Szechuan chilli oil

Spicy, flavourful oil. Drizzle it over stir fry, dip wontons in it, drip a little pool into the bottom of a ramen bowl before you add the noodles and stock. It’s so good!

• 3 tbsp chilli flakes
• 2 tsp ground Szechuan pepper
• 1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• 3 slices of fresh ginger
• 2 star anise
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 red bird eye chillis, pricked with a fork but left whole
• 250ml veg oil

1. In a small bowl, mix together the chilli flakes, Sichuan pepper, five spice and sesame seeds
2. Put the bay, cumin, ginger, chillis and star anise in a small pan on the stove
3. Pour over the oil and heat over the lowest flame until hot and bubbly but before the cumin burns
4. Strain the hot oil directly onto the spice powder mixture, discarding the ginger, star anise, bay leaves and cumin seeds
5. Leave the oil in the bowl to cool, then stir up and pour into a jar to store in the fridge. Ideally make this the day before you want to use it so the flavours have time to develop