When you start eating healthier, one of the biggest challenges can be finding ways to dress up your food without adding junk ingredients.
The best way to do that is to get familiar with seasonings! Something simple, like this infused olive oil, can make all the difference and take an otherwise bland meal from “boooo” to “woo hoo!”
The other perk of something like an infused oil is the added healthy fats, which are necessary for long-term energy, brain health, and cellular health.
This is specific infusion is made with a pepper called “guajillo” chili (pronounced “wah-hee-yo”). It is sooooooo easy to make and goes great on everything savory. It’s a recipe that I brought back from a trip to Mexico that literally requires 2 ingredients and can be ready to eat in an hour!
Make a bottle and keep it on hand for almost anything – grilled meat, potato salad, guacamole, hummus, grilled veggies…you name it, this oil take its to the next level of YUM.
Infused Guajillo Pepper Oil
2 cups high-quality olive oil
4 large dried guajillo peppers (I order mine on Amazon)
Set your oven temperature to 170ºF. Cut the stems off the dried peppers and dump our most of the seeds. Add the peppers and ¼ – ½ cup olive oil to a blender and blend until the peppers are finely minced.
Add the blended peppers and oil to the remaining olive oil and dump it all in an ovenproof baking dish. Bake the pepper oil as long as you want/can – the longer you bake, the stronger the flavor. I left mine in for 2 hours.
Store the oil in sealed containers for up to a few months and put it on everything!
You can repeat this same technique with fresh “woody” herbs like rosemary or thyme, or something solid like garlic, but if you’re using “watery” herbs like basil or cilantro use the dried version for best results.