A Taste of China: A Culinary Journey Through the Four Great Regional Cuisines, Inviting Friends from Singapore to Discover Chinese Flavours
2026-05-27
Dear friends from Singapore, as you enjoy familiar favourites such as Hainanese chicken rice, bak kut teh and chilli crab, have you ever wondered where these flavours first began? Are you curious about just how rich and diverse the food culture is across China’s vast landscape? Today, let us set off together on a journey of taste to explore the distinctive charm of China’s four great regional cuisines and experience the depth and richness of Chinese culinary culture.
Sichuan Cuisine — A Spicy, Numbing Legend from the Land of Abundance Our first stop is Chengdu, Sichuan, a city long known as the "Land of Abundance." Sichuan cuisine is one of China’s most iconic regional cuisines, famous for the saying "each dish has its own style, and a hundred dishes offer a hundred flavours." The soul of Sichuan cuisine lies in its seasoning: yuxiang, red chilli oil, guaiwei, mala, jiaoma and more than a dozen complex flavour profiles, each leaving a lasting impression. There are simply too many must-try dishes in Chengdu. Mapo tofu brings together tender white tofu and bright red minced meat in a fragrant, spicy and numbing sauce; one bite awakens the palate. Kung Pao chicken combines tender chicken with crunchy peanuts, offering layered flavours with a distinctive sweet-sour, lightly scorched chilli aroma. Fuqi feipian features paper-thin slices of beef and offal dressed in red chilli oil and sesame, rich, spicy and deeply savoury. And of course, there is hotpot: a bubbling red broth where tripe, duck intestines and pork aorta are quickly cooked, then dipped i...