What is karikari?
KariKari is a crispy, garlic-loaded, umami-bomb of a chili crisp! Imagine the biggest and crispiest pieces of garlic, shallots, peanuts, and more with layers of flavor in a rich and balanced chili oil. It’s good-on-anything, crunchy, spicy, garlicky, magic. Don’t take our word for it— grab a jar and try it for yourself.
With KariKari, you can add flavor and complexity to any dish. Think of it as the ultimate finishing move—it’s the perfect topping on everything! Some of our favorites are grilled meats and seafood, roasted veggies, fried eggs, fresh salads, warm rice, noodles, folded into an aioli, and even vanilla ice cream! The creative freedom is up to you. All we know is it’s best when applied liberally. Visit our recipe page for some inspiration.
We want to see what you’re making! Share you creations with us on Instagram @eatkarikari.
Why the name “karikari”?
KariKari is one of the many words in Japanese that means crunchy or crispy. It describes the textural experience of our chili crisp with near perfection, and also happens to be an onomatopoeia, which are Ruby’s favorite words to use when speaking Japanese. It bounces off the tongue with almost the same excitement one feels after a spoonful of this stuff.
History of Chili Crisp
Chili Crisp is an amazing condiment that has many variations across multiple cultures. We don’t want to do its rich history a disservice by paraphrasing, so check out the links below to learn more:
The Cult of Spicy Chile Crisp Is Real
Chile Oil Is So Hot Right Now
JAPANESE SAUCES YOUR LIVE WON’T BE COMPLETE WITHOUT
ADD SOME POW TO YOUR PIZZA (& EVERYTHING ELSE) WITH SALSA MACHA
who we are
Rob and Ruby—two flavor-fiends obsessed with the magic of crispy foods.
Ruby comes from a multi-cultural family. Being half African American and Japanese and half Irish Italian, there was always something delicious cooking in her home. Her favorites were the crunchiest, especially her papa’s fried fish and tempura.
Rob’s obsession with crunch began with his grandma’s breakfast potatoes—fluffy on the inside and crispy on the outside. He’s been chasing flavor and texture ever since, building his career in the food industry since he was a teenager.
As luck would have it, the universe decided these two should meet. They traveled, ate lots of amazing food, cooked lots of amazing food, worked, oh yeah got married, and cooked and ate some more.
Their cooking was and is a mix of both their upbringings, with the richness of their travels and experiences sprinkled in. One dish that represents this perfectly is taberu rayu, a Japanese chili oil condiment with crunchy garlic. Their version wasn’t quite that, not in the traditional sense anyway. It wasn’t the Chinese version either. Nor the Vietnamese. Was it more Italian? Mexican? It was all of it. They had taken their favorite parts and made something a little similar, something a little different. It was a hit with their family and friends.
The idea to sell started to float around. But for these two flavor-obsessed, good is never good enough. For two years, they tested, fiddled, experimented, shared, tracked, tinkered, toiled and BOOM! KariKari was born.
KariKari is a blending of many things, and an ode to all that came before. To grandmothers and grandfathers, parents, chefs, mentors—to the memories of Calabrian chili paste on pasta in Italy, salsa macha in the southern regions of Mexico, Lao Gan Ma slicked noodles in Xiamen, tương ớt sa tế on a glistening bowl of bún bò Huế in Seattle’s International District, and tabaru rayu on their own family’s table. KariKari was created with respect for the past and honor for the future.