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Firecrackers

Source of Recipe

From "Southern Snacks" by Perre Coleman Magness


Recipe Introduction

"We all have deep and personal food memories and cravings. Exotic postcard moments in our life in food. Apricots still warm from the tree in France. The first taste of fish cooked immediately after being pulled from the Indian Ocean. Or cravings that seem to come deep from the soul and out of the clear blue sky. The special multilayered cake only your grandmother knew how to make. Bread from the long-ago-shuttered, family-owned neighborhood bakery. Your mom's homemade soup. This recipe is none of those things. It is not exotic or distant or impossible to duplicate. But it is a good food memory for me and, I bet, for a lot of folks. I just know how to make these. I didn't invent them or innovate them or deconstruct or reimagine. These little crackers are just good and simple, and everyone loves them. Though I make a habit of staying away from packaged mixes, I make an exception for these spicy gems. I use mild chili powder and a small amount of chili flakes, but feel free to spice things up."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 ½ cups vegetable oil
â—¦ 1 (1-ounce) package ranch dip mix
â—¦ 1 tablespoon chili powder
â—¦ 2 teaspoons crushed red chili flakes
â—¦ 1 (16-ounce) box saltine crackers


Recipe

In a small bowl, whisk together the canola oil, ranch dip mix, chili powder, and pepper flakes until thoroughly combined. Unwrap the saltines and place in a two 1-gallon zip-top bags or a large, shallow airtight container, such as you might store brownies in. Pour over the oil and toss and shake well to coat.

Give the bags or container a toss every 5 minutes or so for about an hour, making sure the crackers are getting a thorough dose of seasoned oil.

Remove the crackers to one or two rimmed baking sheets and leave to dry for several hours. Stored in an airtight container, these will last for a couple of weeks. But I bet they don't.


Makes about 120