ChowChow Feast
Cart0

Budget left $1,000,000 of $1,000,000

Virtual food. Play money only. Nothing is delivered and nothing is charged.

A round metal pot of bubbling deep red chili broth covered in floating dried chilies and peppercorns, surrounded by small plates of thin sliced beef, tofu, mushrooms and greens

Sichuan Mala Hot Pot

$68 play money

A bubbling pot of red broth, numbing and fiery, with plates of meat and vegetables to cook in it. On the ChowChow Feast menu it costs $68 in play money, which puts it in the Premium tier ($60 to $249). It is a dish worth saving some budget for.

No payment, no address, no delivery. This is a game.

Key facts

Cuisine
Chinese
Menu section
Chinese
Price tier
Premium ($60 to $249)
Play-money price
$68
Main ingredients
beef tallow broth, dried chilies, Sichuan pepper, sliced beef, tofu, greens
How it is served
A round metal pot of bubbling deep red chili broth covered in floating dried chilies and peppercorns, surrounded by small plates of thin sliced beef, tofu, mushrooms and greens

History, tradition and origin

Hot pot, in which diners cook raw food in a shared pot of simmering broth, has been eaten in China for well over a thousand years. The fiery version comes from Chongqing and Sichuan, where it is said to have begun with boatmen and dock workers on the Yangtze river who boiled cheap cuts in a broth of chili and numbing Sichuan pepper. The word mala names that pairing of numbing and hot. A pot divided into a spicy side and a mild side lets a mixed table share. Hot pot is the meal of winter evenings, family reunions and new year.

Food economy and industry

Hot pot is one of the largest restaurant categories in China, with chains that operate hundreds of branches at home and abroad. The format suits restaurants because guests do the cooking, so kitchens mainly slice and plate. It supports a large trade in ready-made soup bases, chilies, Sichuan pepper, thin-sliced beef and lamb, and tofu products, and packaged soup bases are a growing export.

Related dishes