Sichuan flavours

My first encounter with Sichuan cuisine was whilst I lived in Toronto, I would frequent a tiny restaurant on Spadina Avenue called Sichuan Garden restaurant. We would go religiously on Friday evenings by 7 pm latest, any later and we would not get a table.

Spadina Avenue was abuzz with activity then as most nine to fivers would stop into one of the many Chinese restaurants on that strip for their TGIF lime. Small restaurants, handed the English-translated menu to "guests," whilst the others ordered off menus which were plastered onto the walls, written in mandarin. Those, I was told later, were the real authentic dishes.

I was certainly addicted after my first meal I had there, the flavours were explosive, incendiary and complex, leading me to actually take my elective in Sichuan cuisine when I enrolled for my George Brown culinary certificate.

It’s a cuisine that reflects much more than hot peppers, it’s a cuisine that reflects a myriad of flavours, hot, flowery, sweet, salty, sour, smoky, bitter etc. One with incredible depth and complexity of flavour that hit all the sense receptors at the same time. Once you have tasted real Sichuan cuisine, it’s easy to understand its addictive quality.

Sichuan eggplant

1 lb eggplant

6 dried black mushrooms

2 tbs vegetable oil

8 cloves garlic

1 tbs chopped fresh ginger

4 blades chives, white portions as well

Sauce

1 tbs chilli bean paste

2 tbs light soy sauce

2 tbs rice vinegar

1 tbs brown sugar

Soak mushrooms in warm water for about 2 hours, drain and reserve 1 cup soaking water. Slice mushrooms ¼-inch thick.

Cut eggplant into 2-inch by 1-inch logs, sprinkle with salt and leave for 15 minutes, rinse well and pat dry.

Heat oil in a wok, add ginger and garlic, stir until fragrant, add eggplant and mushrooms, stir well, now pour in the sauce stir well, add one cup of mushroom soaking water, bring mixture to a boil, cover and simmer for 20 minutes until reduced and tender.

Sprinkle with chives and serve.

Sichuan shrimp

10 pieces medium-sized shrimp

1 tbs garlic, finely minced

1 tbs ginger root, minced

3 blades chive

4 tbs vegetable oil

Marinade

¼ tsp salt

2 tsp cooking wine/rum or water

½ tsp sesame oil

1 tbs water

1 tsp chopped ginger

Sauce

3 tbs tomato ketchup

1 tbs hot bean sauce

1 tbs water

½ tsp soy sauce

1½ tsp cornstarch

Mix marinade ingredients and toss shrimp in marinade, let stand for 20 minutes.

Heat wok until hot, add 3 tbs oil and add shrimp, toss just until shrimp turns pink and begins to curl slightly.

Remove from wok and reserve.

Clean wok and heat, add 1 tbs oil add minced garlic, ginger and stir fry until fragrant.

Add sauce and shrimp, stir until sauce thickens and remove to platter.

Sprinkle with chopped chives.

Serve with plain rice.

Mapo tofu

6 dried black mushrooms

2 tbs sichuan peppercorns, optional

1½ lbs medium or firm silken tofu, cut into ½-inch cubes

¼ cup vegetable oil

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tbs chopped ginger

2 tbs chilli bean paste

Sauce

2 tbs Chinese cooking wine

1 tbs light soy sauce

1 tsp corn-starch

2 tsp cold water

½ cup sliced chives

Soak mushrooms in warm water for about 2 hours, drain and reserve 1 cup soaking water. Slice mushrooms ¼-inch thick.

Crush peppercorns in a mortar and pestle, reserve.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add some salt and add tofu cubes, cook for a few minutes and remove and drain.

Combine the sauce ingredients.

Heat oil in a wok, add garlic, ginger and hot bean paste, stir until fragrant, now add black mushrooms, stir and fry for a few minutes, add sauce ingredients, bring to a boil, add tofu cubes, toss gently, remove and sprinkle with sliced chives and crushed peppercorns.

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