There’s a Body in the Kitchen! A Cook’s-Eye View of Sichuan Cuisine

Abstract

Over the past century, transmission of Chinese cooking technique shifted from teacher to text, while its regional cuisines emerged as global cultural brands. Each of these phenomena represents a distinct way of knowing food. Based on the author’s experience learning Sichuan cooking in a Chengdu trade school and in the kitchens of two of the city’s best-regarded restaurants, this essay compares the relative weighting of artisanal and culinary knowledge. It questions the role of heritage programs in upscaling training, emphasizes the socialization process of a working kitchen, and extols the unique insights to be gained from getting your hands dirty.