Chili flakes are the best. They add such a great flavor to your food, and they’re super inexpensive too. I always have them on hand in my kitchen!
Having a big bag gives you the flexibility to make hot sauce, Korean chili flakes, crushed red pepper flakes – all using an oven or a food dehydrator.
Just an important tip: the kind of chili you will use will affect the taste of your chili flakes. Thai chili will make a really hot result while Kashmiri red chilies will give you bright red and medium-hot flakes. Cayenne pepper also makes very hot chili flakes, so understand your chili.
So, get your ingredients ready for easy and simple steps on how to make chili flakes.
What Are Chili Flakes Made Of?
Chili flakes are made of dried, crushed chilies. You can use a different kinds of chilies according to whatever is available near you. But the most common ingredient for this is either Kashmiri, habanero, Jalapeno or Aleppo pepper, Cayenne, Guntur red chilies, or whatever pepper that comes from the capsicum family.
Moreover, it can also be made with combinations of different dried peppers. The best thing about making this on your own is you can have the option to make any type you would like and control the heat as well as the flavorsome people add shallot, sesame seed, soy sauce, sesame oil to make the spicy food flavoring. This is a great way to make a seasoning based on your own taste and desired flavor. Store-purchased chili flakes are only made with single crushed red peppers.
Also, using a dehydrator is the best way to achieve really good chili flakes since it is easier and smoother. If not, you can use your oven to dry your peppers.
How to Make Homemade Chili Flakes
When making chili flakes, you will need red chili peppers. It is best to use the mature pods from Jalapeno, Cayenne, Yellow and Red chilis, and Anaheim. Make sure that they are not rotten or damaged. Discard the ingredient that has gray, black, or white marks. It should be smooth and fresh for a better result.
Also, make sure to wear thick gloves to avoid contact with your eyes, nose, or mouth during handling the peppers. Some chilies can linger on your skin for a long time, so better protect your skin from it. I remember when I first started making homemade chili oil – I rinsed my hands – but I did not wash them with soap and then I touched my eye – I learned my lesson – so now I wear gloves.- well I learned So, here’s how to dry your chili flakes:
1. Wash and dry your preferred chili peppers. Remove the stems since these are unnecessary. You can chop or dry it as a whole. if you prefer less spicy flakes, remove some of the seeds. Otherwise, keep the whole pepper for a really hot and spicy result.
2. Dry in a food dehydrator. Drying your chilis in a dehydrator will take about 6 to 8 hours at 125ºF. The time depends on the type of chilies you use as well as the freshness and overall humidity. Dehydrate until they will turn medium-dark and in the full crisp. It will eventually snap when it is fully dried.
If you opt to dry them using an oven, put them inside for 6 to 8 hours at 120-140ºF. Keep the oven door open about 1 to 2 cm and use a perforated oven tray if possible. The door is left open to allow the airflow to remove all the water vapor quickly. Regularly check the chilies and remove them from the heat when they change to a dark color.
Allow the chilies to cool down before proceeding to the next step.
3. Once dried or dehydrated, crush all the peppers to make the chili flakes. Put them in a bag or sealed plastic bag and crush them by hand or something hard. You can also opt to use a coffee grinder or blender to grind them for a few seconds. Just make sure to wash the machine after use to get rid of the crushed pepper residue.
4. Homemade, dried chilies have a shelf life of more than 12 months or 1 year. To further its shelf life, make sure to store them in a sealed or airtight container and cool environment. Keeping them in your pantry is a good idea!
How Do You Use Chili Flakes
Chili flakes are more than just for seasoning on several dishes, they possess an abundance of health benefits and in cooking. It is a multi-beneficial spice that gives benefits from brightening the flavor of your dish to preventing some disease in the body. Furthermore, here are some uses of chili flakes:
Culinary Uses
1. It can be used as the main flavoring for Hungarian cooking or Hungarian dishes.
2. It can be used in any savory food including pizza, pasta, tomato dishes, curry, stews, vegetables, and creamy sauces. It goes well with different cuisines, especially Asian cuisines.
3. It brightens the color of the food.
4. It can be mixed with bread crumbs before mixing it into the main ingredients.
5. It can be used as a garnish in savory dishes, sandwiches, or appetizers.
Health Uses
1. Chili flakes and other peppers prevent fat storage.
2. It stimulates metabolism in the body.
5. Its vitamin A content helps strengthen the immune system.
6. It prevents diabetes by reducing insulin levels in the bloodstream.
7. It prevents stomach ulcers by killing the bacteria in the stomach and protects the stomach lining.
How To Use Chili Flakes in a Recipe
We will give you a very simple recipe with few ingredients to follow. If you are a first-time user of chili flakes, this will definitely go well with you.
Spaghetti with Green Onions, Garlic and Chili Flakes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Serving Size: 2-3 servings
Ingredients
Directions
1. Prepare a large pot to boil 10 cups of water. Add pinches of salt and boil the pasta. Boil it according to the package directions.
2. While waiting for the pasta to boil, slice thinly the green onions and peel the fresh garlic and slice it thinly.
3. Drain the pasta using a strainer.
4. Place another skillet on medium heat and pour the olive oil.
5. Add the garlic and chili flakes. Stir and cook until the garlic turns golden brown.
6. Remove the pot from the heat and add the pasta. Make sure it is not too dry and too wet. Get your desired consistency
7. Mix the cooked chili flakes and garlic. Add olive oil if necessary.
8. Serve with toasted garlic bread or roasted chicken.
Chili Tips and FAQs
Can you substitute Chili Flakes and Red Pepper Flakes from one another?
Yes, you can. For example, if you’re making buffalo chicken and wings sauce, you would need 5 tablespoons of chili flakes to replace 3 tbsps of red pepper flakes – you can also use 2 teaspoons hot chili paste, or hot chili oil.
How to Make Homemade Chili Flakes
Ingredients
- 2 lb chili
Instructions
- Wash and dry your preferred chili peppers. Remove the stems since these are unnecessary. You can chop or dry it as a whole. if you prefer less spicy flakes, remove some of the seeds. Otherwise, keep the whole pepper for a really hot and spicy result.
- Dry in a food dehydrator. Drying your chilis in a dehydrator will take about 6 to 8 hours at 125ºF. The time depends on the type of chilies you use as well as the freshness and overall humidity. Dehydrate until they will turn medium-dark and in the full crisp. It will eventually snap when it is fully dried.
- If you opt to dry them using an oven, put them inside for 6 to 8 hours at 120-140ºF. Keep the oven door open about 1 to 2 cm and use a perforated oven tray if possible. The door is left open to allow the airflow to remove all the water vapor quickly. Regularly check the chilies and remove them from the heat when they change to a dark color.
- Allow the chilies to cool down before proceeding to the next step. 3. Once dried or dehydrated, crush all the peppers to make the chili flakes. Put them in a bag or sealed plastic bag and crush them by hand or something hard. You can also opt to use a coffee grinder or blender to grind them for a few seconds. Just make sure to wash the machine after use to get rid of the crushed pepper residue.
Nutrition
Substituting red pepper flakes over chili
Chile flakes, you would need to double or triple the amount since chile pepper flakes are less spicy than red pepper flakes. Or if you want the dish to be less spicy, opt for chili flakes and mix it with any dish you’d like. If it is not quite hot enough add ground cayenne pepper – pinch by pinch until you get the right temperature.
Let’s now recap – When replacing chili flakes, you would only need a few red pepper flakes. For example, if you only need 1 tablespoon of chili flakes for your salad dressing, you can make your spicy food with 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.
Again, it is always better to start with less to be safe – begin with half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes and add more if needed. That way if you need more spice, you can add a little more without finishing with a too spicy sauce or dressing.
Chili Flakes Vs. Red Pepper Flakes: Which One’s The Best?
Chili flakes are better for spice addicts because they are typically made of only one type of chili. A big difference between the two is that Chili Flakes is made up of only one type while Red Pepper Flakes is usually a combination of more than one type of pepper.
What Are Sichuan Chili Flakes?
Chinese Sichuan style chili flakes, can also be called or named làjiāo fēn. These begin their journey as spicy red color chili peppers. There are many varied varieties and include Chinese prickly ash and small “Heaven Red peppers” peppers are popular in Sichuan Province.
The heat comes from the seeds of the chili pepper in this area but to compare for example Sichuan chili flakes are slightly not as strong or milder than regular Italian crushed red pepper. But they are really bright red color and are great on enhancing the color of your spicy food – Some people also think they have a vague flavor trace of star anise in the dried pepper.
So now you have a bit of the history and have entered the chile pepper world that has some really passionate people and you can now make chili flakes at home.
Can I use crushed red pepper instead of chili flakes
Yes, you can, just add it cautiously to get the right heat in the dish.
Can I use paprika instead of red pepper flakes?
You can, however, paprika is typically not as strong by any means as hot pepper flakes or homemade chili flakes.
So now you know how to how to make red chili flakes by using dried chili flakes and by adding them to sesame seed oil how to make chili flakes in oil.