Food · Chengdu & Sichuan
Chengdu is a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy and the undisputed capital of Sichuan cuisine. The food here is numbing (麻, má), spicy (辣, là), and deeply aromatic—powered by Sichuan peppercorns, dried chilies, doubanjiang (fermented bean paste), and black bean garlic paste. Whether you can handle the heat or not, there's something in Chengdu for every palate.
The gateway Sichuan dish. Silken tofu cubes in a sauce of doubanjiang, ground pork, fermented black beans, and a heavy hand of Sichuan peppercorn oil. The sauce is reddish-brown, glossy, and fragrant. The tofu absorbs the heat while the peppercorn makes your lips tingle. Order it with a bowl of plain rice to balance the intensity. A good mapo tofu wobbles when the bowl is set down—that's the textural benchmark.
Thin wheat noodles in a sauce of sesame paste, chili oil, vinegar, Sichuan peppercorn, and minced pork. Named after the carrying pole (担担) street vendors once used. The traditional version is served dry or nearly dry with just enough sauce to coat—mix everything thoroughly before eating. Spicy, savory, nutty, and tangy all at once. Most shops have a mild version if you ask.
The communal experience of Chengdu. A bubbling cauldron of tallow (beef fat), dried chilies, Sichuan peppercorns, and 20+ spices sits in the center of the table. You order raw ingredients—thinly sliced beef, offal, lotus root, mushrooms, tofu skin, quail eggs—and cook them in the broth. Dip cooked food in sesame oil with garlic and cilantro to offset the heat. Order yuan yang (鸳鸯) for a split pot: half spicy, half mild. Budget ¥80–150 per person including drinks.
Diced chicken stir-fried with dried chilies, roasted peanuts, and scallions in a slightly sweet, sour, and spicy sauce. Less fiery than most Sichuan dishes—the chilies are whole and you can eat around them, or pick them out. Arguably the most internationally known Sichuan dish, but the Chengdu original is tangier and more aromatic than any overseas version. Eat with rice; the sauce is meant to flavor it.
Poached chicken, chilled and sliced, then dressed with chili oil, Sichuan peppercorn, sesame paste, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and fresh cilantro. Served cold, it's a refreshing counterpoint to heavy hotpot. The name literally translates as "saliva chicken"—so appetizing it makes your mouth water before you take a bite. One of the best dishes for spice newcomers because the heat is balanced by the sesame and vinegar.
Thinly sliced beef, tripe, and offal (don't let that deter you) dressed in chili oil, Sichuan peppercorn, peanuts, sesame, and fresh cilantro. Served cold. The name means "husband and wife offal slices" after the couple who invented it. The texture is tender and the flavor is intensely savory. Order it as a cold appetizer before your main. If the offal element puts you off, many restaurants offer a beef-only version.
Pork belly boiled first, then sliced and stir-fried with leeks or green pepper and doubanjiang until lightly charred at the edges. Fatty, savory, slightly sweet, and very aromatic. One of the most homestyle dishes in Sichuan—every family has a version. Less spicy than many Sichuan dishes; a good gateway for people nervous about the heat. Eat with lots of rice.
Skewers of meat, vegetables, tofu, and offal simmered in a communal spicy broth. You pick what you want on skewers, hand them to the server, they cook them and count the sticks for your bill. Priced per skewer (¥1–5 each). Street-food version of hotpot—ideal for solo travelers or a casual snack. Night markets and side streets near Kuanzhai Alley and Jiuyan Bridge are full of them.
Small pork dumplings (not soup dumplings) served with a sweet soy sauce and chili oil dressing. The filling is just pork—no vegetables—which makes the texture surprisingly tender. Named after the Zhong family who started selling them in 1893. A quintessential Chengdu breakfast or snack. Order a portion (about 10 pieces) at a local breakfast shop; Zhong Shui Jiao has branches throughout the city.
A Chengdu specialty that surprises visitors. Braised rabbit heads in a fragrant spice mixture—you eat the cheek meat, brain (optional), and pick the ear. Locals eat them while drinking beer on summer evenings. Sold at street stalls and specialized restaurants. If you're food-adventurous, try it; if not, it's absolutely fine to skip. La Zi Rabbit (辣子兔) is a stir-fried version that's easier to approach.
Chengdu restaurants range from shoebox noodle shops to multi-floor hotpot palaces. Most have picture menus; some have English or QR code menus. These phrases cover the essentials:
Jinli Ancient Street (锦里) and Kuanzhai Alley (宽窄巷子) have plenty of Sichuan food stalls and restaurants with English menus—good for a first taste but prices are higher. The Wuhou Shrine area around Jinli has both touristy and genuinely good spots. Jiuyan Bridge (九眼桥) area is popular with locals for late-night hotpot and skewers.
Walk 5–10 minutes away from the tourist zones and prices drop, authenticity goes up. Tongzilin (桐梓林), Shahe (沙河), and neighborhoods around People's Park (人民公园) have excellent local spots. Use Dianping (大众点评) with a translation app to find highly rated local restaurants—sort by highest rating and look for places that are clearly labeled in Chinese only.
Start the day like a local. Early-morning noodle shops and breakfast stalls open by 7 AM and often sell out by 9 AM. Dan dan mian for breakfast sounds unusual until you try it. Alternatives: wontons (馄饨, hún tun) in clear broth; douhua (豆花) with sweet syrup or savory dressing; zhong dumplings; beef noodles. Most portions are small and cheap—order two or three dishes to mix and match.
Sichuan peppercorn numbing is different from chili heat—it's an electric tingle that some people find delightful and others find overwhelming. If you're unsure, start with cold dishes (fuqi fei pian, mouth-watering chicken) before moving to hotpot. If you do overdo the spice: plain rice, cold soy milk, or yogurt help—not water or beer (these spread the capsaicin). A split hotpot pot is the smartest order for mixed-tolerance groups. Locals believe that eating ma la food actually helps you sweat and cool down in Chengdu's humid summers—there might be something to it.