The most powerful taste I experienced was "Hua jiao", 花椒 - literally "flower pepper", and known in English as Sichuanese pepper. It bears no resemblance to black pepper as we know it in the west, but instead has a reddish shell and an acidic, almost citrus, smell. It is used in hot pot, as well as in most local dishes, so we experienced it a number of times.
On such time was the first evening in Cheng Du. We went to an old park, which had touristy stalls, as well as museums, eateries and restaurants. There we had a hotpot dinner at an old, traditionally decorated restaurant, with entertainment in the form of dancing, music, and "Bian Lian" - 变脸,literally "face change", a part of the Sichuanese opera where performers switch masks with lightning speed.
Instead of the usual single big pot, we had 4 smaller "chambers" with varying degrees of seasoning with hua jiao and chilli. The smaller bowls in the foreground were to mix with soya sauce to create a dip for our boiled ingredients. The aroma from the pot was heavy, slightly nauseating, resembling the light-headedness one gets by inhaling vinegar fumes for too long. We helped ourselves to lettuce, lotus, potato, pork, beef, fish balls, and the oddity of the evening, pig brains (of which I only had a couple of mouthfuls). The hua jiao contains a chemical which numbs the lips and mouth, and the hot chilli made it an almost pleasant sensation after a couple of minutes. The downside was that we didn't eat that much (since hotpot is not that heavy, and the fumes of hua jiao took away our appetites). But that was apparently expected as we were stuffed full of oranges, tangerines, raisins, walnuts and, my favourite, mangosteens (a hard purple fruit that looks like an onion, but can be cracked to reveal a couple of sweet, white segments) when we returned to our loggings.
It is difficult not to get the impression that you spend most of your time eating.... I look forward to trying it out ... perhaps except for the pig's brain.
SvarSlet