.png)
This Sichuan shrimp is multilayered and complex, yet so refined. (Nadia Ghattas/The Epoch Times)
With 5,000 years of tradition, China’s food culture is perhaps one of the oldest in the world. The Chinese “eat to live,” and food is treated as medicine as well as tradition. Harmony is infused in every dish, and every dish has a story.
Sichuan food is one of China’s major cuisines. It is complex, multilayered, and refined yet with bold and spicy flavors. New Yorkers are fortunate to have a rare gem—chef Liao Xiaofeng, a grand master of this cuisine.
Meeting him at his home was an unexpected pleasure. A typical New Yorker could never imagine having such a unique dining experience. My heart throbbed with excitement when I heard the invitation. It was an honor to be part of and share in ancient tradition and culture in a private setting—an everlasting experience.
Chef Liao started cooking at age 20 and has cooked for 24 years since. He is an award-winning chef; one of the winning chefs of NTD Television’s Third International Chinese Culinary Competition which took place in Times Square in Sept. 2010. He told me how exciting it was for him to be part of that grand event, that it was a chance for him to evaluate his skills and techniques.
What inspired and motivated him was the opportunity to go to the West, where chefs are more respected than in China. After seeing one of the popular local chefs from his region go to America, chef Liao bought cookbooks, learned, and improvised. A few of his creations are adapted and enhanced, without destroying their essential nature and staying true to their roots. According to chef Liao, some Chinese dishes cannot be changed because they have a long history and tradition.
As I watched him finish the last touches of the dishes he prepared I thought to myself, “How sad for us people from opposite ends of the globe not to be able to communicate well.” Of course there are obstacles: Language is a major obstacle that isolates us from one another. Another major obstacle is the culture of food that we as Americans have lost, which has encouraged some Chinese restaurant owners to dilute and destroy the true essence of the entire Chinese dining experience.
That night, dining at the chef’s home, the intense flavors of the spices and peppers of Sichuan province in Western China were an experience to be remembered.
