When I arrived in Beijing, everything felt different and unusual—from people's behavior to their "not so fluent" English. Honestly, I felt like an alien, despite having traveled a lot before. This was a whole new level of cultural shock!
I booked a cozy hotel in the Old City Dongcheng district, near the Yonghe Temple. Stepping out of the taxi, the first thing I saw was a narrow, bustling street teeming with local restaurants. Starving after my long flight, I dropped my bags and immediately went out in search of food.
Wandering down the street, I found a small, family-style restaurant. It was empty, making it easy to find a table. The waiter approached me, speaking only Chinese. Unfortunately, their menu had no pictures, so I had no clue what to order. Sensing my struggle, the quick-witted waiter brought out raw ingredients from the kitchen: meat, seafood, greens, and vegetables. I pointed at what I wanted, and he smiled, heading back to the kitchen.
Soon, he returned with a plate of marinated squid—or so I thought. One bite in, I realized it was raw and spicy. My mind raced: "Is this normal? Do they eat raw squid here? Did I just mess up?" Just then, the waiter came back with raw shrimp balls, vegetables, a portable cooker, and a pot of broth. I understood: I was supposed to cook everything myself. Still chewing the raw squid, I smiled at the waiter, waited for him to leave, and discreetly spit it out.
Later, I learned I was in a "Huo Guo" (火鍋), or Chinese hot pot, restaurant. This dish has a history of over 1,000 years, originating from Mongolian warriors who cooked pieces of meat and vegetables in a pot over a fire.
Today, the concept is the same. You have a pot of broth in the middle of the table with plates of raw ingredients around it. Friends and family gather to cook and share their meal. It's a social event—you don't "hot pot" with people you don't like.
Different regions in China have their own hot pot styles. Beijing hot pot features a sectioned bowl with various flavored broths. Hubei hot pot (Central China) includes hot spices, tofu, thin slices of beef or lamb, greens like lettuce and spinach, and vegetables like daikon and carrots. The Manchurian (Northeast) version uses lots of pickles for a sour broth. Yunnan (Southwest) offers spicy and seasonal mushroom hot pots, with no spicy mushroom version to preserve the mushrooms' natural flavors. Cantonese (Hong Kong) hot pot is rich in seafood, including shrimp, fish balls, oysters, and squid, sometimes using congee instead of broth. Mongolian-style hot pot has a savory broth with herbs, goji berries, and jujubes. The Chongqing (Southwest) hot pot is famous for its use of Sichuan peppercorns and mouth-watering ingredients.
Chinese cuisine is one of the richest and most diverse in the world. The Chinese believe that delicious and nutritious food is a primary necessity of life. No wonder their greeting translates to "Hi. Did you eat well today?" (Ni hao. Ni chi hao ma? 你好. 你吃好吗?).