Episode 44: Chili - How China got Spicy

China’s culinary culture and habits are endlessly diverse. However, you still can’t imagine Chinese cuisine without chili peppers. Everywhere in China, you will find chilis peppers used fresh, dried, powdered, pickled, turned into a paste, infused into oils, used as a condiment, used as a preservative, used as the main ingredient! In addition, chili is a cultural symbol for modern China and its influence goes beyond the culinary scene. 

However, chili peppers only arrived in China in the 16th century. How did chili become popular in China? How did some, but not all areas in China embraced chili and developed regional identities around it? How is chili linked to the male-centered revolutionary spirit and at the same time, seen as a symbol of female passion and outspokenness? 

Books Recommended 

1. The Chile Pepper in China: A Cultural Biography, Brian R.Dott
2. 中国食辣史,曹雨 The History of Spicy Food in China, Cao Yu
3. The Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook, Fuchsia Dunlop
4. The Food of Sichuan, Fuchsia Dunlop

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