Hunan Pickled Chilies With Garlic (Duojiao, 剁椒)
Equipment
- Chinese pickle jar or a canning-style jar(s) with a tight lid(s)
Materials
- 1000 grams (35 ounces) whole Fresno red chilies (or other thin-skinned chili)
- 50–100 grams (1¾–3½ ounces) garlic, more or less as desired
- 30 grams (1 once) ginger, more or less as desired (no more than 5% ginger by weight)
- 33 grams (1.15 ounces) salt (3-4% of peppers by weight)
- 10 grams (⅓ ounce sugar (approximately 30% of salt by weight)
- Splash baijiu or high-proof liquor, >50% ABV (approximately 30g/1 ounce; don’t use too much)
Instructions
- Wash and dry the chilies. (Now is also a good time to clean your pickle jar(s); let them air-dry while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.)
- While the chilies dry, mince the garlic and ginger in a food processor.
- Remove the stems and roughly chop the chilies. Avoid mincing. (The pulse setting on a food processor is ideal for this, but you can also use a cleaver or other chopping knife. The most important factor when using a food processor is to not let the chopped chilies turn into a puree.)
- Mix the chopped chilies with the minced garlic, ginger, salt and sugar in a large bowl. Cover loosely and leave overnight.
- The next day, there should be salty liquid drawn out from the chilies in the bowl. You can taste the chilies; they might be sour already (in which case you could opt to refrigerate them, if you like the sour level).
- Using clean utensils, transfer the chili mixture and its liquid to the clean jar(s); if using a regular canning jar, make sure to leave an inch of space below the opening. (If there is a lot of liquid, you don’t need to use it all. Some people drain it. More moisture will come out of the mixture as it sits.) Press down on the chilies to remove air bubbles.
- Pour a bit of liquor to just cover the top. 1-2 tablespoons is sufficient. (Some people mix this into the ferment directly.) If using a canning-style jar, you can also press some plastic wrap to the surface, under the lid.
- Seal the jars (using the instructions for creating a water seal, if using a Chinese pickling jar) and let the mixture sit at room temperature in a dark place for a couple days before using. For safer long-term storage, transfer the jars to the refrigerator after a week or so.
Notes
If you are chopping chilies by knife, I recommend wearing gloves to avoid burning your hands. Also, avoid rubbing eyes or sensitive areas until after you have cleaned your hands and station thoroughly.