Garlic Oil – Secret Recipe

If you have ever wondered why Chinese restaurants always serve the BEST garlic recipes, that is because of their secret garlic oil that makes everything taste delicious!

Savory, delicious, and packed with umami flavor, my secret garlic oil is a staple family condiment that I have ready to go in the fridge at all times!

PLUS, this is perfect for those that love garlic but hate peeling garlic every time they cook!

You NEED to make this garlic oil and drizzle it on top of your vegetables. 

Three things are always in my fridge: homemade chili oil, scallion oil, and garlic oil.

All three sauces are easy to prepare at home and can turn into many different recipes.

This garlic oil is also the perfect recipe if you don’t want to peel garlic every time you cook.

Sometimes after a busy day of work, I just drizzle the oil on top of air-fried green beans, and I got a healthy and flavourful dinner ready in 10 minutes! 

The secret tip to prevent garlic from burning when making garlic oil is to RINSE half of the garlic with water!

This step will prevent the garlic from becoming bitter while still extracting all the fragrance.

I only rinse HALF of the garlic with water. The first half is to slowly infuse the oil, while the second un-rinsed half provides texture and an even more robust “raw” garlic flavor to the oil.
You can enjoy the garlic oil as is, but I like to season with red chili, salt, sugar, vegetarian oyster sauce, and optional chicken powder for extra umami flavor! Store the oil in the fridge for one month. 

There are so many recipes you can make with this garlic oil.

For example, drizzle the garlic oil and soy on your eggs, and enjoy it with rice for the perfect breakfast.

Or steam any vegetable of your choice, such as bok choy, spinach, and cabbage, and drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of garlic oil for an easy, healthy, and quick dinner!

Or my personal favorite, wrap enoki mushroom with the oil in tinfoil and bake at 380F for 10-15 minutes or until soft for Chinese bbq style baked enoki mushroom. 

When mixed with soy sauce, the oil also makes the perfect hot pot of dumpling dipping sauce. 

Do you want more accessible and staple recipes? Here are some of my go-tos 

• The BEST Homemade Chili Oil You Will EVER TRY!
• Chili Garlic Oil (5 Minutes Only!)
• Scallion Oil Noodles (Easy & Vegetarian)
• Spicy Garlic Chili Paste (Super EASY!)

Ingredients 

• 1lb of Garlic – peeled and top chopped off 
• 3 shallots (peeled) 
• 4 cups of oil (grapeseed oil is my personal favorite) 
• 3 Thai red chili (optional) 
• 1 tbsp of Sugar 
• 2 tbsp of Vegetarian Oyster Sauce 
• 0,5 tbsp of Salt 
• 1 tbsp of Chicken Powder (optional) 

1. Add garlic and shallots into a food processor, and process until minced. 
2. Wash and rinse HALF of the garlic mixture in cold water, and press out all the excess water. This step will prevent the garlic from burning. 
3. Add oil and garlic to a pot, and turn the heat to medium. Once it started slowly sizzling, fry for 7-8 minutes. 
4. Keep an eye out, and keep stirring to prevent the garlic from sticking to the bottom and burning. 
5. Turn the heat off, and add in chopped red chili, the rest of the garlic, sugar, vegetarian oyster sauce, salt, and chicken powder. 
6. Turn the heat back up to medium-low,  and cook for another 2-3 minutes. 
7. Store it in a jar, and once it cools down, you can store it in the fridge for one month 

Print

5 from 2 votes

Garlic Oil

If you have ever wondered why Chinese restaurants always serve the BEST garlic recipes, that is because of their secret garlic oil that makes everything taste delicious! Savory, delicious, and packed with umami flavor, my secret garlic oil is a staple family condiment that I have ready to go in the fridge at all times! PLUS, this is perfect for those that love garlic but hate peeling garlic every time they cook! You NEED to make this garlic oil and drizzle it on top of your vegetables.

Prep Time10 mins

Active Time15 mins

Total Time25 mins

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Dinner, Main Course, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: Asian, Chinese, Taiwanese

Keyword: 20 Minute Recipes, Asian Food, Asian Recipe Easy, Asian Recipes, Asian Recipes for Dinner, Authentic asian recipes, Chili Oil, Chinese Food, condiments, dinner Ideas, Easy, Easy Recipes, GARLIC RECIPE, Healthy, Healthy Asian Recipes, QUICK RECIPES, Staple Recipes, Taiwanese Food, Taiwanese Recipes, VEGETARIAN, Vegetarian Recipes

Yield: 5 Cups

Materials

• 1 lb of Garlic – peeled and top chopped off
• 3 shallots peeled
• 4 cups of oil grapeseed oil is my personal favorite
• 3 Thai red chili optional
• 1 tbsp of Sugar
• 2 tbsp of Vegetarian Oyster Sauce
• 0,5 tbsp of Salt
• 1 tbsp of Chicken Powder optional

Instructions

• Add garlic and shallots into a food processor, and process until minced.
• Wash and rinse HALF of the garlic mixture in cold water, and press out all the excess water. This step will prevent the garlic from burning.
• Add oil and garlic to a pot, and turn the heat to medium. Once it started slowly sizzling, fry for 7-8 minutes.
• Keep an eye out, and keep stirring to prevent the garlic from sticking to the bottom and burning.
• Turn the heat off, and add in chopped red chili, the rest of the garlic, sugar, vegetarian oyster sauce, salt, and chicken powder.
• Turn the heat back up to medium-low, and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
• Store it in a jar, and once it cools down, you can store it in the fridge for one month

Notes

There are so many recipes you can make with this garlic oil. For example, drizzle the garlic oil and soy on your eggs, and enjoy it with rice for the perfect breakfast. Or steam any vegetable of your choice, such as bok choy, spinach, and cabbage, and drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of garlic oil for an easy, healthy, and quick dinner! Or my personal favorite, wrap enoki mushroom with the garlic oil in tinfoil and bake at 380F for 10-15 minutes or until soft for Chinese bbq style baked enoki mushroom. When mixed with soy sauce, the garlic oil also makes the perfect hot pot of dumpling dipping sauc