This Spicy TikTok Hack Will Take Your Fried Eggs To The Next Level
If you've ever used pepper jack cheese in an omelet, topped your scrambled eggs with Tabasco, or had them Korean style with a side of kimchi fried rice, this TikTok hack will not disappoint. It's a simple way to spice up your breakfast, and it's inspired by the pesto eggs trend, which involves frying eggs in pesto instead of cooking oil. According to Jen Curley, who goes by @SnackQween on TikTok, the recipe only requires one ingredient in addition to eggs: a spoonful of chili oil.
In the TikTok video, which has since gone viral, Curley uses Lao Gan Ma brand chili oil, but other TikTokers across the app have also been using Chili Onion Crunch, the popular Trader Joe's version of the condiment.
To prepare chili oil eggs as per Curley's instruction, first, heat the chili oil in the pan, swirl it around, and crack in two eggs. In the video, Curley then covers the pan, and after a few minutes of frying and a little bit of salt, the eggs are ready to be served.
Chili oil eggs are more than just spicy eggs
Though the name suggests it's simply a combination of chili flakes and oil, The Woks of Life explains that's not the case at all. Not only does chili oil consist of a handful of spices, but the cooking process also requires more than just mixing the ingredients together.
In addition to chili flakes, there is a minimum of four aromatics added to the cooking oil. These aromatics include star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, and Sichuan peppercorns. For a greater range of flavors, black cardamom, sand ginger, and cloves are also recommended. The oil and aromatics are heated to 225-250° F for up to one hour until the oil is fully infused with flavor, then the hot oil is poured over the chili flakes. The result is what's served and sold as chili oil.
Chili oil therefore not only adds spice to fried eggs but also layers of flavor that have already had the chance to develop. The TikTok hack technically only takes two ingredients if you use the jarred kind, so it's certainly a great way to pack a punch in your egg breakfasts.