The region of Sichuan is famous for its unique and exquisite cuisine, while its capital Chengdu is considered the culinary capital of China. In fact, the local food is totally amazing, especially the traditional dish, the HOTPOT.
What the heck is that? Hotpot is actually a pot of soup placed inside a hole on a special dining table, with different kinds of Asian ingredients. The pot is divided in two parts: a big one containing the normal/clear soup and a smaller one within it in the center, containing the very spicy soup, full of small spicy Sichuan peppers. The next step is ordering what you want to eat. You can choose between a wide variety of ingredients of the Asian cuisine according to your taste, such as vegetables, different kinds of meat or fish, roots, etc. So, while the two soups are boiling, you put inside the raw ingredients you have ordered and you cook everything on your own! Well, don’t be scared, you just stir it with the spoon, nothing that hard 😀 😀 We enjoyed our hotpot in a traditional Chinese restaurant with beautiful decoration in Chengdu downtown. We ordered various kinds of sliced meat, leaf vegetables, potatoes, seaweed, mushrooms and tofu. So, when the food is ready, you take it off of the pot with the chopsticks and place it in a dipping sauce inside your bowl. The preparation time depends on the ingredient of course and varies from only a few and up to 20 minutes.
Besides the delicious taste, the whole procedure is so much fun, making the Hotpot a wonderful experience!!! We had hotpots several times while in Chengdu, but this one was the best! The tasty food together with the excellent atmosphere of the restaurant made it my favorite experience in the city!
Regardless of whether you like the spicy food or not, you shouldn’t leave Chengdu without trying the local Hotpot at least once!!! Would you?
The fancy entrance of the hotpot restaurant
Traditional decoration all over the place
The hole on the table is where the hotpot is placed in
The cook (me) is stirring the spicy soup
You cannot imagine how tasty this is! You have to try it!!!!!!
The meat is cut into fine thin slices, so the boiling time lasts only a few minutes
Tofu, potatoes, mushrooms, bamboo, seaweed, everything raw, ready to get boiled in the hotpot
Drinking cold coconut water is the best way to ease the spicy taste of the hotpot
What about trying a Chinese beer?? The bottle looks attractive anyway
The impressive decoration of the Swordsman Hotpot restaurant is eye-caching from the very first moment!!
Do not forget the pandas! We are in Chengdu after all!
