Homestyle Chinese Red Chili Paste with Garlic (La sauce pima)
Mouthwatering, fiery and garlicky, this Homestyle Chinese Red Chili Paste is my favorite chili paste of all time. Add generously to all your Mauritian meals, not just Chinese! It is a staple in our home, and I hope it becomes a staple in yours too! Enjoy.
Print
Pin
Equipment
- 1 Mortar and pestle (this is ideal to grind the paste but not essential)
- 1 Blender or food processor (you can use a blender or food processor instead to make the chopping easier. This is also not essential as you can do it by hand)
Ingredients
- ¾ cup small red chili peppers, chopped some seeds removed, 110 g, 4 oz
- 1 cup garlic, chopped about 3 bulbs, 140 g, 5 oz
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 tablespoons water you might it a bit more, up to 4 tablespoons more
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons rum white or gold
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or a mix of soy sauce and fish sauce
Instructions
- Blend the chili peppers and garlic. In a blender or a food processor, add the chopped red chili peppers and chopped garlic, and process to a fine paste. Alternatively, you can chop them very finely by hand, then mix in enough water to make a paste. Set the fine red chili and garlic paste aside.
- Heat vegetable oil. Add vegetable oil to a large saucepan, preferably cast-iron, and heat oil on medium to high heat.
- Cook paste. Once the oil is just hot, add the fine red chili and garlic paste. You know the oil is just hot when it begins shimmering. You do not want your oil to be too hot because the paste could burn. Cook until the ingredients smell slightly fragrant, about 5 minutes. Stir a couple of times. Add the ¼ cup of water to the pan and continue cooking the paste until the water evaporates a little bit.
- Add the lemon juice, rum and soy sauce. When the water has evaporated a little bit, add the lemon juice and rum. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, just enough for the liquid and alcohol to evaporate and mix everything well and reduce heat to medium. Add in the soy sauce, and optional fish sauce if desired. Cook another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust the soy sauce and/or lemon juice to your liking.
- Serve. Enjoy this delicious Homestyle red chili paste with any dish of your choice, especially Chinese and dumplings!
- Storage. To store, let the paste come to room temperature before transferring into a container. It keeps well in the fridge for several days and the flavor will develop over time. You can top it with some vegetable oil to make it last for a few weeks.
Notes
1. You can remove some seeds from your red chili peppers before chopping them. It's time consuming and not essential to do but you'll have a brighter red chili paste if you take the time to remove some of the seeds.
2. Lemon zest is a nice addition to this paste, it brings freshness.
3. Fish sauce, dried shrimp are a nice addition to this paste, they bring an extra layer of umami goodness! Dried squid powder and dried shiitake powder also do the same thing.
4. If you are using a blender or food processor, you don’t have to chop the ingredients too finely prior. Chop finely by hand only if you are not using either.
4. This Chinese red chili paste is very freezer-friendly. So, double the recipe and save some in the freezer.