I'm heading to Chengdu and Sichuan over the break and I need to know what to eat. Hotpot is something I'm really looking forward to. I've had it before, but this is going to be the real deal. Also gong bao chicken is supposed to be great out there and ma po dofu is a must. What else am I missing out on?
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Chengdu Food
Roberto,
The food in Chengdu is not to be missed. In addition to those that you mentioned, the fried green beans (ganbian sijidou， 干编四季) is a favorite. Double fried pork (huoguo rou， 火锅肉) is also very popular in the area if a little bit fatty, and you should not miss the pao cai （泡菜） which is pickled vegetables--a little bit like kimchi.
Another fantastic dish is Shui zhu yue which is a fish that looks a little like hot pot and tastes fantastic!Enjoy the trip!
Sichuan BBQ
Sichuan BBQ is great! I don't know why people don't talk about this more, but you can get it on the street and it is unbelievable. They usually have tons of different vegetables, meats and fish.
Sometimes you can find restaurants that have it too the chinese name is shao kao
Shao Kao
Chuck,
That's a good point: Shao Kao is one of the best kept secrets in western China. It's a little oily, but since it's over an open flame it's much better than the kind cooked on a flat griddle in other parts of the country. It is more like Xinjiang meat kabobs.
Also, Lanzhou fried noodles are great in Chengdu. I know it's technically a Gansu dish, but you can usually only get the La Mian soup noodles in most parts of the country, so it's worth a shot if you won't make it farther north.
Hua Jiao
That barbecue is pretty good, but I have a hard time with the hua jiao powder that they put on it. It makes my mouth goes numb. Sometimes even when I tell them not to put any on there is still a lot left in the oil. But the food is so good that there's nothing I can do!
Shui Zhu yue
Shui Zhu Yue is also really good in the big pot with tons of peppers!
Chuan Chuan Xiang
I love Chuan Chuan Xiang which is basically hotpot but it's a little less formal. Instead of plates of stuff to dump in you can go up and pick little skewers. You can try a lot more things that way. Sometimes you see it on the street, but I don't trust that stuff, it looks dirty. Inside restaurants it should be okay though, and anyway, just leave it in the boiling hot soup for a few minutes.
Huo Guo
That stuff is okat, but gives me la duzi if you know what i mean
Chengdu Food Culture
Chengdu food culture is very famous at home and abroad. There is a statement that “All good foods are found in Chengdu ”
In recent years, Sichuan dishes have developed very fast. In addition to the Mapo Toufu, Long Dumpling, Han Steamed Bun, Dragon Dumpling with Meat Stuffing and other famous snacks, more popular dishes are being derived from the hot pot such as boiled kebabs, hot boiled dishes, and lengdanbei.
Sichuan cuisine is one of the four famous local cuisines in China; the other 3 being Guangdong cuisine, Shandong cuisine, and Jiangshu cuisine. Tourists from any place can choose whatever they like from Sichuan dish menus.
In preparing ingredients, Sichuan food cooks will try to balance strong spicy flavour with light flavour to suit accordingly.
www.woccamedia.info
Sweet and sour cold noodles
A few years ago I was in Chengdu and I had probably the best noodles of my life. They were spicy, but at the same time very sweet. They were cold and apparently you used to be able to get them in a lot of places but you need some sort of master certification to make them and only a couple places left do.
The place I went to was on a tiny back street in the middle of the city--I can't remembered exactly where I was, but they were SO damn good. I've never been able to find them again. They're called 甜水面 （tianshui mian) and if you ever find them you HAVE to get them. SOOOO good!!
Hua Jiao
The hua jiao or flower peppers are especially interesting. They have a bit of a numbing quality and even now some local dentists use them an a local anesthetic.
For a long time it was illegal to import them into the US because they tended to carry a plant disease that people were afraid could wipe out agriculture. However, a couple of years ago the government began to allow irradiated peppers into the country. Unfortunately their flower is not the same as the real deal.
Those noodles are awesome!
Unfortunately to my knowledge there are no more accredited master chefs in Chengdu that make them.
:-0
Tian Shui Mian
After reading your post I saw them on a menu at a dim sum restaurant in Beijing. Unfortunately I didn't seems them until I saw heading out, and since they're supposed to be from Sichuan I wasn't sure if they were the same thing.
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