Flavored Oils

The flavored oils can be assembled from ingredients already on hand in many kitchens, especially in late summer when the garden's last herbs may be too tough to eat raw but too tempting to discard. Cooking the oils in the oven helps them keep their clarity (they become cloudy when chilled) and also inhibits bacterial growth. Flavored oils add a burst of taste to foods and live up to their fullest potential when stirred in at the end of -- not during -- the cooking process, or when simply drizzled over cooked food.

Chipotle Pepper Oil

When this spicy oil is spooned over roast chicken or grilled pork chops, or stirred into salsa or gazpacho, it adds a smoky, Southwestern flavor.

2 dried chipotle peppers (available at Hispanic markets and some specialty foods shops)
1/2 cup peanut or vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Wearing rubber gloves, remove seeds from peppers and reserve 1/4 teaspoon of seeds.

Crumble peppers into a 1-cup metal measure or very small metal bowl and add reserved seeds and oil. Set the measuring cup or bowl on a baking sheet and cook in lower third of oven for one hour. Cool on a rack for 30 minutes. Line a small strainer with several layers of cheesecloth and strain oil into a glass jar. Covered loosely and refrigerated at all times, flavored oil keeps for one month. Makes about 1/2 cup.