In my quest to find better I have tried many chilli oils this year, but Chotto Motto’s Crispy Chilli Oil is the love I keep going back to. The ratio of chilli to vegetable and sesame oil is just right and satisfyingly large shards of crunchy garlic and shallot add texture and oomph that is so addictive. I love it spooned over eggs, drizzled on toasties and with literally any Christmas leftover, hopefully. Hint hint.
Andrea McGinniss

chottomotto.com.au/products/crispy-chilli-oil

The best I’ve found is Josh & Sue from North Geelong, Victoria. It’s fruity and electric, with both rosewater and rose petals to soften the harshness of chilli and give a magical floral character. I use it to zip up lamb tagines, swirl into hummus, and make boring sausages suddenly exciting.
Terry Durack

joshandsue.com.au

I could have listed a number of Sydney-born Jimoto Foods products here, but I’m currently having a love affair with this zippy fellow. Made with Aussie and Japanese green chillies, fresh yuzu and tamari, it’s a collision of saltiness, spice and tartness, with a whole bunch of umami. I love it as a dipping sauce for grilled meats but also add a dash of it to my home-made salad dressings. It’s gluten- and preservative-free, too.
Sarah Norris

jimotofoods.com.au

Currong Comestibles’ shrubs and marmalades have long graced my pantry but this summer I’m all about their Riberry Raspberry Gin Jam. Equal parts sweet and tart (and a little bit boozy), this no-waste ruby-red spread is made from the fruit of the lilly pilly tree and byproducts of Manly Spirits’ pink gin. Spread on toast, scones or crumpets, slather on your favourite cheesecake or Christmas pav or use it to shake up a special celebratory cocktail (Jamtini, anyone?)
Megan Johnston

currong.com.au

There’s only one thing I enjoy more than eating pickles, and that’s making them for others. These gently spiced pickles, based on the recipe from San Francisco’s Zuni Cafe, spark up a burger, a cheese toastie or a charcuterie platter. They’re dead simple to make. Inexpensive, too.
Roslyn Grundy

This aromatic blend of fermented, wild-foraged ingredients make for a uniquely Australian miso paste and a gentle introduction to using native foods in your home cooking. It’s earthy, sweet and deeply umami − ideal for adding to a buttery glaze to brush on barbecued vegetables, amping up a salad dressing, or creating a miso caramel sauce to pour over dessert.
Bianca Hrovat

ziggyswildfoods.com.au

Crunchy, funky, bright, and packed with gut-loving bacteria, kimchi is the answer to whatever question you want to ask about what’s for dinner. I’m in love with this spicy, fermented Korean vegetable pickle and what its sour, salty juiciness does for instant noodles, fried eggs and rice, grilled steak, and prawns (try it with your prawn cocktail at Christmas). This one, from fermentation queen Sharon Flynn, is so alive, it’s like another guest at your table.
Jill Dupleix

thefermentary.com.au

My pantry is a graveyard of undead hot sauces. Condiments dashed across fried chicken once or twice, then pushed to the back cupboard in favour of the next local, organic, artisan, small-batch, blah, blah, blah fermented salsa. Occasionally, however, a bottle rises above, and this Carribean-style number from Crack Fox may be the only hot sauce I’ve run dry in the past 10 years. Made with spray-free Jamaican hot yellow peppers and scotch bonnets grown near Byron Bay, and bolstered by layers of pineapple and cider vinegar, it makes scrambled eggs an event and lunchtime banh mi even tastier. Fruity, fiery stuff.
Callan Boys

crackfoxhotsauce.com

This recipe, from Donna Hay’s book Even More Basics to Brilliance, is one of the simplest chilli oils you could ever make − the hardest part is chopping the 10 cloves of garlic. But once you have done that, it is a matter of heating oil and stirring in the other ingredients, then pouring into jars to give your lucky friends.
Ardyn Bernoth