A New Jersey deli owner foiled an armed, would-be robber with the only thing he had at hand — a pot of hot cooking oil — and sent the man running for mama.

When the bad guy, dressed in a blue, hooded windbreaker, charged into Cos’s Corner Deli in Linden Monday, he probably figured he had it made. After all, he was in New Jersey, one of those states that believes only criminals should have guns. But when he aimed his weapon at Harry Bains, the deli owner splashed him with what he had at hand — hot oil, according to the New York Daily News.

The suspect immediately turned tail, ran, and remains at large, and local hospitals were put on notice to look for men seeking treatment for facial burns. The oil is normally maintained at 400 degrees.

Surveillance video obtained by WABC News shows Bains flinging the hot oil as the suspect is trying to make off with the cash register.

Bains admitted he was nervous at the time of the attack, but adds, “I had no choice. Whatever I could do that point of time, I just did it.”

Watch the news coverage, courtesy of WABC-TV.