Fried shallots substitutes

The tubs sold as crispy fried onions or bawang goreng at Asian grocers, and the canned French-fried onions sold for green bean casserole, both work. Same job, same crunch, same toasted-allium sweetness.

Best for

garnishing noodles, Thai salads, soups, rice dishes, khao soi

Onion is sweeter and less delicate than shallot, and the pieces are usually thicker, so you get a heavier, blunter crunch and a more straightforwardly sweet onion flavour instead of shallot's slight winey sharpness. Canned American French-fried onions are also battered and saltier, so cut back on the salt elsewhere. Refresh either in a dry pan or a 300F oven for three minutes if they have gone soft.

Slice shallots as thin as you can on a mandoline or with a sharp knife, separate the rings, and fry in about an inch of neutral oil over medium heat, stirring, for 8 to 12 minutes until they turn pale gold.

Best for

everything fried shallots are used for, Thai salads, noodle soups, congee

This is the real thing rather than a substitute, and the bonus is the shallot oil left behind, which is a prized ingredient in its own right for dressing noodles. Two rules: pull them out when they are pale gold, not brown, because they keep darkening off the heat and burnt shallots are acrid; and drain them on a rack rather than paper so they stay crisp. Cooled completely, they keep two weeks in a sealed jar.

Either the store-bought jars sold alongside crispy shallots, or thin garlic slices fried the same way. Very common as a Thai and Vietnamese finishing garnish in their own right.

Best for

noodle soups, stir-fried greens, rice porridge, grilled meats

Crunch is spot on but the flavour swings from sweet to pungent, so a bowl of noodles finished with garlic tastes sharper and more savoury, and lacks the caramelised sweetness that makes fried shallots taste almost like a condiment. Garlic burns much faster than shallot, so if you fry your own, pull it the second it turns straw-coloured.

Roughly crushed unsalted roasted peanuts. Already a standard Thai finishing garnish, so it never tastes out of place.

Best for

som tam, pad thai, noodle salads, larb

You get the crunch and some richness but none of the allium character, so the dish loses that savoury-sweet top note and gains a nutty one. This is the best choice when the recipe is already peanut-friendly and the worst when the fried shallots were meant to be the only sweet element, as in a plain rice soup.

Toast panko in a dry pan with a teaspoon of oil until golden, then toss with a small pinch each of onion powder and salt while still warm.

Best for

crunchy topping only, soups, rice bowls, salads

An honest texture-only fix. It gives you the crackle and a hint of allium aroma, but it goes soggy within a minute or two of hitting anything wet, and it has none of the fried-in-oil richness. Use it when crunch is the only thing you are missing and add it at the table.

Finely shredded leek whites or the white parts of scallions, fried in shallow oil for 4 to 6 minutes until golden.

Best for

noodle soups, braises, stir-fries, rice

Milder and grassier than shallot, and the strands stay wispy rather than becoming a solid crisp ring, so the crunch is lighter and fades faster in hot broth. Better than nothing and uses up what is already in your fridge. Fry them drier than you think you need to.