Knife-Cut Chili Flakes

Daokou Lajiao (刀口辣椒)

Sizzling and spicy, Knife-Cut Chili Flakes are the perfect topping to countless Sichuan dishes – ranging from classics like Spicy Boiled Pork and Mapo Tofu to the unconventional like scrambled eggs.

Knife-Cut Chili Flakes might as well be called Mala Chili Flakes as this sizzling-spicy seasoning is made from a mix of spicy dried red chilies and Sichuan peppercorns. Traditionally, these Chilies and Peppercorns are slow roasted in a hot wok, deepening their incredible flavor until they pop with sizzling-spicy heat. This is a slow process that yields incredible results; however, a quick’n’easy version used by quite a few mid to low-tier restaurants will be presented here as well.

Knife-Cut Chili Flakes are a staple of Spicy Boiled Dishes (水煮菜品) and classic versions of Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐). There are four main Spicy Boiled Dishes listed on this website: Spicy Boiled Chicken, Spicy Boiled Pork, Spicy Boiled Beef, and Spicy Boiled Fish. For these dishes and their variants, the protein and veggies are boiled in a spicy soup and then poured into a serving dish. Knife-Cut Chili Flakes are added atop and splashed with hot oil, creating a chili oil on the surface of the soup. Mapo Tofu is even simpler as the Chili Flakes are simply scattered across the surface like a garnish. Knife-Cut Chili Flakes can be added to many dishes in this manner. In fact, I like to add them to scrambled eggs for a nice touch of sizzling heat.

Traditional

Knife-Cut Chili Flakes made in the traditional style take a long time to make – usually about 10 – 20 minutes frying the Chilies on low heat with little oil until they’re dry and easily crack into pieces in the fingers. Many restaurants will use a faster method, but preparing it in the traditional method will prevent the chilies from becoming bitter. The slow method presented below will yield the highest-quality Chili Flakes with the best flavor. The Sichuan Peppercorns, especially, should be the highest quality available. In China, this typically means Hanyuan Red Sichuan Peppercorns.

Ingredients

1 cup 1/2-inch-pieces of Dried Red Chilies
(For best results use a mix of Sichuan Chilies such as: 3/4 cup Bullet Head Chilies 子弹头 and 1/4 cup Seventh Star Chilies 七星椒; A total of about 40 grams)

1 Tbsp. Red Sichuan Peppercorns (About 3 grams; High-Quality)

1/8 cup of Peanut Oil

Directions

1.) Snip the Dried Red Chilies into 1/2-inch-pieces so that all of the chili pieces are roughly the same size. Place them in a bowl along with the Sichuan Peppercorns.

2.) Heat a seasoned wok on low heat until hot and add 1/8 cup of Peanut Oil. Once the Oil has reached a low heat, add the Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns.

3.) Stir-Fry the Chilies on low heat for about 10 – 20 minutes with a constant push-pull stirring motion to cook the Chilies evenly. Cook the Chilies until they’re fragrant, a slightly daker shade of red, and extremely dry and crispy.

(DO NOT burn the Chilies! The color should be dark red and not a dark brown or black. The goal is to concentrate the natural chili flavor, but if the Chilies are overcooked, they’ll become bitter. Most dishes which utilize Knife-Cut Chili Flakes will require the Chili Flakes to be splashed with hot oil. If the Chili Flakes are overcooked, the oil will also acquire a slightly bitter taste).

4.) Pour the Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns onto a cutting board and use the flat side of a cleaver to gently crush them – the Chilies should be quite crispy and should break easily. Then, mince the Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns into a homogonous mixture of Chili Flakes by rocking the blade of a cleaver back and forth.

(First crushing the Chilies and Peppercorns with the side of a cleaver will prevent them from jumping off the cutting board. A blender can also be used to chop these into Chili Flakes, but make sure the blender doesn’t grind them to fine. This should still be Chili Flakes and not chili powder).

5.) Pour the Knife-Cut Chili Flakes into an airtight jar and use them as needed. It’s best to store the Chili Flakes in a freezer to better preserve the flavors – especially that of the Sichuan Peppercorns.

Quick 'n' Easy

While this version is quite a lot faster, it does have a tremendous downside. The flavor will never be as pure and high-quality as Knife-Cut Chili Flakes made in the traditional manner. In fact, the Chili Flakes will almost definitely have at least some bitterness. The flavor, regardless, will possess more than enough sizzling-spicy heat to get the job done. Combined with skill and quality ingredients, this version is a reliable shortcut favored by many Sichuan restaurants.

Ingredients

1 cup 1/2-inch-pieces of Dried Red Chilies (For best results use a mix of Sichuan Chilies such as: 1/3 cup Facing Heaven Chili Peppers 朝天椒, 1/3 cup Lantern Chilies 灯笼椒, 1/3 cup Er Jing Tiao 二荆条; A total of about 40 grams)

2 Tbsp. Green Sichuan Peppercorns (About 8 grams)

1/4 cup of Peanut Oil

Directions

1.) Snip the Dried Red Chilies into 1/2-inch-pieces so that all of the chili pieces are roughly the same size. Place them in a bowl along with the Sichuan Peppercorns.

2.) Heat a seasoned wok on medium-high heat until nearly smoking and add 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil. Once the Oil has nearly reached its smoke point, cut off the heat and add the Red Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns.

3.) Stir-Fry the Chilies using the residual heat for about 30 seconds until everything is extremely fragrant and the Chilies have darkened slightly to a deeper shade of red.

(DO NOT burn the Chilies! The color should be dark red and not a dark brown or black. It’s very easy to burn the Chilies so watch them closely. It’s better to have them slightly under toasted than to have them burnt. I usually heat them just until fragrant and then remove them to a small bowl. Remember the Chilies will continue to cook slightly even after they are removed from the wok).

4.) Pour the Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns into a bowl along with the Oil to cool for a few minutes.

5.) Once the Chilies and Peppercorns are cool, transfer them to a blender or food processor and pulse them until the mixture resembles chili flakes.

(Traditionally, these are poured onto a cutting board and minced into chili flakes. It’s easier, faster, and tidier just to use a blender which achieves the same results).

6.) Pour the Knife-Cut Chili Flakes into an airtight jar and use them as needed. It’s best to store the Chili Flakes in a freezer to better preserve the flavors – especially that of the Sichuan peppercorns, whose sizzling taste can dissipate at room temperature.

 

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