New restaurant offers spicy choice
Beijing foodies who enjoy Sichuan hotpot now have something to cheer about — the highly popular restaurant Dian Tai Xiang from Chengdu has finally made its way to the Chinese capital.
While the new restaurant has only been open for slightly over a month, business has been brisk, much to the chagrin of its fans — customers have had to queue for as long as seven hours for a table.
Dian Tai Xiang’s chef-owner Tang Yi says that it took him seven years to persuade Liu Peng, a hotpot master in Chongqing, to take him on as an apprentice.
After three years of learning the craft, Tang opened Dian Tai Xiang, which is named after the alley in Chongqing where Liu earned his chops at a hotpot eatery called Big Dragon 20 years ago.
Sporting a nostalgic decor that reminds diners of 1980s China, Dian Tai Xiang is renowned for its broths that, although spicy, boast a masterful fix of flavors that is a result of the meticulous preparation process. Each of the chilies used in the broth are prepared individually before being thrown into the mix, and this approach allows diners to taste the different layers of spice instead of being overwhelmed from the get-go.
Tang reveals that the different chilies need to be first boiled until they are of certain textures. The only way to gauge this texture, he adds, is through feel. “The feeling is intangible. It’s a skill one needs to practice many times before knowing how to get it just right,” he quips.
The second step of the preparation process is blow-drying the chilies using an electric fan so that they can fully emit their distinct fragrances. Following this, the chilies are stored at 0 C for 12 hours before going through the next step of dry-frying.
Having to spend three to four hours at a stretch, dry-frying the chilies is both a technical and labor-consuming process. When frying the chilies, the chef has to observe the changes in the colors of the chilies and the oil, and the changes in the smell, as these factors would signal the start of the next step — the adding of the other condiments. Turning off the heat at the right time is another critical step.
“It is a matter for conjecture. You have to listen to the sounds of chilies bursting in the oil,” he says. “The taste is different if you dish out the chilies several seconds earlier or later.”
For those who have low tolerance for spicy food, Dian Tai Xiang’s Beijing outlet also offers a divided pot that comes with a non-spicy option.