Of the eight major schools of China’s culinary art, Sichuan cuisine is perhaps the
most popular. Originating in Sichuan Province of western China, Sichuan cuisine, known as Chuan Cai in Chinese, enjoys an international reputation for being spicy and flavorful. Yet the highly distinctive pungency is not its only characteristic. In fact, Sichuan cuisine boasts a variety of flavors and different methods of cooking, featuring the taste of hot, sweet, sour, salty, or tougue-numbling.
    Sichuan has high humidity and many rainy or overcast days. Hot pepper helps reduce internal dampness, so it was used frequently in dishes, and hot dishes became the norm in Sichuan cuisine. The warm and humid climate in this region also necessitates sophisticated food-preservation techniques which include picking, salting, drying and smoking.
   Sichuan dishes consist of Chengdu, Chongqing and vegetarian dishes. Dishes typical of Sichuan are Twice cooked pork, Spicy diced chicken with peanuts, Fish-flavored pork shred and Hot pot.