Pots on parade

When the temperature goes down, the hot pot goes up. Nothing beats a boiling pot of spicy stew to relax over at dinner with friends or family in the midst of winter, and though Sichuan-style remains the most popular, there are many others out there to make your mouths water just as much.

Due to a special Chinese spice known as hua jiao, which is used in the soup base and is shaped like peppercorn, Sichuan and Chongqing hot pot often create a unique sensation of numbness on the tongue that evokes the feeling of drinking carbonated water.

Although many people associate la (the spicy taste from chili) with Sichuan hot pot, it is actually ma (numbness) that makes it different. As much as people love Sichuan hot pot, those who look for something new in the spirit of spice may discover something they like even more in the following hot suggestions.

Mushroom Yunnan

Mushroom is a staple of Yunnan cuisine and is also the soup base of Yunnan hot pot. Usually containing various rare mushrooms that are only found in Yunnan, such as boletaceae and Sarcodon aspratus, the soup base is drinkable and considered healthy and nutritious. Mushroom, Yunnan tilapia fish, tofu and assorted vegetables are the typical ingredients of Yunnan hot pot. Plain beef and chicken slices are also usually available on the menu.

There are usually two soup bases to choose from, spicy and non-spicy. The tiny Yunnan red pepper xiaomila does not cause the soup to appear as red as the Sichuan style, but can create a burning hot sensation many times stronger.

The sauces or condiments used to dip the cooked food also feature xiaomila, and preserved tofu sauce is the most popular hot pot garnish among such potential dipping implements as sesame paste, sesame oil and seafood sauce.

Sour Guizhou

Like its neighboring provinces of Hunan and Sichuan, Guizhou also boasts a rich chili-and-peppers culture, but with a distinctly sour tint. A proverb in Guizhou even says that one can not walk properly if one hasn't eaten sour dish in the past three days.

Guizhou offers many varieties of hot pot, such as clear goose hot pot and Miao minority-style sour soup fish hot pot, considered the most famous of Guizhou hot pots.

Sour pickles and tomato mix form the base for the soup, also causing the sour soup fish hot pot to appear even redder than Sichuan style hotpot due to heavy tomato use, though the spicy taste is mild and the soup is even quite drinkable.