Karl’s Sichuan Pepper Oyster Crackers

I am making corn chowder for Jan’s birthday dinner. Chowder calls for oyster crackers. I adapted some techniques from Serious Eats.

Karl’s Sichuan Pepper Oyster Crackers

Ingredients

1 cup flour, AP
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. Karl’s Orange Infused Sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. Sichuan pepper, finely ground

2 Tbs. frozen unsalted butter
⅓ cup ice water, more as needed

1 tsp. sea or Kosher salt

Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.

2. Measure flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and pepper into a flour sifter and sift 4-5 times.

Tip: This gives you a thoroughly combined mixture.

3. Put several ice cubes into half a cup of water and let it chill for five minutes.

4. Grate in the butter and mix the shreds into the flour mixture.

5. Use a pastry cutter to work the butter into flour until it resembles coarse meal.

Tip: By freezing and grating the butter, you do not need to use the pastry cutter as much which will heat up and melt the butter.

6. Add one third of a cup of the ice water and lightly knead dough until it comes together into a ball.

Tip: If necessary use a teaspoon or two more.

7. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with a damp towel.

8. Allow the dough to rest for 15 minutes.

9. Roll dough out on a well floured sheet of parchment paper to a thickness of ⅛th inch.

10. Cut dough into ½-inch squares, rectangles, or diamonds.

11. Spritz the crackers lightly with water and dust with salt.

Tip: The water helps the salt stick to the crackers after they are baked. If you sprinkle it on after they are baked it will simply fall off.

12. Transfer the parchment paper to a baking sheet.

13. Bake until crackers are showing some color, about 15 minutes.

14. Turn the oven off and crack the door open.

Tip: Leave the handle of a wooden spoon in the door to keep it from closing.

15. Leave the crackers inside the oven to cool and continue to crisp, about 20 minutes.

16. Remove the cracker from oven and allow them to cool completely.

17. Separate any crackers that are still connected.

Tip: In the unlikley event that there are any left after dinner, the crackers can be stored in a sealed container for up to a week