Why Revolutionaries Love Spicy Food
In 1932, the Soviet Union sent one of its best agents to China, a former schoolteacher and counter-espionage expert from Germany named Otto Braun. His mission was to serve as a military adviser to the Chinese Communists, who were engaged in a desperate battle for survival against Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalists.
The full story of Braun’s misadventures in China’s Communist revolution is packed with enough twists and turns for a Hollywood thriller. But in the domain of culinary history, one anecdote from Braun’s autobiography stands out. Braun recalls his first impressions of Mao Zedong, the man who would go on to become China’s paramount leader.
The shrewd peasant organizer had a mean, even “spiteful” streak. “For example, for a long time I could not accustom myself to the strongly spiced food, such as hot fried peppers, which is traditional to southern China, especially in Hunan, Mao’s birthplace.” The Soviet agent’s tender taste buds invited Mao’s mockery. “The food of the true revolutionary is the red pepper,” declared Mao. “And he who cannot endure red peppers is also unable to fight.’ ”
Taste of Sichuan
By Andrew Leonard
If there is a single dish that most exquisitely captures Sichuan’s love for the chili pepper, and perhaps its revolutionary fervor, it’s La Zi Ji—“Spicy chicken.”
The cooking process isn’t too complicated—morsels of fried chicken are stir-fried with an enormous amount of chili peppers—though the visual impact is intimidating.
But have no fear, the look is scarier than the bite. The flavor of the chili pepper is blunted by the numbing tingle induced by ground Sichuan peppers (a condiment unre- lated to either chili peppers or black peppers). The ensuing taste sensation is entirely unique to Sichuan cuisine.
My favorite recipe for this dish is the one below from Taylor Holliday, author of The Mala Project, a blog devoted to Sichuan food.
Try the recipe out, and share your results to the Nautilus Facebook page.
Photo: The Mala Project
Maoist revolution is probably not the first thing that
