Moscow welcomes cuisine of Sichuan

Moscow has acquired a taste for spicy cuisine from Sichuan province.

Dishes such as steamed chicken with chili sauce, kung pao chicken and Sichuan cold noodles were offered at an event in the Russian capital recently to introduce the province’s food to Russian gourmands.

Chefs traveled from Chengdu, the provincial capital, to teach the cuisine’s history and show how the most basic ingredients can result in tasty delights.

Tatiana Andreeva, 21, a student from Moscow State University, said: “Usually, we don’t eat anything that is really spicy. But when I first tried a Sichuan restaurant in Chengdu during a short exchange program three years ago, I fell in love with the amazing tastes.”

Andreeva said that in Moscow, there are over 10 Chinese restaurants, including Sichuan Weidao (The Tastes of Sichuan). “The restaurant is located near the university, and I often take my Russian friends there. Although they were unable before to eat much spicy food, they developed a taste for it after trying shuizhuyu (fish filets in hot chili oil),” she said.

Duoyang Nemu, director of the Chengdu Municipal Tourism Bureau, said tourists often get to know a foreign city through learning the local cuisine.

Since direct flights between the two cities began in 2015, the number of Muscovites visiting Chengdu has risen, she said.

“Chengdu has been named the Best Tourist City of China jointly by the World Trade Organization and the China National Tourism Administration . ... I’m glad to hear our city is called a leisure capital by Russian tourists.”

The tasting event is part of a series of promotions by Chengdu in Russia. Last month, a senior Chengdu government delegation that included over 30 local companies met with Moscow officials to discuss future cooperation.

The total volume of imports and exports between Chengdu and Moscow reached 3.45 billion yuan ($502 million) last year, an annual increase of 77.3 percent, Chengdu officials said.

Fan Ruiping, secretary of the Chengdu Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, said the two governments signed an agreement on comprehensive cooperation. Companies and cultural associations from the two cities also signed nine agreements.

Mikhail Petrovitch, deputy director of the Moscow Exhibition Center, called the agreements important for Moscow’s economy. He said the center is willing to stage more exhibitions with Chengdu.