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1
Remove the stems from the dried peppers and shake out the seeds. Each pepper must lie open and flat with no dense seed mass remaining — this is what permits instantaneous moisture loss in the oil. Inspect each pepper: it should be paper-thin, dark red, and pliable but dry.
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2
Pour the olive oil into a wide, deep pan to a depth of at least 3 cm. Heat over a medium-high flame to exactly 180 °C. The oil must reach full temperature before any pepper enters the pan — cold or insufficiently hot oil will be absorbed by the pepper rather than instantly expelling its residual moisture. Confirm temperature with a probe thermometer or by immersing the tip of one pepper: the oil must foam and hiss immediately and vigorously.
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3
Working in uncrowded batches — each pepper requires clear oil contact on all surfaces — lower the peppers into the oil. Fry for 20 to 30 seconds maximum. Watch without distraction: the pepper will puff, relax, and shift from dark red to brilliant orange. This colour change is the signal that the remaining moisture has been expelled and the flesh has crisped to a gossamer sheet.
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4
Remove immediately with a slotted spoon or spider and transfer to a tray lined with paper. The peppers continue cooking from residual heat after removal — account for this carry. They must not remain in the oil beyond 30 seconds; they will burn before 60 seconds have elapsed. Drain flat, not piled.
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5
Season lightly with flaky sea salt while still hot. The finished crusco is paper-thin, crackling under the lightest pressure, and a uniform brilliant orange. Any pepper that remains leathery or bends without shattering was either underfired or fried at insufficient temperature.