Rayu - Japanese Chili Oil

Rayu, or chili oil, can be used as a seasoning for steamed cabbage, ramen, dumplings, or any dish where you want to add a little bit of nuanced spice. This recipe is a quick, easy to make spicy chili oil that we learned from Chef Shinya, and is part of our Tokyo Style Ramen recipes. It has a pleasant, but not overwhelming, spice with accompanying sesame and garlic flavors that combine to create a well balanced addition to many dishes that need just a little "kick."

Original recipe from: Chef Shinya Asami (Cozymeal, Facebook)

Total time: 15 minutes

Ingredients (small batch)

• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 3 Tbsp canola/vegetable oil
• 1 ½ tsp garlic, fresh, minced
• 1 Tbsp red chili flakes
• 1 Tbsp kimchi flakes (korean chili pepper flakes or red chili flakes)
• 1 tsp sesame seeds, roasted
• 1 ½ tsp miso (red or Hatcho)

Directions

1. In a small pan, heat oils over medium heat, turn heat to low and add garlic and chili peppers. Cook until fragrant, add sesame seeds, and stir well then cook for 1 minute over very low heat. Turn off heat and let cool down for about 10 minutes, then mix in miso and stir well to combine.

Notes

• Chef Shinya's original recipe calls for Avocado Oil instead of Canola/Vegetable Oil. We have never made the recipe at home with Avocado Oil, but give it a try and let us know how it turns out!
• If you can get your hands on Korean chili flakes / kimchi flakes, use them!
• Red chili flakes are different than "crushed red pepper," which is the stuff commonly provided in small packets with pizza deliveries. For this recipe you want to use red chili flakes, which are commonly found in Asian supermarkets / grocery stores. The red chili flakes and kimchi/Korean chili pepper flakes in the recipe can all be the same if needed. Different combinations of chili flakes will create a slightly different Rayu, but they will be fairly similar.
• Mark forgot to take a picture of just the Rayu (sorry!). However, if you follow the directions above you will end up with a deliciously spicy and complex chili oil.

Ingredients (large batch)

• 6 oz sesame oil
• 18 oz canola/vegetable oil
• 6 Tbsp garlic, fresh, minced
• 6 oz (vol.) red chili flakes
• 6 oz (vol.) kimchi flakes (korean chili pepper flakes or red chili flakes)
• ¼ cup sesame seeds, roasted
• 6 Tbsp miso (red or Hatcho)

The large batch recipe can be scaled up or down as needed. Scale down by half for a medium batch. We always make the small batch recipe above, which is plenty for multiple batches of Seasoned Steamed Cabbage and ramen dinners.