Sichuan

Savory steamed glutinous rice, sticky rice with ribs, sausage

Small red bean-filled pumpkin cakes

Tangyuan are a traditional Chinese dessert made of glutinous rice shaped into balls that are served in a hot broth or syrup. They come in varying sizes, anything between a marble to a ping-pong ball, and are sometimes stuffed with filling. Tangyuan are traditionally eaten during the Lantern Festival, but because the name is a homophone for reunion and symbolizes togetherness and completeness, this dish is also served at weddings, family reunions, Chinese New Year, and the Dōngzhì (winter solstice) festival. Tangyuan is a versatile dessert with a delicate taste and soft, chewy texture. While it can be served in its simplest form as a plain white ball of glutinous rice, it can also be stuffed with either black sesame or other fillings such as crushed peanuts. They can also be colored, fried, and boiled. Tangyuan is made by wrapping the glutinous rice around the filling that is filled with lard oil and shaping it into a ball by hand. Tangyuan can be sweet or savory by using more traditional fillings like black sesame. Sweet tangyuan can be served in ginger-infused syrup, whereas savory tangyuan are served in a clear soup broth. Unfilled tangyuan are served as part of a sweet dessert soup known in Cantonese cuisine as tong sui (literally: "sugar water").[citation needed]

Spicy sliced and skewered chicken

Bang bang chicken , also known by variant names such as bam bam chicken or bon bon chicken, is a popular chicken dish in Chinese cuisine. The name bang bang chicken is derived from the Chinese word for stick, bàng (棒), referring to the baton or cudgel traditionally used to tenderize the meat. Bang bang chicken originates in the street food of Sichuan. Some food historians believe it to have originated in the town of Hang Yang Ba during the early 20th century. The name of the dish comes from bàng (棒), the Chinese word for stick. This is a reference to the wooden stick or cudgel used to tenderize the meat. A popular myth claims that the name comes from the sound of tenderizing the meat by pounding it, but this is unlikely. Bang bang chicken is prepared by poaching or steaming chicken. The cooked chicken is banged with sticks to tenderize it and pound it into shreds. In traditional recipes, the shredded meat is tossed in a sauce made with sesame paste, chili oil, Sichuan pepper and black vinegar. Fresh herbs are also tossed with it. Variations of the sauce may include chile peppers, peanuts, garlic, ginger and soy sauce. It is traditionally served with julienned cucumbers.

Laziji , also known as dry chili chicken, firecracker chicken, Chongqing chicken, and mala chicken, is a dish of chicken cubes stir-fried in chilis, Sichuan pepper, spicy fermented bean paste, garlic, and ginger. Toasted sesame seeds and sliced spring onions are often used to garnish the dish. Laziji originated near Geleshan in Chongqing, where restaurateurs used small free-range chickens from nearby farms. This poultry became a signature export for Geleshan.

Grilled fish

Dandan noodles is a Chinese noodle dish originating from Sichuan cuisine. It consists of a spicy sauce, usually containing pickled vegetables such as zha cai (lower mustard stems) or ya cai (upper mustard stems), as well as chili oil, Sichuan pepper, minced pork, and scallions served over noodles. The dish can either be served dry or as a noodle soup. Dandanmian originated in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan. The original dish is served with no soup in a small bowl covered in a mala meat sauce and pickled vegetables, with peanuts and spring onions served on top. The soup variant is from Hong Kong and is more widespread across the rest of China but it is uncommon in Sichuan itself where the traditional style dominates. Sesame paste or peanut butter is sometimes added, and occasionally replaces the spicy sauce, usually in the American Chinese style of the dish. In this case, dandanmian is considered a variation of ma jiang mian (麻醬麵), sesame sauce noodles, although ma jiang mian usually refers to a specific Shanghainese dish.

Pork belly with dong cai, preserved dried cabbage or mustard greens with pork belly

Stewed pork knuckle

Chinese fish ball soup is a flavorful dish made with fish balls, broth, and various vegetables like bok choy and scallions.

Stir fried crispy Sichuan beef

Spicy stir fried chicken and peanuts

Spicy wontons in chili oil

Hot and sour cellophane noodle soup

Steamed whole fish, commonly carp, from the Jialing River

Laziji , also known as dry chili chicken, firecracker chicken, Chongqing chicken, and mala chicken, is a dish of chicken cubes stir-fried in chilis, Sichuan pepper, spicy fermented bean paste, garlic, and ginger. Toasted sesame seeds and sliced spring onions are often used to garnish the dish. Laziji originated near Geleshan in Chongqing, where restaurateurs used small free-range chickens from nearby farms. This poultry became a signature export for Geleshan.

Cold chicken in a spicy sauce

Liangfen , also spelled liang fen, is a Chinese legume dish consisting of starch jelly that is usually served cold, with a savory sauce, often in the summer. It is most popular in northern China, including Beijing, Gansu, and Shaanxi, but may also be found in Sichuan and Qinghai. In Tibet and Nepal it is called laping and is a common street vendor food. In Kyrgyzstan it is an ingredient in a noodle dish called ashlan fu. Liangfen is generally white or off-white in color, translucent, and thick. It is usually made from mung bean starch, but may also be made from pea or potato starch. In western China, the jelly-like seeds of Plantago major were formerly also used. The starch is boiled with water and the resulting sheets are then cut into thick strips. Liangfen is generally served cold. The liangfen strips are tossed with seasonings including soy sauce, vinegar, sesame paste, crushed garlic, julienned carrot, and chili oil. In Lanzhou it is often served stir-fried. In Sichuan, a spicy dish called chuanbei liangfen is particularly popular (see photo above).

Savory steamed glutinous rice, sticky rice with ribs, sausage

Spicy pork with cellophane noodles

Mala xiang guo , roughly translated into English as "spicy stir-fry hot pot", is a Chinese dish prepared by stir-frying. Strongly flavored with mala, it often contains meat and vegetables, and has a salty and spicy taste. The preparation process involves placing the required ingredients in the pot, stir-frying and adding seasoning. In restaurants, customers usually choose the ingredients (meat and vegetables) by themselves before the chef prepares the dish. Mala xiang guo is a spicy and tongue-numbing dish that originated from the Tujia people of Jinyun Mountain in Chongqing, China in the early 2000s. The name of the dish is self-descriptive, with "ma" meaning tongue-numbing and "la" meaning spiciness. The "spicy and tingling" sensation is a distinctive flavour feature of Sichuan cuisine, which is known for its bold use of spicy ingredients. Although it is a spicy dish, it is popular all over China for its complex flavour profile and affordability. It became a popular meal choice for lunch or dinner, as it is a hearty and savoury dish known for its spicy and tingling flavours. Mala xiang guo is served as a side dish or a main course, and paired with rice or noodles or eaten on its own. Individuals can customize it to their taste preferences, adjusting the level of spiciness and adding different vegetables and meats to make it more filling or to create unique flavour combinations.

Stewed meat, fish, vegetables, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, tofu, noodles

Mapo tofu is a popular Chinese dish from Sichuan province. It consists of tofu set in a spicy sauce, typically a thin, oily, and bright red suspension, based on douban (fermented broad bean and chili paste), and douchi (fermented black beans), along with minced meat, traditionally beef. Variations exist with other ingredients such as water chestnuts, onions, other vegetables, or wood ear fungus. One account indicates that the dish existed as early as 1254, in a suburb of Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan.[citation needed] Other accounts indicate it originated at a Chengdu restaurant in the 1860s-1870s. "Ma" stands for mázi, 麻子, which means pockmarks. "Po" is the first syllable of pópo, 婆婆, which means an old woman or grandma. Hence, mápó is an old woman whose face is pockmarked. It is thus sometimes translated as "pockmarked grandma's beancurd". Historical records tie the history of mapo tofu to Chen Mapo restaurant in Chengdu. It was opened in either 1862 or 1874 as a Fanpu eatery named ChenXingSheng by a couple named Chen, near a popular Wanfu bridge. According to Li Jieren, the initial version of Mrs Chen, nicknamed "Chen Mapo", was simple, made with chili, pork, tofu, and Sichuan pepper. In 1920s, Chen Mapo hired a chef named Xue Xiangshun, who transformed the eatery into a restaurant and perfected the mapo tofu recipe by cooking with beef instead of pork and adding douchi.

Sesame oil chicken

Rabbit meat is very popular in Sichuan, nearly all rabbits bred for meat in China are sent to Sichuan, rabbit heads are a popular snack

Poached fish in spicy broth with chili peppers, vegetables, mushrooms

Shuizhu is a Chinese dish which originated from the cuisine of Sichuan province and the name literally means "water boiled (meat)". The preparation of this dish usually involves some sort of meat, usually beef, which is then called "shǔizhǔròupiàn" or fish when it's called "shǔizhǔyú, 水煮鱼", chili pepper, and a large amount of vegetable oil. The meat is prepared with water, starch, and a slight amount of salt. Boiled vegetables are placed at the bottom of the serving bowl or dish. The prepared raw meat is poached in water that is heated to boiling point for 20–30 seconds, just enough to remove rawness yet preserving the meat's tenderness. Then it is drained and put in the serving dish with vegetables. Minced dried chili, sichuan pepper, minced garlic, and other seasoning are spread over the meat. Vegetable oil is heated in a pan nearly to smoking point, then poured over the prepared meat and vegetable. This dish maintains tenderness of the meat by poaching it instead of stir frying. It offers a good combination of tender meat, freshness of vegetable, hot spicy flavor of chili pepper, and numbing sensation of Sichuan pepper.

Shuizhu is a Chinese dish which originated from the cuisine of Sichuan province and the name literally means "water boiled (meat)". The preparation of this dish usually involves some sort of meat, usually beef, which is then called "shǔizhǔròupiàn" or fish when it's called "shǔizhǔyú, 水煮鱼", chili pepper, and a large amount of vegetable oil. The meat is prepared with water, starch, and a slight amount of salt. Boiled vegetables are placed at the bottom of the serving bowl or dish. The prepared raw meat is poached in water that is heated to boiling point for 20–30 seconds, just enough to remove rawness yet preserving the meat's tenderness. Then it is drained and put in the serving dish with vegetables. Minced dried chili, sichuan pepper, minced garlic, and other seasoning are spread over the meat. Vegetable oil is heated in a pan nearly to smoking point, then poured over the prepared meat and vegetable. This dish maintains tenderness of the meat by poaching it instead of stir frying. It offers a good combination of tender meat, freshness of vegetable, hot spicy flavor of chili pepper, and numbing sensation of Sichuan pepper.

Hot pot or hotpot, also known as steamboat, is a dish of soup/stock kept simmering in a pot by a heat source on the table, accompanied by an array of raw meats, vegetables and soy-based foods which diners quickly cook by dip-boiling in the broth. Hot pot is a flavorful broth traditionally served inside a large metal pot. There are many types of hot pot, like Chongqing hot pot, Beijing hot pot, Yunnan hot pot, and so on. The broth is brought to a boil and left simmering for the duration of the meal. Raw ingredients, such as meat and vegetables, are placed into the simmering broth and thus cooked. The cooked pieces are dipped into dipping sauces for additional flavor. Hot pot is considered a main course and is usually served without rice or noodles on the side. Hot pots can be prepared and eaten at home or in a restaurant. Typical hot pot ingredients include thinly sliced meat, leaf vegetables, mushrooms, vermicelli, sliced potatoes, bean products, egg dumplings, tofu, and seafood. Raw ingredients are pre-sliced into thin sections that will cook quickly and consistently in the simmering broth, which is kept at a gentle boiling temperature. Most raw foods can be cooked in a hot pot, although they may have different cooking times, and must be immersed in the soup and then removed accordingly.

Hot and sour fish soup with pickled mustard greens

Spicy stir fried cabbage

Hot and sour mutton dumplings, serve with sesame seeds, leek and cilantro

Twice-cooked pork or double-cooked pork ') is a Chinese dish in Sichuan cuisine. The pork is simmered, sliced, and then stir-fried—"returned to the wok." The pork is accompanied with stir-fried vegetables, most commonly garlic sprouts, but often baby leeks, cabbage, bell peppers, onions, or scallions. The sauce may include Shaoxing rice wine, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, chili bean paste, and sweet wheat paste. This dish is commonly associated with yan jian rou (Chinese: 鹽煎肉; lit. 'salted fried pork'), which tastes quite similar, but cooked in a different process. The process of cooking twice-cooked pork involves first simmering pork belly steaks in water with spices, such as ginger, cloves, star anise, jujubes, or salt. After refrigeration to firm the meat, it is cut into thin slices. The pork is then returned to a wok and shallow fried in oil, usually along with some vegetables.

Noodle soup with ground pork and yellow peas

Xiaolongbao is a type of Chinese tangbao (Chinese: 汤包), traditionally prepared in a xiaolong, a small bamboo steaming basket. The xiaolongbao originates from the city of Changzhou in Jiangsu province, and is an iconic dish of Jiangnan cuisine. Different cities across the Jiangnan region have varying styles of xiaolongbao. Outside of China, the Nanxiang xiaolongbao associated with Shanghai is the most well known. In the Shanghainese language, they are known as siaulon moedeu or xiaolong mantou, as Wu Chinese-speaking peoples use the traditional definition of mantou, which refers to both filled and unfilled buns. The Suzhou and Wuxi styles are larger (sometimes twice as large as a Nanxiang xiaolongbao) and have sweeter fillings. The Nanjing style is smaller with an almost translucent skin and less meat.

Pieces of marinated meat are skewered on toothpicks then deep-fried, traditionally uses lamb but chicken and beef are also used

Spicy garlic eggplant

Shredded pork with garlic sauce

Zhangcha duck, tea-smoked duck, or simply smoked duck is a quintessential dish of Sichuan cuisine. It is prepared by hot smoking a marinated duck over tea leaves and camphor leaves.[dubious – discuss] Some cookbooks and authors have used leaves and twigs of the camphor plant in smoking due to the dish's name, but this is a misunderstanding. Due to its complicated preparation, Zhangcha duck was eaten more often at banquets or festive events than as a daily household dish. The duck is first marinated for several hours with a rub containing a typical combination of whole or crushed Sichuan pepper, huangjiu or baijiu (fermented or distilled Chinese wine), ginger, garlic, and salt, with much of it rubbed inside the cavity of the duck. For intensity of taste, sometimes the marinade rub is augmented with choujiu, black pepper, tea leaves, and camphor leaves. Following the marination, the duck is quickly blanched in hot water to tighten the skin, and then towel and air dried. This step ensures that the skin of the duck will not turn bitter during smoking. A wok is then prepared for smoking the duck with black tea leaves. Following a smoke treatment of approximately 10–15 minutes, the duck is then steamed for another 10 minutes before being deep fried in vegetable oil until its skin is crisp. The duck is consumed wrapped in clam-shaped buns called gua bao.[citation needed]

Century eggs , also known as alkalized or preserved egg, are a Chinese egg-based culinary dish made by preserving duck, chicken, or quail eggs in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime, and rice hulls for several weeks to several months, depending on the processing method. Through the process, the yolk becomes dark greenish grey in color, with a creamy consistency and strong flavor due to the hydrogen sulfide and ammonia present, while the white becomes dark brown in color, with a translucent jelly-like appearance and salty flavor. The transforming agent in the century egg is an alkaline salt, which gradually raises the pH of the egg to around 9–12 during the curing process. This chemical process breaks down some of the complex, flavorless proteins and fats, which produces a variety of smaller flavorsome compounds.[citation needed] Some eggs have patterns near the surface of the egg white which are likened to pine branches. These patterned eggs are regarded as having better quality than the normal century eggs and are called Songhua eggs (Chinese: 松花蛋), variously translated as pine flower eggs or pine-patterned eggs.[citation needed]

Chuan , especially in the north-east of China referred to as chuan'r (Chinese: 串儿), are small pieces of meat roasted on skewers. Chuan originated in the Xinjiang region of China. It has been spread throughout the rest of the country, most notably in Beijing, Tianjin, Jinan and Jilin, where it is a popular street food. It is a product of the Chinese Islamic cuisine of the Uyghur people and other Chinese Muslims. Chuan are small pieces of meat roasted on skewers over charcoal or sometimes, electric heat. It is also sometimes cooked by deep frying in oil (popular in Beijing). It can be classified as a type of kebab. Chuan was traditionally made from lamb (yáng ròu chuàn, 羊肉串, lamb meat chuan), which is still the most common kind, but now, chicken, pork, beef and various types of seafood can also be used. Especially in some tourist areas, chuan can be found made with various insects, bugs, birds and other exotic animals. In general, chuan may be spiced according to preference, but generally cumin seeds, dried red pepper flakes, salt, black pepper and sesame or sesame oil are sprinkled or brushed onto it. Another popular incarnation is mantou chuan or "steamed bun chuan"; it is commonly brushed with a sweet bean sauce (甜面酱, not to be confused with sweet red bean paste) and its taste serves as a foil to the often spicy meat chuan. In Tianjin and Jinan, chuan is often served with small round breads (馅饼, xiàn bǐng), also grilled with the same spices. Xiàn bǐng technically means "pie" or "filled bread". After cooking the bread and meat, the bread is split open and chuan meat is stuffed inside, then eaten together.

Fermented bean paste is a category of fermented foods typically made from ground soybeans, which are indigenous to the cuisines of East, South and Southeast Asia. In some cases, such as the production of miso, other varieties of beans, such as broad beans, may also be used. The pastes are usually salty and savoury, but may also be spicy, and are used as a condiment to flavour foods such as stir-fries, stews, and soups. The colours of such pastes range from light tan to reddish brown and dark brown. The differences in colour are due to different production methods, such as the conditions of fermentation, the addition of wheat flour, pulverized mantou, rice, or sugar and the presence of different microflora, such as bacteria or molds used in their production, as well as whether the soybeans are roasted or aged (as in tauco) before being ground. Fermented bean pastes are sometimes the starting material used in producing soy sauces, such as tamari, or an additional product created from the same fermented mass. The paste is also the main ingredient of hoisin sauce.

Deep-fried peanuts are a snack food created by deep frying peanuts in an oil. The resulting product is a snack food that can be eaten in its entirety, both shell and nut. The deep-frying process does not change the flavor or texture of the nutmeats, but changes the texture and flavor of the shells—especially if seasonings are used—to make them more palatable.

Fuqi feipian is a popular Sichuan dish, served cold or at room temperature, which is made of thinly sliced beef and beef offal. Common ingredients in the modern version include beef heart, tongue and tripe, and a generous amount of various spices, including Sichuan pepper. True to its Sichuan roots, the desired taste should be both spicy and mouth-numbing. Despite its name, actual lung is rarely used. As early as the late Qing dynasty, many vendors living in Chengdu were already selling beef slices served cold in the city's streets, using beef offal because they were relatively inexpensive. Because of its low cost, the dish was popular among rickshaw pullers and poor students. In the 1930s, a married couple in Chengdu became famous for making beef slices. The husband, Guo Zhaohua (郭朝華), and wife, Zhang Tianzheng (張田政), were particular about the beef slices they made, and often experimented with new ingredients. As a result, their beef slices had a distinct taste from the other beef slice vendors, and their business boomed. Often though, mischievous children would pull a prank on the couple, and stick paper notes that read fuqi feipian ("husband and wife lung pieces") on their backs, and sometimes people would yell the words out. Later on, a merchant tried the fuqi feipian and was so satisfied, he gave them a gold-lettered plaque that read fuqi feipian, and the name has stuck ever since.

Dry-fried green beans

Peanuts candy-coated with guai wei, a spicy, numbing, sweet and sour sauce, a popular snack in Sichuan

A spicy, numbing, sweet and sour sauce made with sesame oil, sesame paste, rice vinegar, yuxiang seasoning, Sichuan peppercorns, soy sauce, sugar, rice wine, used with pork, chicken, fish, seafood, prawns, cuttlefish, vegetables, peanuts

Spicy and numbing chili pepper sauce, made with Sichuan chili peppers, used with stir fries, stew, soup, hot pot, dipping sauce

Pao cai , also romanized as Pao tsai, is a generic term for pickled, specifically fermented in brine, vegetables in Chinese. There are more than 11 varieties of pickled vegetables across China, but pao cai by itself usually refers to Sichuanese pao cai (Chinese: 四川泡菜), primarily produced and consumed in southwestern China. A wide variety of vegetables (including Chinese cabbage, cabbage, radish, mustard stems, long beans, peppers, daikon, carrots, and ginger), are placed with spices into a seasoned brine and kept shut. It is widely used as side dishes, appetizers, and condiments because of its crisp texture, special fragrance, and health benefits originating from its lactic acid fermentation. Sichuan pao cai is produced both domestically in locals' daily life and commercially in industry, and it is popular throughout China. Other names applied to pao cai include Sichuan pickle, Chinese sauerkraut, pickled cabbage.

Sour and spicy pickled chili peppers

Seasonal vegetables and greens