Hot-pot, one of Chongqing’s trademarks, is well known both at home and abroad. The fresh, fragrant, and spicy hot-pot of Chongqing provides many dining options. Today, despite its humble beginnings, Chongqing Hot-pot can be found all over China. Love it or loathe it, one can’t visit Chongqing without trying the local hot pot at least once!! What is it about this dish that you might view with disgust and disdain, yet is so revered by locals and even some visitors. How does a dish like Chongqing hot pot rise from such humble beginnings to now be regarded as a gastronomic delight and the ‘signature dish’ of the whole region? Now the popularity of hotpot has soared! These days there are 7 distinct kinds of Chongqing Hotpot and in 2001 the ‘Chongqing Hotpot Association’ was founded.
Gan guo & Chuan chuan
Gan guo (literally: dry pot),different from hot pot which needs a soup. Just sit back and watch the staff cook your order for you. The ingredients of a dry pot are usually a mixture of vegetables or meat. Dry pots are cheaper and come in three sizes. They are not usually as hot as hotpot.
He's a list of what we consider to be 9 of Chongqing’s most famous, popular and foreigner-friendly dishes. All these dishes are traditionally eaten with rice (米饭, mǐ fàn) and are best shared between two or more people considering the average portion sizes. Most Chongqing restaurants will serve these dishes, which helps if you cannot read a menu.
Chinese name: Kung Pao Chicken宫(ɡōnɡ)保(bǎo)鸡(jī)丁(dīnɡ),
English name: Diced
chicken, peanuts, spring onion, dried chili
Chinese name: Fish Flavored Pork 鱼(yú)香(xiānɡ)肉(ròu)丝(sī) -Right
English name: Stripped pork, spring onion, garlic
Chinese name: Twice-cooked Pork 回(huí)锅(ɡuō)肉(ròu)
English name: Pork slices, green pepper (not spicy), red onion, black bean, dried chili
Chinese name: Mapo Tofu 麻(má)婆(pó)豆(dòu)腐(fǔ)
English name: Diced tofu, minced pork, Sichuan pepper
Chinese name: Dry Chili Chicken 辣(là)子(zǐ)鸡(jī)
English name:
Diced chicken (often on the bone), lots of dried chili, Sichuan pepper
Chinese name: Spicy Boiled Beef 水(shuǐ)煮(zhǔ)牛(niú)肉(ròu)
English name: Lean
beef, bean sprouts (in soup)
Chinese name: Sour Vegetables with Fish 酸(suān)菜(cài)鱼(yú)
English name: River fish (with bones), chili pepper, sour vegetables
Chinese name: Eggs and Tomatoes 番(fān)茄(qié)炒(chǎo)蛋(dàn)
English name: Scrambled eggs, tomatoes
Xiao Mian
Xiao Mian, another Chongqing specialty, is a vegetarian noodle. Being cheap and quick to prepare, Xiaomian is popular with the locals. Passion for Xiaomian is similar to that of hot pot. Xiaomian is available in almost every Chinese restaurant. (Small, medium, large bowls). Each restaurant has its own secret recipe. Xiaomian can be eaten for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s all up to you.
Snacks
Snacks are indispensable part of local cuisine. Ma Hua is a special snack made by twisting 2 to 3 strips of dough together before frying in boiling oil. Legend has it that long time ago in the region of Da Yin, He Nan Province, lots of scorpions ran wild. The locals, attempting to curse them, stretched wheat dough into strips, twisted them like scorpion tails, fried and ate them. And this was called “biting the scorpion tail”. As time passes, these “scorpion tails” evolved into today’s Mahua. Mahua can be found in street stalls, shops and supermarkets. But the most famous Mahua is the Chen’s Mahua in Ciqikou Ancient Town. Mahua Chen sells a different of flavors from sweet to spicy. bīng fěn & liáng xiā are the perfect summertime snacks. Bingfen and Liangxia are cold snacks and popular with the locals. liáng miàn & liáng pí is another must-eat snack. These two noodles are cheap and quick to prepare and being cold are cold are popular in summer but can be eaten any time of the year. shāo kǎo Barbecue is also popular and cannot go unmentioned. All over town you’ll find barbecues, especially in summer when night barbecues and beer is popular.