Where Did Chinese Get Their Spicy Kicks Before the Chili Pepper? muTu Note - Learn Chinese with Chinese Girl What is the most iconic Chinese food? Americans might say 宫保鸡丁 (gōng bǎo jī dīng Kung Pao chicken), while Japanese insist that 麻婆豆腐 (má pó dòu fu Mapo Tofu) is king. Even within China, most answers will be quite predictable, such as 水煮鱼 (shuǐ zhǔ yú spicy boiled fish), 麻辣小龙虾 (má là xiǎo lóng xiā hot and spicy crawfish), or 大盘鸡 (dà pán jī Big Plate Chicken). Notice any similarities? It seems that the red and spicy chili pepper(辣椒,là jiāo) is the through line that makes many Chinese dishes immediately recognizable. However, if you were paying attention in your history classes, you’ll know that the chilies we eat today are not a native(本土的,běn tǔ de) species(物种,wù zhǒng) of China. So the question is, what did ancient Chinese use in their kitchen to add that pinch of flavor to spice things up? The former way of writing 辣 better demonstrates the relation between 辣 and 辛. Befor...
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