I agree. Indian cooking uses a lot of flavored oil as “tadkas”. Spices (cumin, coriander, garlic, mustard etc.) including whole red chillies are brought up to temp in a small metal bowl with ghee over a flame and then added to the final dish.
I’ve made chili oil this way and it seems to draw out more flavor and there’s the slight burnt flavor that I love.
I've learned from cooking more Indian food recently that it's okay to burn spices a little. In most cuisines you're told to only bloom spices briefly but Indian food isn't afraid to really cook spices to their limit.
I’ve made chili oil this way and it seems to draw out more flavor and there’s the slight burnt flavor that I love.