Hot pot has a long history and popular basis, which is a civilized, and popular cooking means, and therefore is in general liked by a lot of people. In the essay, it discusses how it is prepared, and why I like it, positive associations, and its significance.
Hot pot, as an original Chinese cuisine, has a long history and different types. During the Eastern Han Dynasty there was hot pot. To the Song dynasty, the hot pot has been very common in the folk. In Yuan Dynasty, hot pot spread to Mongolia area, and beef and mutton was used as main cuisine. To the Qing Dynasty, hot pot is not only popular in civil society, but also became a famous court cuisine. In general, hot pot is using utensils such as pot and boiled water or soup to put food in it. Its characteristics are the occurrence of cooking and eating at the same time.
As the pot itself has a thermal effect, when food is still steaming, soup and the food boiling in it becomes a perfect combination. Hotpot was eaten to stave off the coldness in the past but it is now a favorite year-round food(“Hotpot reigns”，2016). The flavor of hot pot is now spicy and salty, but it is not greasy. With Sichuan peppercorns, the hotpot is an oily brew that packs a punch(“China cuisine”, 2013). People who eat it will sweat a lot. It is suitable for the wet climate in the mountainous areas.
There are many types of hot pot, such as Sichuan spicy hot pot (which can be divided into Chengdu hot pot and traditional hot stove in Chongqing), duck pot, vegetarian pot (with all kinds of vegetables, which is soy-based, usually boiled bean sprouts and bamboo shoots soup ), seafood hot pot, and so on. There is also hot pot with Chinese herbs as supplements, with ribs and chicken as the main material, emphasizing the tonic effect of Chinese herbal medicines.
There are a lot of positive associations with pots given social function and diversity. Hot pot uses “boil” as the single cooking and can deal with different food ingredients. Thus with the food diversity, people eating it can also choose heavy taste and light taste, so the hot pot is inclusive. The pot shop is a place for social engagement. Everyone can participate in and share equally.
Therefore, eating pots means mutual approval and closeness between eaters. Hot pot is generally not included in the scope of the banquet, which makes it marked with informality. The more people to eat the pot tastes more taste, the heavier the taste of soup, which makes the eating of hot pot has a sense of participation among eaters. Hot pot has a regional feature, as a part of the regional cultural. The most representative region belonged to the Sichuan Basin. Sichuan is marked with the spicy hot pot, which is world famous. Other amous hot pot included Guangdong seafood hot pot, whose hot pot food including calcium bone is not greasy, but delicious.
Beijing lamb flavor hot pot is also unique in terms of appetite. When people eat different kind of hot pot, it is not a simple hot pot, but carries history, culture, and heritage. Although from south to north, from east to west, the taste of hot pot is different, but when people eat hot pot, it is to allow people who go their separate ways to get together reasonably. On a cold winter, in the long night, no matter people stay at home, or go to the restaurant, a pot and a group of friends can satisfy all the needs of the Chinese people. With a seasonal hot pot, table topic will change with the change of food, which to some extent, reflects the seasonal alternation of a region and changes in life.
I have a special preference to hot pot as a result of its positive associations with passionate feelings. The charisma of the pot and its development and influence go far beyond its category as a dietary form.The “fire” and the boiling “soup” of a hotpot easily lead to positive associations, which leads to a primitive sense of ritual, and people also can get a “passionate” experience after eating. In winter, when people eat hot pot meal, relatives can have a reunion sitting around the stove, and choose their own favorite ingredients, completely without knowing the preference of each other. When the utensils of hot pot appear on the table, people quickly turned on the fire and pick their favorite ingredients, putting it into the hot pot with chopsticks passionate. There is no more complex table etiquette. I feel the whole body warmly up and everyone at the table is passionate enough throughout the process of eating.
To sum up, when I eat hot pot, I eat more than just a food, but like an atmosphere, or a sort of unique culture, which makes it my favorite food.