If there is one jar that never leaves my counter, it is chili crunch. I put it on eggs, noodles, dumplings, marinaades, salad dressings and honestly anything that needs a little heat and a lot of texture. So I pulled together all my favorite Momofuku chili crunch recipes in one place, from 15 minute noodles to dumpling salad, fried rice, and sticky glazed chicken.
New on the list: my 10-minute beef rice bowl uses a spoonful of chili crunch in the sauce and might be the easiest recipe here.
Every recipe in this roundup either uses chili crunch directly or is the kind of dish where a spoonful makes everything better. And do not worry if you have a different jar in your fridge. Any chili crisp or chili oil you love will work in these recipes.
What Is Momofuku Chili Crunch?
Momofuku Chili Crunch is a spicy, crunchy chili condiment from Momofuku, the food brand founded by chef David Chang. It is made with dried chilies, crunchy garlic, and shallots in oil, so you get medium heat with tons of garlicky crunch in every spoonful.
If you see chili crunch, chili crisp, or crunchy chili oil at the store, they are all the same family of condiment. Chili crunch and chili crisp lean heavy on the crispy bits, while classic chili oil is smoother and mostly about the infused oil. In these recipes you can use them interchangeably, just start with less if your jar runs hot.
Ways to Use Chili Crunch
Here is how I burn through a jar:
- spooned over fried or jammy eggs (my favorite breakfast)
- drizzled on pizza
- dumpling dipping sauce (most important ingredient)
- marinades
- salad dressings
- tossed with plain rice or ramen, over avocado toast, mixed into mayo for burgers and sandwiches, and so much more.
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The Best Momofuku Chili Crunch Recipes
Soy Maple Glazed Chicken
One skillet chicken in a sticky soy maple glaze with chili crunch stirred in for heat and texture. On the table in 15 minutes.
Ingredients:
Chicken:
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup flour for dusting
2 tablespoons neutral oil
Soy Maple Glaze:
2 tablespoons butter (cold)
2 tablespoons garlic (minced)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 lime juiced and zested
Garnish:
1 Lime sliced
Chopped parsley
Crispy Rice Salmon Salad
Broiled salmon over greens with peanut dressing and crispy rice seasoned with chili crunch. Texture in every single bite.
Ingredients:
Crispy Rice
2 cups leftover cooked rice
1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Broiled Salmon
1 salmon fillet (about 6-8 oz)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon avocado oil
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
Salad
1 cup purple cabbage (thinly sliced)
1 cup cucumber (sliced or diced)
1 cup radish (thinly sliced)
1 cup shelled edamame (thawed)
Black sesame seeds (for topping)
Peanut Dressing
½ cup peanut butter
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup rice vinegar
¼ cup hot water plus more if you want it thinner sauce
¼ cup agave any sweetener
2 tablespoon tahini sesame paste
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Asian Cucumber Salad
Crunchy cucumbers in a tangy, spicy dressing with chili oil mixed straight into the sauce. Five minutes, no cooking, totally addicting.
Ingredients:
3-5 persian cucumbers*
2 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon white sugar (substitute with honey)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon chili oil - I love Momofuku
20 Minute Dumpling Lasagna
Layers of dumpling wrappers and chicken mushroom filling, steamed and served with a chili crunch sauce. All the dumpling flavor, none of the pleating.
Ingredients:
Dumplings
1 pound ground chicken
2 cups shiitake mushrooms
2 stalks green onions
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Round dumpling wrappers
1 cup chicken broth
Dumpling Sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon honey (or agave)
Crispy No Fold Dumplings with Chicken
All the dumpling flavor with zero folding. Chicken and shiitake filling, crispy edges, and a chili crunch dipping sauce.
Ingredients:
Dumpling Filling
1 pound ground chicken
2 cups shiitake mushrooms
2 stalks green onions (roughly chopped)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Round dumpling wrappers
4 tablespoons water for steaming
Neutral oil for the pan
Dumpling Sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon agave or honey
Garnish
Sliced green onions
Teriyaki Salmon Sushi Cups
Baked nori cups filled with seasoned rice and teriyaki salmon, with chili crunch mixed right into the filling. This is the recipe where I always reach for Momofuku.
Ingredients:
Sushi Rice
2 cups cooked sushi rice (buy precooked rice or use leftover rice)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon mirin
Teriyaki Salmon
8 ounces fresh salmon (skin removed, cut into small bite-sized pieces)
2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce (Bachan's Japanese Barbecue Sauce works perfectly)
1 tablespoon chili crunch (chili crisp)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
Assembly
6 sheets of nori (dried seaweed, each cut into 4 equal squares (24 squares total))
Garnish
Sriracha mayo (mix sriracha and mayo to taste)
Avocado (diced)
Black sesame seeds
Spicy Shrimp Fried Rice
A 20 minute fried rice with Momofuku chili oil stirred in while it cooks, then drizzled on top for good measure. Weeknight dinner with serious flavor.
Ingredients:
10-12 pieces of frozen shrimp or prawns (defrosted in ice-cold water for 10 minutes2 cups day-old rice1 tablespoon chili oil (I used Momofuku)2 cloves of minced garlic3 stalks of green onions (separate the white from the green part)1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari½ teaspoon white pepper1 tablespoon sesame oil3 tablespoon tbsp butter (2 tablespoon for the shrimp and 1 tablespoon for the rice) 1 tablespoon avocado oil)
Garnish:
Fried garlic
Chili crunch or chili oil
More green onions
Spicy Miso Noodles
Butter, miso, and garlic chili oil come together in 8 minutes, topped with a chili oil fried egg. One of the fastest dinners on my site.
Ingredients:
Miso Noodles
2 packs of dried ramen noodles (any wheat noodles)
3 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon garlic chili oil (any chili oil will work** optional)
1 tablespoon white miso
2 spring onion stalks minced
Chili Oil Fried Egg
1 egg
1 teaspoon chili oil - I used Momofuku
Garnish
minced green onion
Sesame Sweet Potato Glass Noodles
Chewy Korean glass noodles with sauteed kale in a sesame soy sauce. A spoonful of Momofuku chili crisp on top takes it to another level.
Ingredients:
400 g dried glass noodles
4 cups of kale (stems removed and cut into 3" pieces)
2 shallots julienne
5 cloves of garlic sliced thinly
5 stalks of green onions (whites and green parts separated)
2 tablespoon grapeseed oil for sauteing
Sauce
3 tablespoon sesame oil
3 tablespoon of soy sauce
3 tablespoon of sweet soy sauce kecap manis
1 tablespoon of honey
GarnishÂ
Sesame seeds
The green part of the green onion
Chili crisp (optional)
Dumpling Salad with Chili Crunch Dressing
Crispy air fried dumplings over crunchy cabbage and carrots, all tossed in a honey soy chili crunch dressing. The viral salad for a reason.
Ingredients:
Salad:
20 frozen dumplings
½ purple cabbage (thinly sliced)
1 cup carrots (thinly sliced)
1 pint cherry tomatoes (halved)
2 green onions (finely sliced)
Chili crunch dressing:
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 teaspoon grated ginger
Garnish:
Fresh cilantro
Green onion
Chopped cashews
Sesame seeds
Spicy Chicken Noodles in 15 Minutes
Crispy ground chicken and chewy noodles in a garlicky gochugaru sauce, finished with a big spoonful of chili crunch. Ready in 15 minutes and spicier than takeout.
Ingredients:
3 packs of noodles (I used Momofuku )
½ pound ground chicken
3 tablespoon oil
4 cloves garlic (minced)
4 stalks green onion (whites and greens separated)
3 tablespoon gochugaru chili flakes
3 sauce packets from the Momofuku noodles
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
2 tablespoon chili crunch
Serve with grilled bachoy.
Easy Asian Chicken Salad with Chili Crunch Dressing
Rotisserie chicken, cucumber, and carrots in a creamy kewpie chili crunch dressing. Ten minutes, no lettuce, all crunch.
Ingredients:
2 cups shredded chicken (rotisserie works perfectly here)
2 cucumbers (seeds removed and diced)
1 carrot (julienned)
1 green onion (sliced)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon kewpie mayo
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
Juice of half a lemon
Drizzle of sesame oil
Sesame seeds (for topping)
Smashed Dumpling Tacos
Crispy smashed dumplings folded like tacos with a spiced vinegar chili crunch sauce. Fun to make and even more fun to eat.
Ingredients:
Dumpling Filling
1 pound ground chicken
2 cups shiitake mushrooms
2 stalks of green onions
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
12 round dumpling wrappers
1 tablespoon water per batch for steaming
Neutral oil for the pan
Dumpling Sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon agave or honey
Garnish
Sliced green onions
Sesame seeds
Shrimp Pancakes with Rice Paper
Crispy rice paper shrimp pancakes with a chili crunch soy dipping sauce. Ten minutes start to finish.
Ingredients:
Pancakes:
1 cup shrimp (finely chopped)
2 tablespoons green onions (chopped)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
Salt and pepper (to season)
4 rice paper sheets
Oil (to spray)
Dipping sauce:
1 tablespoon chili crunch
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
5 Minute Peanut Chili Oil Noodles
Ramen tossed in a garlicky peanut butter hot oil with chili crisp and dark soy sauce. Better than takeout and faster too.
Ingredients:
2 ramen noodle packets (boil and discard the seasoning packets)
¼ cup avocado oil (or any neutral oil)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon green onions (sliced (plus more for garnish))
1 tablespoon peanut butter (creamy works best)
1 tablespoon chili crisp (plus more for garnish)
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes)
2 teaspoons sesame seeds
¼ cup reserved noodle water
Chili Garlic Noodles
You po mian style noodles where hot oil gets poured over garlic, green onions, and gochugaru. Add a spoonful of chili crunch on top for extra texture.
Ingredients:
300 g Noodles
4 tablespoon avocado oil
2 stalks of green onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon red miso
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon gochugaru (substitute: 1 teaspoon red chili flakes)
1 teaspoon peanut butter
GARNISH:
Green onions
Sesame seeds
Crispy shallots
Crispy Rice Paper Dumplings
Rice paper dumplings with a sesame chili oil dipping sauce, crispy outside and creamy inside. Swap chili crunch into the sauce if you like it chunky.
Ingredients:
Rice papers (1 per dumpling)
1-2 tablespoon avocado oil
Filling
1 can of tuna (or salmon)
1 cup of cooked sushi rice (add rice vinegar to make it into sushi rice)
1 half avocado (sliced)
3 tablespoon of kewpie mayo (sub: regular mayo)
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon of sriracha
Salt and pepper to season
Sauce
2 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon chili oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar (or honey)
Sesame seeds
Air Fryer Frozen Dumplings
The easiest snack ever: frozen dumplings air fried until crispy, then drizzled with garlic chili oil. Chili crunch works beautifully here too.
Ingredients:
8-10 frozen dumplings (potstickers, mandu, gyozas or wontons)
Garlic Chili Oil - makes 1 cupâ…“ cup avocado oil1 cup green onion4 tablespoon gochugaru chili flakes*1 tablespoon minced garlic (5 cloves2 tablespoon black vinegar1 tablespoon red chili pepper*1 tablespoon oyster sauce (choose vegan option for plant-based)1 tablespoon sweetener (I used maple syrup)1 tablespoon soy sauce*1 teaspoon salt and pepper)
Ultimate Garlic Chili Oil
If your jar ever runs out, make your own. My smoky garlic chili oil takes 6 minutes and goes on everything in this roundup.
Ingredients:
â…“ cup avocado oil
1 cup green onion (white and green part minced)
4 tablespoon gochugaru flakes*
1 tablespoon garlic minced (5 cloves)
2 tablespoon black vinegar
2 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce (low sodium)
1 tablespoon sweetener (maple syrup)
1 teaspoon salt and pepper
Frequently Asked Questions About Momofuku Chili Crunch
What is Momofuku Chili Crunch made of? Momofuku Chili Crunch is made with dried chilies, crunchy garlic, and shallots in oil. It is all about texture, with crispy bits in every spoonful and a garlicky, savory flavor.
Is Momofuku Chili Crunch spicy? It has a medium heat that builds slowly rather than burns. If you are heat sensitive, start with a small spoonful in these recipes and add more to taste.
What can I substitute for Momofuku Chili Crunch? Any chili crisp or crunchy chili oil works, like Lao Gan Ma or Fly By Jing, or make my homemade garlic chili oil in 6 minutes. Use the same amount the recipe calls for and adjust for heat.
What is the difference between chili crunch, chili crisp, and chili oil? Chili crunch and chili crisp are loaded with crispy chili, garlic, and shallot bits, while chili oil is mostly smooth infused oil. They are interchangeable in most recipes, chili crunch just adds more texture.
How long does chili crunch last after opening? An opened jar keeps for about 2 to 3 months in the pantry and even longer in the fridge. Always use a clean, dry spoon so the oil stays fresh.
What should I eat chili crunch with? Start with noodles, dumplings, fried rice, and eggs, then branch out to pizza, avocado toast, and roasted veggies. Any of the 19 recipes above is a perfect place to start.
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