Easy Southern Mini Fire Crackers
Mini Fire Crackers are a spicy Southern snack made by soaking mini saltine crackers in a seasoned oil blend with dill, garlic, crushed Hatch chile peppers, and other spices. After resting, they’re baked low and slow until golden and crisp.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 416kcal
Equipment
- Gallon Ziploc Bag
- whisk
- 13 ½ x 9 ⅝ x 2 ¾ inch disposable alluminum pan (See Tip 1)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Canola oil
- 1 tablespoon dried dillweed (a.k.a. dill)
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1½ teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons crushed Hatch chile peppers (See Tip 2)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt (See Tip 3)
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 11 ounce box mini saltine crackers, about 6 cups
Instructions
- Place the canola oil, dill, parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, Kosher salt, and black pepper in a gallon Ziploc bag. Whisk the ingredients together to combine.
- Add the mini saltine crackers to the Ziploc bag. Seal the bag and gently shake to evenly coat the mini saltines in the seasoned oil. Let sit at room temperature for at least 6 hours and up to 12 hours, gently shaking the bag several times to redistribute the seasoned oil. (See Tip 4)
- Preheat the oven to 250°F. Transfer crackers to a disposable aluminum pan or rimmed half-sheet baking sheet lined with nonstick aluminum foil. Spread into an even layer.
- Bake the crackers in the preheated 250°F oven for 30 to 35 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes, until golden brown, toasted, and mostly dry.
- Let cool in the baking pan at least 5 minutes before serving warm or at room temperature.
- Yield: 8 servings (about 6 cups) (See Tip 5)
Video
Notes
- I like to use the disposable aluminum pan to minimize cleanup. Also the high sides make tossing the seasoned saltines a bit easier. You can, however, use a half-sheet pan instead.
- When I went to the grocery store to purchase crushed peppers, I had a choice of crushed Hatch chile peppers, Jalapeño chile peppers, or Thai-style chile peppers. I wanted some heat in the Fire Crackers, but not a lot. I took a picture of my options, uploaded the picture to ChatGPT, and asked which of the three was the mildest. ChatGPT responded that Hatch Chile Pepper was typically mild to medium, Jalapeño Pepper was medium, and Thai Style Chili Pepper was hot to very hot. Based on this, I opted for the Hatch Chile Peppers.
- If using table salt, reduce the amount to ¼ teaspoon. The mini saltine crackers are already salted, so you don't need to add a lot of extra salt.
- The longer the mini saltines rest in the seasoned oil, the more oil will be absorbed, resulting in better adhesion of the spices.
- The Mini Fire Crackers can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week.
Nutrition
Calories: 416kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 31g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 19g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Sodium: 515mg | Potassium: 92mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 28IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 2mg
