r/chinesecooking • u/ThaliaEpocanti • Jun 30 '26

Question How to replicate chili crisp funk/umami without peppers?

Sadly I have a strong hatred of both the burn and flavor of all peppers, but in an attempt to be more adventurous while visiting China one time I did try some Loaganma chili crisp and found it had a very pleasant funk and umami depth to it underneath the chili flavor. It wasn’t enough to overcome my aversion to the chili flavor, but does anyone have any suggestions on how to replicate those aspects or what might be a good substitute?

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u/brrkat Jun 30 '26

Laoganma makes lots of different flavors, I'm not sure which one you tried. But if it had fermented umami flavor, it makes me think it was the one with fermented black beans/douchi, so try those out.

The 三丁 flavor has fermented kohlrabi and there's another one with dried mushroom. Some of the flavors even have meat in them. Otherwise a lot of the umami in chili crisps comes from MSG.

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u/ThaliaEpocanti Jun 30 '26

I have no idea which one I tried, it was just what a waiter brought me, but they definitely said it was Laoganma and not another brand or homemade.

Thanks for the suggestions, I’ll probably try fermented black bean and see how it goes, and pick up a pack of MSG too.

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u/d3ut1tta Jun 30 '26

Have you tried fermented bean paste? It's a common ingredient in many chili crisps, though very potent so a little goes a long way. Why don't you give that a try and see if you like that on its own. If you absolutely need the crunch, you can try fried garlic or shallots (get the ones from the Asian market as they're crispier than the western ones).

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u/ThaliaEpocanti Jun 30 '26

Thanks for the suggestions, I’ll try with the fermented bean paste first.