisp isn’t even the spice kick. It’s the crispy bits. Those fabulous crunchy bits of chili and garlic add fabulous texture to anything lucky enough to be graced with a dollop of this wondrous Chinese sauce that has taken the western world by storm!
What it is – Jars of red chilli oil packed with chopped chilli and bits of garlic, seasoned with salt and sugar. Sometimes with peanuts or crispy soy beans, for extra flavour and crunch!
What it’s called – Sold under various names but all akin to similar meaning – crispy chilli oil, chilli crunch, crunchy chilli oil, and just plainly “chilli crisp”. Also remember in the States, chilli is spelt with one “l” – chili.
Where to get it – Some larger grocery stores in Australia (Coles, Woolies) and Asian stores. A$4 for 200g/7oz jar, I use around 1/4 of the jar for these noodles (serves 2).
Which one I use – My go-to is Laoganma’s Spicy Chilli Oil (above) which is a worldwide favourite. But I am currently obsessed with Mrs C’s Chilli Crisp which I discovered at the Melbourne Good Food & Wine Show last month. A secret recipe passed down through generations, this chilli crisp made by a small family run Australian business is exceptional in flavour and crunch. Treat yourself when you’ve been good, support a small Aussie business or gift it to chilli loving friends! This stuff is special. Get the APPRENTICE if you want all the flavour without too much spiciness (this is what I get), or the OG (classic) if you can (I use this very sparingly, it’s quite spicy!). The OG is spicier than Laoganma, the Apprentice is about the same (maybe a touch less spicy).
Homemade – try the Serious Eats or Chili Pepper Madness recipes for “real” ones , or Marion’s Kitchen for a quick one (haven’t tried but is rated well).
How to use chilli crisp – Add into stir fries, noodles, soups, dipping sauces, dressings and fried rice for an instant flavour hit. See specific list above the recipe video.
Today, we’re using this flavour bomb to make Chilli Crisp Noodles. Quick. Easy. Outrageously good!
Ingredients in Chili Crisp Noodles
Other than chilli crisp, the ingredients in these noodles are flexible because the chili crisp does so much of the heavy lifting here. So there’s no need to dash out to the store if you don’t have exactly everything listed, I’ve added substitution notes.
Chinese sesame paste (plenty of sub options!) – Tahini in steroids. Stronger sesame flavour! Find it in Asian stores and the Asian aisle of some large grocery stores.
Mix well – Sesame paste has a tendency to separate, like tahini, pure peanut butter and other natural products. Mix to combine into a smooth paste. If yours has been sitting around for a while and proving impossible to mix, microwave to warm then mix. Last resort – stick blender. 3 seconds and you’re done! (Make sure the head is fully submerged)
Subs – Don’t fret if you can’t find sesame paste, and don’t make a special trip out just for this paste. The main purpose is for creating a creamy sauce base for the noodles so you can substitute with similar ingredients. In order of preference (starting with best): Chinese sesame sauce (sesame flavour not as intense), tahini, pure peanut butter, commercial peanut butter spread (Bega, Jiff etc). Add a dash of extra sesame oil.
Light soy sauce – Or all-purpose soy or half the amount of dark soy sauce (sauce colour will be darker)
Rice vinegar – Substitute with apple cider vinegar or other clear vinegar.
White sugar – or any other type of sugar, or honey, maple syrup etc. Just a touch, to balance the other flavours.
Toasted sesame oil – For tasty sesame flavour! I always use toasted sesame oil which is brown and has more flavour than un-toasted (which is yellow). Default sesame oil sold in Australia is toasted, un-toasted is harder to find.
Salt – Start with the conservative 1/8 teaspoon as per the recipe then add more at the end if needed. Not all chili crisp brands have the same level of saltiness. Particularly with homemade chilli crisp, I always need to add more.
Noodles – This recipe will work for dried or fresh (fridge) noodles, quantities included in the recipe for both. I like to use ramen/instant noodle cakes because the crispy chili bits get caught up in the tangle of noodles.
Garlic and ginger, fresh – Still worth making even if you don’t have fresh ginger and garlic. But it’s even better WITH!
Green onion – For a hit of freshness. Sub with 1/4 red onion or 1 small eschallot, finely sliced.
Coriander/cilantro (optional) – Fresh herby flavour. Actually, I’ve probably made these noodles without more than with!
How to make Chili Crisp Noodles
You’ll love how the sauce is virtually no cook!
Sauce base – Mix the sesame paste, soy, vinegar, sugar, salt and sesame oil until smooth. Use a bowl large enough to toss the noodles because we will be adding the noodles into the sauce. Sprinkle the green onion on top – don’t mix it in. We will be pouring hot oil on it so it partially cooks it.
Chilli crisp fry-up – Heat the chilli crisp and oil in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Then add the garlic and ginger and sauté for 30 seconds until golden. Be prepared for amazing smells!
Sizzle! Pour the hot chilli crisp over the green onion and enjoy the sizzle! Mix to mostly combine.
Cook noodles per packet directions. The ramen cakes I use are boiled for 2 minutes.
Drag the noodles straight out of the hot water into the bowl. The excess water helps thin the sauce to give the finished dish the right consistency. Toss noodles in the sauce until dispersed, adding extra water from the saucepan if needed to loosen the noodles.
Taste and serve! Toss through coriander/cilantro. Add more salt if required – different chilli crisp brands vary in saltiness (most homemade chilli crisp recipes are far less salty). Then devour!
If you’re a chilli crisp first timer, welcome to the first day in your new, tastier world with this magical ingredient now a staple in your fridge. A dollop of chilli crisp will save you all those times you make something (Asian or not!) and you just feel like the dish is missing “something”, and elevate anything you add it to.
And if you’re already firmly on the chilli crisp train, I hope you enjoy this new addition to your speedy-meals repertoire thanks to our trusty friend.
Enjoy! – Nagi x
10 specific things to make with/use chilli crisp
Add a generous scoop into your favourite stir fry or stir fried noodles – like Chop Suey (Chicken Stir Fry), Chicken or Beef Broccoli, Cashew Chicken, Lo Mein, Chow Mein.
Turn your Chinese noodle soup into SPICY Chinese noodle soup!
Add a big dollop onto your San Choy Bow lettuce wraps (classic pork or vegetarian)
Add into the dipping sauce for gyoza, Chinese pan fried dumplings – pork or vegetarian, wontons, spring rolls, Siu Mai etc etc etc!
Make your Asian Sesame Dressing spicy
Add a hit of fire to your fried rice
Make spicy Smashed Cucumbers
Use as the dipping sauce for crispy Chinese Pork Belly
Add a big dollop to dial up the X-factor of Egg Foo Young (Chinese Omelette)
Watch how to make it
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Chili crisp noodles
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Chinese sesame paste (Note 1 subs)
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar (Note 3)
- 1 tsp white sugar (or other sugar, or honey, maple)
- 2 tsp sesame oil , toasted (Note 4)
- 1/8 tsp+ cooking / kosher salt (Note 5)
- 2 heaped tbsp chilli crisp (get oil + chili bits) , Laoganma’s Spicy Chili Oil is my store-bought go-to, my personal favourite is Mrs C's Apprentice (Australia)(Note 6)
- 1 tbsp ginger , finely minced*
- 1 tbsp garlic , finely minced*
- 1 green onion stem , finely sliced (or 1/4 red onion finely sliced)
- 1/3 cup coriander/cilantro , roughly chopped*
Noodle options (Note 7):
- 140g/ 5oz (2 cakes) instant noodles / ramen noodles
- 250g/8oz fresh noodles (like hokkien, lo mein)
Instructions
- CHECK the spiciness of your chilli crisp – taste it!! Laoganma is not actually that spicy (most store bought brands I've used are similar) and the quantity used is based on that brand. If yours is very spicy, start with less and add more later.
- Base sauce – Mix the sesame oil, vinegar, soy, sugar, salt and sesame paste in a bowl. Top with green onion (don’t mix in).
- Sizzling chili crisp – Heat chilli crisp and oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add ginger and garlic, stir 30 seconds until golden and it smells amazing. Pour over green onion – enjoy the sizzle! Then mix.
- Toss – Cook noodles per packet directions. Drag the noodles straight from the saucepan into the bowl (extra water loosens the sauce). Toss. Use cooking water to loosen more if needed. Toss through coriander/cilantro.
- Adjust & finish – Taste. Add more salt if needed and more chilli crisp if desired (not all chilli crisp is the same saltiness / spiciness). Eat!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
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Nagi this was another absolute winner and will be on standby for those days that I’m craving spicy noodle comfort but can’t really be bothered cooking! Loved the crunch, the moderate spiciness, the sesame flavour and the zing from the vinegar. used the kids 2 min noodles without the flavour sachets – perfect! VERY SATISFYING! Thank you again!
I’m so pleased you enjoyed this Kate!! N xx
Haven’t tried this recipe yet, but when tracking down the Maesri paste for your Thai red curry pot chicken recipe, I found their version of crispy chilli with sesame. Ordered a jar and was immediately hooked – greedily finished in 3 days (or possibly 2 🐖).Five more jars arrived yesterday, four were bought for gifts as an introduction to this marvel! Not sure I can part with more than two of them though!
Had not heard of this before, delicious and so versatile, will be trying the noodles and the other brand very soon.
Enjoying your book by the way, thank you,
How hot is the chilli crisp? Can I give it to my kids or will it burn their tongues off? I have low chilli tolerance
Just made this for lunch and it was so good and easy. Threw in a handful of plain old coleslaw mix for the last minute boiling the noodles and it was great!
Made this when I saw it on facebook and haven’t stopped! The kids love it (mind you they are in their twenties, not kiddies, this has a fair kick and they love it)
Made this for dinner tonight. Used Mr. Bings Chili crisp. one scoop of mild one of spicey. It was great. I should have made double the sauce because…sauce. anyway it was great as usual Nagi. Thanks,
Another fantastic recipe, Nagi! This is one that I could eat for days and days and days. Deliciousness!
Haha, I found this on insta and it has been a go-to for about 10 days. I simply love it.
Don’t have any chili crisp but use my home made chili oil (Woks of Life style) with plenty of chili flakes. 30 shades of YUM!
Hi Nagi. Thank you for what I’m sure is going to be another fantastic recipe. I’ve been looking for the Laoganma crispy chili oil which you said is your favorite but while the jar looks the same from all vendors, the label differs from yours in that it’s called “spicy” chili crisp. Your label says crispy chili oil.
What I’m finding also doesn’t contain garlic. Could you please advise what we should be looking for? Seems to me there’s more than one Laoganma crispy oil. I’m so confused. Others may be too. Please help
I ran out of my Laoganma crispy chilli oil about a year ago and have not been able to find ‘the one’ again. There are many different varieties of Laoganma chilli jars, they all look similar but are slightly different when you study the labels. If there is something that helps me find the correct one I would like to know too.
I found this very helpful YouTube video – in summary there are lots of types and different labels! I must confess I spent waaaay too long at the Asian grocery store trying to figure it out…
I made this with glass (sweet potato noodles) because I can’t have gluten. This was soooo amazing! I can’t wait to make it again and maybe add chicken or shrimp.
Can you eat rice noodles? That’s what I usually use – GF udon or Pad Thai style noodles as I prefer the taste and texture
I make a dish similar to this at least 3x week and it’s so good
Doubled, gone in minutes, repeat requested! I’m going to have to stick up on those angry aunty jars!
I find Laoganma’s Spicy Chilli Crisp a bit salty at times. I like to use Vietnamese TƯƠNG ỚT SA TẾ (Lemongrass chilli paste). Better made fresh and so good.
Yikes! My mouth is on fire from watching this, and yet weirdly, drooling over these noodles. I have a jar of Momofuku chili crisp which I’ve used a few times, but sparingly. It’s pretty hot! I love the additions to the sauce in this recipe, which is better than what I’ve seen so far. Would the addition of some nice cooked chicken ruin this? I need more protein than noodle can offer.
I can’t wait to try this addition! I’m printing them and sticking them in the back of the cookbook!! 🥰
Hahaha, was coming to write the same thing. I love my chilli but watching Nagi add those spoonfuls of chilli oil made my mouth chilli. I can’t wait to try it though! I don’t think adding protein would ruin it (source – personal opinion hehe).
Making this tonight!
My favourite – a layer of chilli crisp on top of the cheese when making a grilled cheese sandwich.
I am kind of obsessed with chili crisp/crunch! At the moment I have 4 commercial kinds (including the Angry one 😉) in the house plus my homemade one! I love this recipe and I’m wondering about making it more like DanDan by adding some some crispy fried ground pork. Thanks again for all your hard work!
I made this tonight with cubed chicken thighs. So delicious! I had to use peanut butter because my tahini wouldn’t re-emulsify.
The PB helped tame the Momofuko chili crisp I have which is 🔥hot‼️
It was a wonderful meal.
Momofuku Is the BEST! 😋🥳
A tip for fresh ginger keep inside a zip top bag inside the freezer and use a micro plane
Some use chili crisp on ice cream.
I’ve never seen this before but I am down to make this. Trader Joe’s has “Chili Onion Crunch”, do you think it’ll be an ok swap?
Trader Joe’s Chili Onion Crisp is very hot!
Another good recipe. Got it before breakfast again. Ordered this today
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003WC0RME/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Will make tomorrow. Looking forward to it. Cheers.
John! You’re going for records 😂
Hi Nagi, made it when I got the chilli crisp but have to reprimand you. I had never heard of that stuff. I have been having it and adding it to everything. Not much left. Had to order another jar yesterday. Expensive online they always are (hacks me of) But it was another brill recipe but you are in trouble for getting me addicted to the chilli crisp……..ha ha.
You had me at Laoganma.. Probably most of us. My current go-to snack is a spoon — t. or T., depending — straight into a jar of crunchy Jif. Unmixed. Eat slowly with the spoon, to savor. I’ve learned that it doesn’t have to be uber-hot to be excellent spicy.
Ugh HOLLIS!!! I did that the other day and ate so much I felt sick 😂😂😂😂
LOL gotta pace yourself, Nagi!
This looks amazing! Have just bought your book .. had a guy come up to me in the cookbook aisle in Big W and said ‘If you are after a great cookbook, THIS is the one’! Followed by 5 mins of chatting about it. So I now have it, and he wasn’t fibbing
I LOVE THAT GUY!!! 😂