We Tried 9 Jars of Chili Crisp, and Now We’re Using the $5 Winner on Absolutely Everything
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Once you learn the basics of cooking — perfectly steamed rice, juicy roasted chicken, crispy broccoli — that’s when you can start honing in on the flavor and texture of your meals. And one of the best condiments to do just that? Chili crisp.
Chili crisp is crunchy, oily, full of umami, and can sometimes pack a boatload of heat (if you’re into that sort of thing). It’s often made with an assortment of fried alliums (garlic, shallot, onion), chili peppers, spices, and oil, and can feature an array of ingredients to reach peak crunch. In our humble opinion, it makes everything it touches taste just better.
Add a tablespoon or so to soups, stews, stir-frys, fried eggs, you name it; chili crisp will boost its flavor and texture times a million.
Although you can make your own, grocery stores have really stepped up their chili crisp game with a variety of jars out there for nearly every type of palette. To decipher which ones are worth adding to your shopping list, we spent an afternoon tasting as many store-bought chili crisps as we could (nine in total).
There are a ton of different chili crisps out there (full of heat, mild, garlic-forward, etc.) sold both in-store and online. For the purposes of the test, we focused on mild chili crisps that can be found in most grocery stores today across the country. To do so, we sourced a variety of name- and store-brand chili crisps based on popularity, availability, and price. We also requested input from our editorial team to round out the list of nine competitors. The brands ranged in price (from $5 all the way up to $13, though most were around $10 at the time of this tasting).
With heaps of jasmine rice, our team of seven testers spent the afternoon tasting as many chili crisps as we could (with water breaks!). In the end, one chili crisp reigned supreme with its ideal chili-to-crunch-to-oil ratio.
Best Chili Crisp: Lao Gan Ma Chili Crisp
If you’re looking for a quintessential chili crisp to add a bit of umami-packed oomph to your home cooking, then it just has to be Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp. We’re not entirely surprised that this brand snagged the top title; it’s been a fan favorite for shoppers for the better part of the past 40 years and is even considered the O.G. chili crisp brand.
The fact that our testers had no idea of the brands they were testing only highlights how good it still is. It’s “crispy, garlicky, loaded with texture,” said Phil, our chief operations officer (and self-proclaimed chili crisp enjoyer), and by far is his “favorite.” Ali, our associate groceries editor, echoed that sentiment: It’s “incredibly umami-forward and the most flavorful of the bunch. When I think of chili crisp, I think of this.”
Even the spice-averse were all in. Though it had a bit more heat than he’d normally go for, Brian, our people operations director, would still buy this chili crisp and appreciated its “great crunch.” We’re also super amped that it snagged the top spot because it’s one of the more affordable options, too.
What’s So Great
Full of flavor and crunch
O.G. chili crisp brand
Affordable
Good to Know
On the spicier side
Buy: Lao Gan Ma Spicy Chili Crisp $4.99 for 7.4 ounces at Instacart
Runner-up: S&B Crunchy Garlic Chili Oil
Our tasters also loved the S&B Crunchy Garlic Chili Oil, which was truly just a few marks from taking the top spot. In fact, “if it was a garlic-chili oil taste test, this one would win in flying colors,” according to Ali. And that’s precisely why our team rated it so highly.
Mara, our senior groceries editor, swooned over the “oversized bits of garlic” dispersed among this chili crisp, and although it was garlic-heavy, she noted it was “prominent but not overpowering.” Overall, Mara really appreciated the “nice balance of flavors going on here.” Meanwhile, Brian (who marked this as his top chili crisp), “loved the texture — it has a great crunch!”
It had great flavor and great crunch, so why didn’t it take the top spot? Ultimately, testers like Mara wished for a “bit more heat” or at least chili flavor. But she found a silver lining in that this would be a great entry chili crisp for the “spice-curious.”
What’s So Great
Garlic!
“Great for the ‘spice-curious’”
Good to Know
$$$
Buy: S&B Crunchy Garlic Chili Oil, $12.79 for 3.9 ounces at Amazon
Honorable Mention: Momofuku Chili Crunch
We questioned adding Momofuku to the test because of David Chang’s hurtful attempts at trying to trademark chili crisp (thereby limiting small-business ability to market and produce something that is not owned nor invented by Chang). He later issued an apology and rescinded the trademark enforcement. Ultimately we felt that Momofuku has been integral in putting chili crisp into the mainstream beyond Asian households, and it deserves to be in the test. And as it turns out, although it wasn’t the favorite chili crisp, it is still really solid.
It’s a “tasty condiment with a strong chili flavor,” says Ali, who also found its “sweetness cut the heat and really complemented the rice.” Meanwhile Jasper, our yield analyst, enjoyed its “mild flavor and comforting smell.” These taste tests always remind us how different people’s palettes are because while Jasper found it to be lacking in heat, Tom, our senior studio producer, got “strong spice notes” (in a good way).
What’s So Great
Strong chili flavor
Sweetness to cut heat
“Comforting smell”
Good to Know
Contains sesame seeds
Buy: Momofuku Chili Crunch, $10.99 for 5.4 ounces at Instacart
Honorable Mention: Mr. Bing’s Chili Crisp
Our testers were split on Mr. Bing’s Chili Crisp. Those, like Jasper, loved its “strong flavor that complements the rice, not overpowers it,” while others like Ali generally found it to be a bit too mild. A chili crisp is an enhancer; it’s not the main course. Mr Bing’s is still a great option to add a bit of “crunch and slight spice” to your meal, according to Ali. It’s just not as punchy as the other options (which isn’t a bad thing!).
As Phil put it, “it’s got great chili flavor,” but it just didn’t have enough crisp (you know, the crunch) to be a top pick. But yes, he still would absolutely buy it.
What’s So Great
“Great chili flavor”
Good to Know
Mild
Not as crunchy as others
Buy: Mr. Bing’s Chili Crisp, $13.31 for 7 ounces at Instacart
Honorable Mention: Trader Joe’s Crunchy Chili Onion
Our testers had really great things to say about Trader Joe’s Crunchy Chili Onion Oil, which shocked most of us, except for Tom (who buys it regularly!) The retailer is beloved for its selection of fantastic grocery items, and now we can add its chili crisp to that already impressive list. Tom was able to spot it even in the blind taste test and marked it as his top pick, noting its delightful “crunchy, spicy flavor.”
He wasn’t the only one that was a fan of this onion-forward oil. Maria, our associate art director, who gave this chili crisp runner-up status on her rankings, loved that it “isn’t too thick, which lets it soak into the rice nicely but still retains its crunch.”
On the other hand, some testers like Mara felt that it was entirely lacking in the spice, crunch, and flavor, but thought that it would be great for those who want capital-M Mild heat.
What’s So Great
Compliments rice
“Crunchy”
Good to Know
Mild
Buy in Stores: Trader Joe’s Crunchy Chili Onion, $4.49 for 6 ounces at Trader Joe’s
How We Tested Chili Crisp Brands
We gathered seven staff members to randomly taste nine different chili crisps sold at grocery retailers today. Maya, our studio assistant, poured each chili crisp into a nondescript bowl and assigned each brand a letter from A through I to conceal its identity. As a palette refresher and to soothe the heat, we also had large bowls of freshly steamed rice on the table for testers to enjoy.
Tasters were given small bowls and encouraged to sample the chili crisps in random order before writing down their thoughts. That way they would avoid giving any particular brand an advantage. Tasters rated each chili crisp on a scale of 1 to 5 (1 = No, thanks; 2 = Meh; 3 = Pretty good; 4 = Really like; 5 = Yes, Please!) across four criteria — look, smell, texture, and flavor — and included any specific observations, tasting notes, and general opinions worth mentioning. They were also asked to answer, arguably, the most important question of all: Would you buy this chili crisp?
Why You Should Trust Us
To decide which chili crisp has the ideal balance of heat-to-crunch, we recruited seven volunteer testers who work at Apartment Therapy Media (our parent company) to evaluate nine different store-bought chili crisp brands based on texture, look, smell, desire to repurchase, and of course, flavor.
At the time of the test, tasters were unaware of the brands involved and sampled each one randomly. Each taster independently filled out a score sheet, scoring and ranking each chili crisp without larger discussion or influence from the group throughout the entirety of the test. It was only after all evaluations were completed that we tallied the scores to determine the winners.
Did your favorite chili crisp brand make the list? Tell us about it in the comments below.
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