Sizzling Sichuan food with spices to suit all

Traditional Chengdu food
Rich pickings: food options in Chengdu are plentiful and can span the gamut of edible things on earth Credit: Getty

From spicy Chinese hot pots for the adventurous to tantalising street food and sumptuous banquets, sampling the range of Sichuan cuisine is a must.

The big question occupying the minds of people visiting Chengdu (and even long-term residents) is this: “what should we eat for dinner?”

You have arrived in Chengdu and venture into a restaurant; someone greets you and then stands over you waiting for your order. You know from the guidebooks that the most famous Sichuan dishes include kung pao chicken (stir-fried chicken with chilli and nuts), ma po tofu (tofu chunks in a spicy meat sauce), huíguōròu (twice cooked pork) and, of course, a hot pot.  

But what do people in Chengdu really like to eat? Do they eat these famous dishes every day?

  Traditional Chengdu food   

Regular Chengdu food cannot be reduced to a few neat categories and a list of famous dishes. However, there are some standard dishes that everyone knows and loves.  

Cold dishes sprinkled with Sichuan flavours are a good way to start a meal, two popular options are:   liángbàn huángguā (diced cucumber covered in chillies and minced garlic)  and liángfěn (cold glutinous strips covered in minced garlic and chilli).  

Some common stir-fried dishes are:   qīngjiāo ròu sī (stir-fried pork with green peppers), pào jiāo niúròu (beef with pickled peppers), làzǐ jī (spicy chicken with red chillies),  yú xiāng ròu sī (fish-flavoured pork and veggies – actually a very sweet and delicious dish)  and tián pí yā (crispy, sweet duck).  

Other notable dishes include a local night-time favourite, mào cài (meat and vegetables cooked in cauldrons of chilli oil), a delicious vegetable dish, kōngxīncài (water spinach) and another local winner, féicháng fěn (pig intestines in chilli sauce).  

There are dozens of other dishes that one could order, but this is a good start. Although it’s hard to separate Sichuan cuisine into bite-size categories, there are a few options that deserve their own sections. 

Hot pot

  The hot pot starts with a vat of oil cooked with chilli, Sichuan peppercorn (also known as the infamous “mouth-numbing spice”), star anise, and cinnamon sticks. In the “white”, non-spicy, version of the soup, you’ll find mushrooms, green onions and some Chinese herbs, whereas in the “red” spicy portion, there is just a crimson, bubbling froth of peppers and oil.   After the pot starts bubbling, you select several small dishes from about 100 choices.

These choices span the gamut of edible things on earth: cow stomach, duck intestines, chicken liver, bacon strips, beef chunks, potato slices, tofu skin, frogs and prawns, bamboo shoots, courgette, fresh river eel and so on.

  Pop your choices into the pot and make up your sauce while they cook in the cauldron. The sauce is an important part of the meal and people have their own style.

You can fill your bowl with any combination of minced garlic, coriander, sesame oil, salt and pepper, soy sauce or vinegar and a few other sauces and spices that are specific to each hot pot restaurant.

By the time you have your sauce figured out, the cold cuts and vegetables will be finished and you can fish them out, pop them into your bowl and slurp them down with a beer or a glass of soy milk, whichever helps you deal with the chilies best.  


At night the barbecue stands come out and perch on corners throughout the city, serving up skewers of meat and veggies until early dawn. Typical choices are sliced lotus root or potato, chicken, pork, and beef kebabs, small fish, tofu, quail's eggs, and cauliflower. But the average barbecue stand has upwards of 30 different options for the hungry night owl.  

There are always stands around the Sichuan University gates and on busy corners near bars, clubs or parks. Most stands spice their barbecue with chilli peppers, MSG and salt, so be aware of saying this before ordering: “bùyào wèijīng” which means “no MSG please”.  

Street food: Chengdu's barbecue stands come out at night and perch on corners throughout the city Credit: Charles Bowman


For a real culinary and cultural feast, the imperial-style banquets are certainly something to try if you get a group of ten or so people together. Diners are treated to more than two dozen exquisitely presented dishes, evoking the banqueting days of emperors, concubines and eunuchs.

At 300 Yuan (£28) or so per person it's not cheap; it's more of an event than a meal, and certainly a memorable experience.


  Meat eaters are often surprised to meet vegetarians in China – there is a misconception that Chinese cuisine is meat heavy. In fact, most meat dishes use just small portions of meat.

Furthermore, Sichuan meat dishes can be altered to suit vegetarians; for example, tofu can be used in exchange for chicken in the world-renowned dish kung pao chicken.

There are also more and more vegetarian restaurants around town that serve excellent dishes, as well as Sichuan classics with fake meat. Notable restaurants include Vegetarian Lifestyle and Lotus on the Water. Most local temples also house vegetarian restaurants.  


Enjoying an authentic Sichuan cuisine in Chengdu costs only about a fifth of the price you’d pay in the UK. Great or what?