Hotpot FAQs - understand Chongqing's most famous spicy dish

Back in the UK, to me, hotpot was a beef stew with vegetables and dumplings served in autumn, and it means different things to different people from across the world. So when you’re referencing Chongqing’s version - what exactly are you talking about?

What is it?

Almost an institution, it’s a noun and a verb. Chongqing hotpot is famous the world over and is a meal best served with friends for celebrations, with colleagues to do business, or Friday night social gatherings. In dedicated restaurants, tables are large circles or squares with a hole in the middle complete with gas ring, on which the hotpot bowl sits. In that dish - well, that’s up to you. A communal boiling broth full of food to share, served with good friends and weak beer. Cheers!

From my rudimentary research it is unclear from where hotpot emerged. Some believe it came from the cuisine of those working in the ports in the late 19th century, when animals from the Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan provinces were shipped by water. The upper and middle classes got the good meat, and the rest was sold cheaply to the workers who cooked it in spicy broth. When Chongqing was China’s capital during WW2, the dish gained in popularity and like many popular cuisine origins, this food once reserved for the lower classes has risen up the ranks to stardom today.

How do you order it?

1. Pick your broth and wait for it to bubble. Spicy? Tomato? Mushroom? Half and half? Medium spicy? Extra spicy? XXX spicy?

2. Pick your ingredients. Beef? Potato? Fish? Lotus root? Noodles? Pork? Chicken? Tomatoes? Lettuce? Watch out for the mystery meat - duck intestine and chicken’s feet is very likely to be lurking on the menu

3. Dunk ‘em in the broth and wait for them to float to the top

4. Dig out the food using the ladles or your chopsticks

5. Cool it off and add flavour by dunking in your own personal concoction of sesame oil, garlic, herbs and soy sauce. Often you’ll get a little can of oil for this but I find it’s oily enough as it is and keep mine soy sauced based.

6. Wash down and tame your tongue with Chongqing lager and watermelon slices

Is it horrible?

Not if you know what you’re doing! If you don’t like spice and you don’t like jellied chickens’ feet, then avoid ordering those. Download Microsoft Translate and use the camera to translate the menu if (when) it come out all in Chinese. Or better yet, take a local person or someone who’s had hotpot before as it’s better when at least one person knows what they’re doing. I’ve had some delicious white fish and beef slices in my hotpots, and vegetables and noodles always go down well.

Is it spicy?

It can be! I tend to go for the spicy version and I’ve never been a particularly spice-loving person, but CQ hotpot leaves a satisfying sizzle on the tongue. Washed down with cheap, weak Chongqing lager, it’s a great social experience. If you’re not a fan of spice or want to start off easy, pick a half-chilli, half-tomato broth which is separated down the middle. Just make sure you know how your body reacts to super spicy, oily foods. It can be a rude awakening if you’re not prepared (and it’s definitely not a pre-night out dinner either, I would say!).

Where can you get it?

Chongqing allegedly boasts more than 50,000 hotpot restaurants, so I won’t name them (nor would I be able to ‘coz they’re all in Chinese), but you don’t have to walk more than 100 paces in any direction before you stumble across one. Wander around the city until you find a particularly poppin’ restaurant - the buzz makes the experience all the better (even if the waiting staff do laugh at you for having no idea what you’re doing).

How much does it cost?

This obviously depends on where you go, and it’ll be more expensive in touristy places like Hongyadong, but as a rule - it’s dang cheap. My last hotpot experience for three of us cost less than £15 for a huge hotpot feast and six bottles of beer.

So go forth, dunk and enjoy Chongqing's most famous dish. I document all of our foodie experiences including my hotpot meals on Instagram at @eatinginchongqing - if you want to see the rough with the smooth, go and give us a follow!