Lao Gan Ma crispy chilli oil review: dangerously easy to put on everything

My son introduced us to Lao Gan Ma after returning home from university two or three years ago. This was useful, because it proved that university had taught him at least one thing of lasting value.

Since then, it has become a permanent fixture in the kitchen. Between me and the boys, we probably eat it every day or two. My wife thinks it is too hot, which simply means there is more left for the rest of us.

It is chilli oil—but that does not really describe it

Calling this chilli oil makes it sound like an ordinary bottle of spicy oil. It is not.

It is savoury, slightly hot, deeply tasty and full of crisp, lumpy pieces that make it feel like food rather than merely a condiment. The heat is noticeable, but it does not overwhelm everything else or turn dinner into a test of personal courage.

There is no harsh vinegar taste and it does not just attack the back of your throat before leaving you wondering why you bothered. It adds flavour first and heat second.

That is what makes it so easy to keep eating.

The texture is the important bit

The crispy pieces are not a marketing invention. They are genuinely crisp, chunky and wonderfully moreish.

A spoonful contains oil, chilli and plenty of little savoury pieces, which means every mouthful has some texture. It is completely different from squeezing a smooth chilli sauce over food and hoping enthusiasm will compensate for the lack of personality.

This has personality. Quite a lot of it.

It is the condiment equivalent of inviting somebody interesting to dinner and discovering they have brought several louder friends.

What do I eat it with?

Almost anything that stays still long enough.

My absolute favourite is toast topped with Lao Gan Ma and a poached egg. The runny egg yolk mixes with the chilli oil and crispy pieces, producing something far better than breakfast has any right to be.

It is also excellent with:

• Rice
• Noodles
• Fish
• Meat
• Cheese sandwiches
• Eggs in almost any form
• Leftovers that need rescuing
• Meals that were perfectly respectable but could do with becoming more interesting

A little spread into a cheese sandwich works surprisingly well. Add it to rice or noodles and it immediately makes the whole meal taste as though considerably more effort went into it than actually did.

It is culinary dishonesty of the most useful kind.

Is it very hot?

Not by serious chilli-lover standards.

It has enough heat to be noticeable, and my wife finds it too spicy, but I would describe it as savoury and flavourful rather than fiercely hot. You can actually taste the food alongside it, which is generally an advantage when eating dinner.

The danger is not that it will be too hot. The danger is that you begin by adding one spoonful and then decide that another spoonful would probably improve matters further.

It usually does.

The only real drawback: it travels

This is oily food in a jar, and it behaves accordingly.

Try to spread it enthusiastically across toast and a piece will eventually escape. Once it reaches a tablecloth, chopping board or item of clothing, it makes itself comfortable and begins considering permanent residency.

The oil can stain, so it is better to spoon it out carefully rather than waving it around the kitchen as though conducting an orchestra.

It is also worth stirring the jar properly. The crispy pieces settle and the oil rises, so failing to stir it can result in one meal receiving mostly oil and the next receiving enough solids to require structural engineering.

None of this is difficult. It merely rewards the sort of patience I do not always display when there is a poached egg waiting.

We have tried the alternatives

Supermarkets sell plenty of similar crispy chilli oils, and we have tried versions from Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Asda, Aldi and elsewhere.

They are not awful. Some are perfectly pleasant.

They are simply not this.

They tend to lack either the depth of flavour, the proper crispy texture or the balance between savoury taste and chilli heat. Several come close enough to remind you what you wanted, but not close enough to stop you buying Lao Gan Ma again.

We no longer bother experimenting. The kitchen cupboard has completed its research and reached a conclusion.

Would I buy it again?

Absolutely. We already do.

It is one of those products that begins as something unusual, becomes a favourite and then quietly moves into the category of things the household assumes will always be available.

Running out now feels less like finishing a condiment and more like discovering the kettle has been removed.

Verdict

Lao Gan Ma crispy chilli oil is savoury, crunchy, gently hot and remarkably versatile. It works with eggs, toast, rice, noodles, meat, fish and sandwiches, while also improving many meals that had previously believed themselves finished.

It is oily, capable of staining anything within range and extremely easy to over-apply.

Those are not reasons to avoid it. They are reasons to keep a cloth nearby.

Rating: 5 out of 5

Purchased personally:

We buy Lao Gan Ma ourselves and have used it regularly for around two or three years. This review is based on repeated use and an increasingly unreasonable reluctance to eat poached eggs without it.