L'huile Piquante (Spicy Oil) ........for pizzas!!!

One of things I really miss about Paris is the Huile Piquante that was served in every pizzeria! Huile piquante is nothing but French for olive oil infused with herbs and spices (mostly lots of chillies), rendering it fragrant and hot. It's drizzled on pizzas and pasta, very much like you would use ketchup. The Italians call it Olio Piccante and that's what you'll get in every pizzeria in Italy as well.....not chilli flakes.....not ketchup!

I just loved the flavour and heat that it would add to a pizza. Whenever I go out to eat at Italian places in India, I always wonder why they don't serve this spicy oil. It would definitely make their food more authentic. And making it is practically effortless! 

Well....what's a girl to do when something she wants is not available outside? She makes it herself, of course! Every time I eat pizza, I tell myself that I should make some spicy oil soon. But I almost always have only extra-virgin olive oil at home, and it doesn't make much sense to use your expensive EVOO to make this....so I think I'll buy some cheaper olive oil soon and then get down to making it. As you can guess, that day never came! So when the nice folks at Borges saw me off with a few bottles of their olive oils at the Food Bloggers and Critics Meet last week, I saw spicy oil as the perfect ending for one of those bottles.

Making this is as easy as it gets. Take a tall bottle and throw in some dry chillies (as much as you think you'd like), some whole peppercorns, and some dried herbs (I used basil, rosemary, and dill). Get out some non-extra-virgin variant of olive oil. I used a variant called Pure Olive Oil (mix of EVOO and refined olive oil). Heat the oil in a pan for 2 minutes, so that it's just slightly hot. You want to stop much before reaching the smoking point. Pour through a funnel into the bottle. Put the cap on and give the bottle a good shake so that all the chillies are coated with oil. Leave in a dry and dark place for at least 2 weeks to let the flavours infuse.

Note: Using extra-virgin olive oil here does not do any harm....it just doesn't help anymore than any other olive oil, as the chillies over-power the flavours that are specific to EVOO. So might as well save your money. But of course, you can always use any oil that suits your fancy.....even non-olive!

There really isn't any fixed recipe to follow here. The spiciness of the oil would depend on how much you can take. The point to keep in mind is that the 'hotness' of the oil increases over time. So the longer you keep the oil, the hotter it will be. You could also use jalapenos or other types of chillies. Same goes for the herbs.....feel free to experiment with different flavours. Think paprika, pink/green/white peppercorns, thyme, oregano.

An oil with only dry seasonings will last for a long time outside. if using any fresh chillies etc, make sure to store it in the fridge. 

Apart from pizzas, it works great on bruschetta, salads and pasta as well. You could even use it to dip your bread! Or just toss some vegetables in it and grill them. So go make yourself some spicy oil and feel the addiction. Not kidding....it IS addictive! You'll want it on everything!

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