Shop Local

With dreams of spring on our minds, we’ve been playing with grow kits, Alberta-made products and zero-waste items. Growing herbs and mushrooms indoors has
kept us busy. Once they are ready, we like to sauté them and serve with steamed dumplings drizzled with chili oil. Toss any odd bits into your new compost
bin completing the zero-waste cycle. Purchase any of these products through their individual websites or browse each site to find a list of local retailers.

This month our Shop Local column also features Compost Bins from Liz and Lottie, Mushroom Kits from Red Fox Fungi, Honest Dumplings, and Kricket’s self-watering herb jars.

Oil Jefe Co.

In case you haven’t noticed, chili oil is all the rage these days, despite a long history in Italian (olio di pepperoncino) and Asian (sichuan garlic oil) cuisines. We’ve been sampling some of the oils made locally and are smitten with Oil Jefe Co. products. Currently taking up residence in our refrigerator is the Jalapeno Cherry Bomb chili oil. It’s smoky, sultry and loaded with flavour from the chili flakes, garlic and shallots. It’s the mildest of three oils and perfect for our taste buds, though we may graduate to the Roasted Habanero chili oil next. Admittedly we are too chicken to try Ghost Life. Founder Shaun Albert spent seven years testing before coming up with a recipe he loved. Most of the ingredients are local, with the exception of the peppers sourced south of the border. Drizzle these oils on stir-fries, soups, egg dishes, pasta dishes, roast vegetables, rolls and dumplings.

Editors note: Oil Jefe Co. is reporting closed.

Oil Jefe Co. | $9.99 – $12.50 | oiljefe.com