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It’s true — Sichuan food is spicy. After all, this southern Chinese province is the namesake of the Sichuan peppercorn, a tingling, mouth-numbing spice pervasive in dishes across the region. But we’d be remiss to define Sichuan (or Szechuan) cuisine so narrowly; it’s not simply hot for hot’s sake, nor can it be categorized as one-note. Our palates might be quick to perceive the heat, but the best Sichuan dishes are actually a symphony of flavors, a well-orchestrated intersection where salty, sour, bitter, smoky, and spicy meet. Mala seasoning, which is commonly used in Sichuan stews, stir-fries, and soups alike, features not only peppercorns and chiles, but also warm spices like cinnamon, cloves, black cardamom, star anise, ginger, and fennel.
Ready to get acquainted? Cook your way through this collection of recipes — from Kung Pao Chicken and Mapo Tofu to Dan Dan Noodles and Cumin Lamb — to experience the complex, deep flavors of Sichuan food.
Dry-Fried Sichuan-Style Green Beans with Shrimp
Blistered green beans mingle in the wok with chopped shrimp, garlic, scallions, fish sauce, pickled ginger, and just a touch of sugar for this balanced, verdant dish. Have it on the table in just 20 minutes.
Mala Stir-Fried Paneer
Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christine Keely
Chef Jonathan Kung’s lively stir-fry uses tender, mild-tasting paneer to showcase the intricacies of mala spice. His blend combines Sichuan er jing tiao chiles, Sichuan peppercorns, and sansho peppercorns for a tingling, numbing sensation that’s layered with smoky flavor and bright, citrusy notes.
Szechuan Shrimp
Food & Wine / Photo by Hannah Hufham / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle
Stir-fries make for easy dinners any night of the week, and this recipe is no exception. It comes together largely from pantry staples, and though traditional Sichuan dishes are often rather fiery, this one runs on the tamer side — with only half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes, it’s friendly for most palates.
Ma Po Tofu
Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Barrett Washburne
Legendary Chinese-American chef Martin Yan’s version of this Chengdu classic stays true to the original with cubes of tofu and ground pork. His irresistibly spicy sauce is what makes the dish special: Sichuan peppercorns provide plenty of deep heat, while the inclusion of chile-garlic sauce and black bean garlic sauce add flavor complexity.
Vegan Mapo Tofu
“In this vegan version of mapo tofu, instead of ground pork, finely chopped eggplant and mushrooms cook down to a meaty consistency that absorbs a richly savory blend of broad bean paste and mushroom seasoning — two umami-packed ingredients that quickly add long-cooked flavor,” says Jocelyn Law-Yone, executive chef and co-owner of 2020 F&W Best New Restaurant Thamee in Washington, D.C.
Kung Pao Chicken
At Brooklyn’s Birds of a Feather, chef Ziqiang Lu’s stellar Kung Pao Chicken pairs tingly-hot Szechuan peppercorns with slightly sweet dark soy sauce and Shaoxing wine to build deep flavor. “It’s a well-rounded dish, with a heavy dose of spice that’s balanced with a bit of sweetness,” says former F&W editor Oset Babür-Winter. “There are tons of peanuts involved, and they play especially well with the vibrant Szechuan peppercorns and crunchy bits of garlic.”
Chongqing Chicken Wings
To give these wings their signature Sichuan flavor, they’re dredged in a fragrant shiitake mushroom-based spice mix perfumed with dried Tianjin chiles after they’ve been fried until golden and crispy. (These peppers are only meant to impart flavor, do not eat them.)
Sichuan Negroni
In Sichuan, even the drinks are spicy. To make this zippy version of the classic Italian aperitivo, Chengdu mixologist Frank He infuses Campari with Sichuan peppercorns.
Sichuan Racks of Lamb with Cumin and Chile Peppers
© John Kernick
This lamb dish from chef Sang Yoon has incredible depth of flavor thanks to both a toasted spice rub and an equally complex, complementary sauce that gets drizzled over the roasted chops. A garnish of scallions, sliced red chiles, and crispy shallots rounds it all out.
Sichuan-Style Hot-and-Sour Cabbage
© John Kernick
If you’ve ever thought cabbage is boring, this is the dish to make. With plenty of Sichuan peppercorns and hot chiles, as well as two types of soy sauce, ginger, garlic, and Chinese black vinegar, this spicy side makes a compelling case for the leafy brassica.
Pan-Seared Sichuan Shrimp with Mung Bean Noodles
Quick-cooking mung bean noodles are stir-fried with ginger, scallions, and Sichuan peppercorns and tossed with shrimp. The dish is seasoned with white pepper, which packs more punch than earthy black pepper.
Spicy Sichuan-Style Lamb with Cumin
This recipe contains no mouth-numbing Sichuan peppercorns, but don’t mistake it for anything close to tame — red pepper flakes are responsible for the dish’s incendiary quality. Cooking pieces of lamb shoulder in a super-hot cast-iron skillet makes them wonderfully browned and tender.
Sichuan Peppercorn Shrimp
This dish was inspired by Sang Yoon’s frequent visits to Monterey Park, California — what he dubs the “real” Chinatown of Los Angeles. Coated with Sichuan peppercorns and stir-fried with two kinds of chiles, these shrimp have all kinds of heat. A squeeze of fresh lime juice helps balance the flavors.
Ma Po Eggplant in Garlic Sauce
Chef Andrew Zimmern stir-fries spicy pork with ginger and garlic, then spoons it over silky broiled eggplant and serves it with rice to create a balanced, deeply flavorful dish.
Dan Dan Noodles
Dan dan noodles originated in the late 1800s as a street food in the Sichuan province. Like authentic Chengdu recipes, Joanne Chang’s Chinese-American version is served without broth; however, instead of enlisting Sichuan peppercorns for heat, she uses a combination of sriracha and jalapeño. She also prepares the dish vegetarian, though ground pork is a typical ingredient.