HCO Hot Crispy Oil (Hot & Extra Hot)

Mexican chilies, fried garlic and shallots — pizza night has never been the same.

John, the founder of Hot Crispy Oil, sent us two jars: the regular Hot and the Extra Hot. What makes HCO unique is the deliberately mashed-up flavor map: Mexican chili peppers, large pieces of fried garlic and shallots, with influences from salsa macha, Sichuan chili crisp, and Turkish Aleppo chili oil all at once.

The taste test

Hot: smells bold, almost Chinese-style, and it’s very crunchy — stir from the bottom to get the good bits. Big garlic, real shallot sweetness. Our first instinct was chow mein and garlicky pasta, and both proved correct.

Extra Hot: the heat takes a moment, then settles in — but it’s one of the more tolerable “extra spicy” jars we’ve tried (the Zindrew X Batch left scars). You can still taste all the crunchy goodness through the burn, which is exactly what an extra-hot should do.

Verdict

A tier. If you love crispy crunch and a strong garlic presence, this is your jar — and it’s spectacular on pizza, pasta, salads, sandwiches, and stir-fried vegetables. At $14.99 it sits mid-scale on price and over-delivers.

We said on camera we’d repurchase, and we have. Our pantry is running out of space and we regret nothing.