In Sichuan Province, some dishes are highly spiced and peppery; so it is often said that numbing, hot spices are the main characteristics of the Sichuan cuisine. Nonetheless, poplar belief, Sichuan dishes have many other flavors. A popular saying says that, “China has food, and Sichuan has flavor.” The flavors of Sichuan cuisine can be rather complex. Chefs blend many spices together to create various flavors, including suanla wei (hot and sour sauce), yuxiang wei (tasty fish-flavored sauce), mala wei (numbingly spicy sauce) and yanxun wei (smoked flavor sauce).

Sichuan cuisine care fully balances color, odor, flavor, shape, and nutrition; so dishes not only look pleasant and appealing, but also are nutritious. There are several hundred indigenous dishes, besides some dishes that are intentionally toned down for tourists. So travelers as home and abroad have no difficulty in getting Sichuan food that suits their tastes at a banquet, dinner, lunch, or snacks.

This article by Yang Tianqing and Daniel Kister.