With just two ingredients, you can make a homemade Calabrian chili oil. This easy recipe uses a hot oil infusion to make a delicious and spicy olive oil.
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After going to culinary school in Southern Italy, I ate a lot of peperoncino peppers. I studied in the region of Calabria, which is famous for, as you guessed it, Calabrian chili peppers (aka peperoncino, as the Italians call them).
Peperoncino are small, spicy peppers used often in this region of Italy including in dishes like Nduja (spicy pork sausage) and bomba (a popular condiment). In school, they always had a huge batch of this Calabrian chili oil that we would add on top of (almost) every dish including pizza, pasta, soups, and more!
Not only is the spicy Calabrian chili pepper great for these dishes, but it also makes delicious infused olive oil. Although we used fresh peperoncino peppers in school, I was inspired to make my own version of this infused olive oil using jarred Calabrian chili peppers since the fresh peppers aren't available where I live.
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What You'll Learn In This Recipe
- How to properly hot infuse olive oil.
- The best way to achieve a potent and delicious, spicy Calabrian chili flavor.
- Ideas for how to use infused Calabrian chili oil in your home kitchen.
If you’re interested in learning everything there is to know about purchasing, tasting, and cooking with extra virgin olive oil, sign up for my email series to become an expert.
Ingredients You Need
Here are the only two ingredients you'll need:
Extra Virgin Olive Oil: You'll want to select a bottle of high-quality bottle of extra virgin olive oil if you want the best-tasting infused oil. I have a few tips for selecting a good bottle at the store:
- Most obviously, make sure the bottle is labeled with 'extra virgin'
- Check that the label says 'first, cold press'
- It should have an acidity of less than 1% (sometimes this is written on the label)
- If you’re looking for an Italian olive oil specifically, it should say “Produced by” whatever the Italian company’s name is. Just because it’s labeled as “Bottled by” doesn’t always mean the olives are from Italy.
If you want more tips, check out my how to taste olive oil article.
Calabrian Chili Peppers: Since most people don't have access to fresh peperoncino, I've opted to use jarred chili peppers. Be sure, for food safety purposes, to use a new jar (not a jar that has been open in your fridge for a long time).
How To Make This Recipe
This recipe uses a hot oil infusion. Here's how to make it:
1. Heat extra virgin olive oil and 1 ounce (29 grams) of Calabrian chili peppers in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
2. Continue cooking until the oil reaches 230°F (110°C) on an instant-read thermometer.
3. Next, remove the oil from the heat, and allow it to cool until it reaches at least 120°F (50°C) on an instant-read thermometer.
4. Once cooled, strain and discard the Calabrian chili peppers.
Repeat the heating and cooling process two additional times. This allows you to achieve a super-infused and delicious chili oil.
Finally, allow the oil to cool to room temperature. Strain and discard Calabrian chili peppers, then store it in a sterilized dark-colored bottle with a sealed lid (you can reuse the bottle the oil came in) away from light and heat.
Expert Tips
- This Calabrian chili oil will last around 2 months. However, if you notice any signs of mold, fermentation (bubbling, cloudiness, or sliminess), foul odor, or discoloration, discard it immediately without tasting or using it.
- Don't be tempted to infuse the oil only once. The Calabrian chili pepper flavor will not be as strong if you don't repeat this process three times.
- As with all canning and infused oil recipes, there is a chance that botulism could occur. Because of this, take as many precautions recommended by the CDC as possible when you are infusing oils at home.
Recipe FAQs
There is no one "best" brand of extra virgin olive oil. Here are a few things to look for to ensure you have selected a high-quality brand of EVOO.
The easiest way to guarantee that you’re buying a quality bottle is to make sure it says ‘extra virgin’ on the label.
Other labeled indicators of quality extra virgin olive oil are phrases such as ‘first press’ or ‘cold pressed’.
If you can find it, check the harvest date on the bottle. Ideally, the harvest date should be less than a year from the date you are purchasing.
If the bottle states the percentage of acidity, the best extra virgin olive oils are less than 1% acidity.
At the end of the day, it's always a good idea to taste the extra virgin olive oil to see for yourself what the flavor and mouthfeel are like.
A few of my favorite ways to use this oil includes:
- As a topping/garnish on things like pasta and pizza
- Adding additional flavor to soups
- Cooking chicken or vegetables
Yes, this spicy olive oil is great to cook with! I love using it for chicken, pasta, and for roasting vegetables. If you find that the oil is too spicy, use half regular extra virgin olive oil and half of the Calabrian chili oil.
More Italian Infused Oil Recipes
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Infused Calabrian Chili Oil (2 Ingredients)
Equipment
- saucepan
- instant red thermometer
- tongs
Ingredients
- 16.9 ounces extra virgin olive oil
- 3 ounces jarred Calabrian chili peppers divided
Instructions
- Heat extra virgin olive oil and 1 ounce (29 grams) Calabrian chili peppers in a saucepan over medium high heat until it reaches 230°F (110°C) on an instant read thermometer. Remove from heat, and allow the oil to cool until it reaches 120°F (50°C) on an instant read thermometer. Once cooled, strain and discard the Calabrian chili peppers.
- Add in an additional 1 ounce (29 grams) Calabrian chili peppers. Repeat the heating and cooling process two additional times, removing and adding the remaining 1 ounce (29 grams) Calabrian chili peppers for the last batch.
- Allow oil to cool to room temperature. Strain and discard Calabrian chili peppers.
- Store in a sterilized dark-colored bottle with a sealed lid (you can reuse the bottle the oil came in) away from light and heat.
Rob
Can this be done with fresh Calabrian peppers? Thank you.
Jessica Mode
Hey Rob! I haven't tried the recipe with fresh Calabrian chili peppers, so I don't want to give you bad advice. In culinary school, we did a cold infusion (similar to my garlic infused olive oil recipe), with the fresh peppers.
Rob
Thank you. In that case, I'll probably dehydrate my peppers first.
Larry
Just made with fresh ones. Excellent. Cut the EOO back a bit though
Jessica Mode
Amazing! So glad you enjoyed!