About Western China / Szechuan Cuisine

This Western area of China has its own unique cuisine and was never really part of mainstream China. Its mountainous provinces of  Szechwan and Hunan have a steamy, hot, almost tropical climate and cuisine. Its locally grown chilies makes this cuisine spicy and also helps preserve food in this hot climates.

The Szechuan cuisine  uses local rice, citrus fruits, bamboo, chilies and mushrooms. Ginger, garlic, onions and brown peppercorns are other popular seasonings.This style is unique as it does not use many table condiments as the dishes themselves are seasoned, spiced and oily.

Szechuan specialties include smoked duck, a blend of cooking techniques and taste contrasts. It is seasoned with orange peel, cinnamon, coriander and other ingredients, then marinated in rice wine, then steamed, then smoked over a charcoal fire sprinkled with camphor wood chips and red-tea leaves - the result is a gourmet taste delight. Other specialties include deep fried chicken wrapped in paper, vegetables prepared in chicken fat, chicken and hot peppers and a variety of mushroom dishes. The famous hot and sour soup, sliced Hoisin pork and bean curd spicy dishes on the menu in many restaurants are from this region.

Authentic Western China Dishes

Ants Climbing a Tree
Beef with Spicy Black Bean Sauce
Chengdu Chicken (Chili Chicken Cubes)
Chicken with Orange Peel
Hot and Sour Soup
Kung Pao Chicken
Kung Pao Chicken - lower fat version
MaPo Dofu
Noodles with Meat Sauce Mixture
Orange Beef (Hunan - Chun Pei Ngau Yuk)
Orange Chicken with Red Chiles
Sauteed Chicken Chengdu Style
Sauteed Prawns with Tomato Sauce
Sichuan Chile Sauce
Smoked Duck (Hunan)
Spicy Cucumbers
Spicy Eggplant
Stir-fried Pork String with Hot Sauce
Szechuan Chicken
Szechuan Noodles
Szechuan Pepper Oil
Szechuan Pickle
Szechuan Style Squid
Twice Cooked Pork

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