The "Ultimate Spicy Chorizo Peperoncino" with Doubanjiang and Burnt Garlic: Ryuji Reworks Their Own Signature Peperoncino

According to Ryuji, their previous one-pan peperoncino recipes have mostly been made without any toppings. This time, they introduce a sausage peperoncino as a "ridiculously good" one-pan pasta they recently developed. Regular sausage works too, but Ryuji wanted a spicy peperoncino, so they chose Umakara Chorizo. As reasons, Ryuji says that when they once made peperoncino with this chorizo it was "insanely good," and that it has both heat and strong savory flavor.

Before cooking, Ryuji grills just the chorizo for a taste test. The wieners go into an unoiled frying pan with 1 tablespoon of water, over medium heat, with a lid on. They're cooked through by rolling them around in the steam, then the water is cooked off and they're lightly browned. After tasting, Ryuji calls them "delicious" and "a pretty great creation," saying that because the savory flavor is strong, the heat comes across as "savory-spicy." The person sitting with Ryuji explains that the heat has been dialed back a little.

This batch makes two servings. For peperoncino, 1.4mm or 1.5mm pasta is fine, but this time Ryuji uses 1.7mm. Ryuji also mentions the brand, noting that it isn't a sponsored placement.

More garlic is better, with about 12g per serving as a guideline. This time it's sliced. Slicing brings out more garlic character and tastes better, Ryuji says. Feeling that the prepared amount was a bit short, Ryuji takes out another large bulb of Japanese garlic and slices half of it to add.

What sets this recipe apart is that it uses doubanjiang instead of dried red chili peppers. Ryuji explains that using doubanjiang in place of chili in peperoncino boosts the savory flavor. Asked whether tube doubanjiang is OK, Ryuji says Youki brand is preferable if possible. It has the strongest chili flavor, along with strong saltiness and umami, so it's the one Ryuji trusts most.

The whole bag of chorizo (about 9 links) is used. The point Ryuji emphasizes is the cut. Cutting to maximize the surface area of the cross-section lets all the fat inside the chorizo render out and turn into flavor. The long, thin shape is easy to twirl onto a fork, and Ryuji explains that Western-style diners cut their Napolitan the same way.

If that's too much trouble, you can tear them by hand, but tearing gives it more of a meat-sauce feel, so Ryuji recommends slicing. Anyone who wants vegetables can add whatever they like, such as cabbage or asparagus.

Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil (for two servings) in the frying pan and fry the garlic. This time, the garlic is deliberately burnt. Burnt-garlic peperoncino is unorthodox, but adding chorizo is already pretty unorthodox, so Ryuji jokes that viewers should become "masters of the unorthodox." Giving it plenty of color makes it pair well with the spicy aroma of the chorizo.

The key change this time is removing the fried garlic from the pan. According to Ryuji, they didn't take it out before. If you add water with it still in, the burnt-garlic aroma is lost, so they decided to remove it. Even if people say the extra step isn't in the spirit of "Kyomu" (Ryuji's series of low-effort recipes), Ryuji says what tastes good is what's right. Whether you do this or not makes a big difference in flavor, Ryuji insists.

Next, the chorizo is fried in the garlic-infused oil. Cooking it until browned releases the chorizo's flavor and fat into the oil and gives the surface a crisp texture. When the chili aroma becomes strong and the cooked chorizo starts curling up, turn off the heat and take the chorizo out too.

It's better to leave as much oil in the pan as possible, but taking some out along with it isn't really a problem. Asked why the garlic and chorizo aren't fried together, Ryuji answers that frying them together would burn the garlic. Frying the chorizo separately gives it the flavor of the garlic oil.

The intended order was to fry the doubanjiang in the garlic oil after removing the toppings, and then add water. But Ryuji adds the water before frying the doubanjiang. Ryuji admits, "I make this mistake a lot," and covers for it by frying the doubanjiang in a separate frying pan and adding it to the pot. Viewers should simply fry the doubanjiang in the same pan.

Ryuji explains that frying the doubanjiang matters. When the person sitting with them says "my nose is burning" during the frying, Ryuji replies that it's proof the heat is cooking off the spiciness, and that fried and unfried doubanjiang taste different. Frying it makes the heat milder and takes the edge off.

About this moment, Ryuji says their channel is one where they can show mistakes. What matters most in cooking is what you do when you mess up, and cooking experts make mistakes too, Ryuji says.

The water is 640cc for two servings, or 400cc for one. The doubanjiang is 1 teaspoon for two servings. Ryuji explains that doubanjiang is made from fava beans, and that this adds savory flavor, making it more umami-rich than ordinary chili. Ryuji says they "much prefer" making it with doubanjiang. Salt is 2/3 teaspoon.

For umami seasoning, 12 shakes of Hi-Me go in. In a dish like peperoncino that lacks savory depth, Hi-Me works better, Ryuji says. It also contains meat-derived umami, so it makes things a bit mellower, according to Ryuji.

When the person sitting with them points out, "You're not talking in your Kyomu way today," Ryuji responds that it's because they're making what they currently think is the best peperoncino. And Ryuji says again that since they're updating a recipe with 10 million views, of course it's scary.

Once the water comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook for about 7 to 8 minutes. Boiling the pasta directly in the soup infused with the toppings' flavor makes the most of the cooking liquid.

Here Ryuji shares their own theory on why restaurant peperoncino tastes so good. Restaurants boil pasta in a stockpot many times a day, so the pasta water is full of dissolved flour. Using that water helps it combine with the oil and thicken. Making it in one pan lets you recreate that at home, Ryuji says. To the point that emulsification is hard for amateurs, Ryuji replies that it emulsifies on its own, so it's fine.

The heat is medium-high, or 4 on an IH meter. Ryuji says that with 1 teaspoon of doubanjiang it might be too spicy to eat, while the person sitting with them says their body has become able to handle spicy food.

While saying it's fine to add something like broccoli one minute before the pasta is done, Ryuji personally thinks sausage alone is better if you're eating it as a drinking snack. Adding vegetables turns it into "a vegetable dish." If you do add some, it's best to pick ones that don't get in the way of the flavor, such as asparagus or mushrooms, while broccoli and shiitake are too assertive. Ryuji describes this as ingredient compatibility, but repeats that the best version is sausage only. Ryuji also says the spicy-looking oil floating in the pan is a color you wouldn't get even with sliced chili rings.

When the person sitting with them announces how much time has passed, Ryuji pushes back that it surely hasn't been 5 minutes yet, saying you can tell by how the noodles are cooking. In the end, the guide is the firmness of the noodles; beginners can time it at, say, 7 minutes, but Ryuji has never once timed it at home and says you just taste to check.

Partway through, the conversation turns to high heat. The person sitting with Ryuji says their wife scolds them for using high heat when they cook. Ryuji says they basically don't use high heat much, but the other person apparently does everything on high. They speculate that it's because once you burn something you can't undo it, whereas low heat lets you recover, and Ryuji says people who aren't experienced should avoid high heat. Ryuji is fine because they're used to it, and says that at first they cooked even all their meat on high heat.

While the noodles are still quite firm, return the garlic and chorizo you set aside, along with their oil, and toss. Drizzle olive oil over at the end to give it a glossy sheen. Looking at the result, Ryuji praises themself: "This is me."

Pasta gets worse if it sits, so Ryuji has the camera stopped to eat it right away. Ryuji's verdict: "This method is the ultimate peperoncino." The person sitting with them also says the garlic goes really well with it, and that it's spicy so you can't stop eating.

Asked whether regular peperoncino is this spicy too, Ryuji answers that spicy peperoncino can be about this hot, and that this one is spicy because it also has chorizo. You can make it with regular sausage, in which case it'll be about as spicy as normal peperoncino, so people who don't like spicy food can go that route. Ryuji says that almost all the pasta they make for themself is sausage peperoncino.

Asked whether it's OK to eat so much garlic before a meeting, Ryuji answers that cooked garlic doesn't smell. The compounds in raw garlic come out through your pores after you eat it, but once it's heated it doesn't smell, according to Ryuji. Gyoza get called smelly because the raw garlic is wrapped in the skin and doesn't get cooked through enough, Ryuji says, whereas peperoncino, where the garlic is fully cooked, doesn't smell. Back when Ryuji worked at a hotel, they ate peperoncino every day, and no one ever said anything. The person sitting with them says they once ate the raw garlic slices served with horse sashimi and it was a disaster, and Ryuji wraps up by saying you only need to be careful with raw garlic.

Finally, Ryuji mentions that it's hard to put strength into their hand. Since there's physical pain, Ryuji guesses they must have hit it on something while drunk, but has no memory of it.