What is the Hunan food that impressed you most?

The delicacy that impressed me the most was bacon eaten at a home in Chengbushan District, Shaoyang in 2012.

It was very cold that year. A group of us sat around the firewood stove to warm up. There was a hanging pot on the stove. The head of the household took out his own smoked bacon and cut it into pieces, poured it into the pot and stir-fried. The aroma of bacon filled the air in the heat of the stove and made us salivate. There were not many condiments, just some white chili peppers, which became more fragrant the more they were fried.

After the frying was done, the head of the household brought us rice. The bacon was still in the hanging pot. The flames were roasting the hanging pot underneath. The aroma emanated with the heat amidst the sizzling sound of the bacon. We couldn’t wait to wait. Putting a piece into your mouth is really different from the bacon I have eaten before. It has a rich aroma in your mouth, oily but not greasy. The aroma of incense fills the whole mouth, with a little spicy white pepper, this salty local flavor It was so delicious that I miss it to this day. What’s even more amazing is the cabbage moss that was put in when the bacon was almost eaten. The aroma of the bacon wrapped in it and the mild spiciness of white chili peppers are really satisfying to eat in your mouth. I had four bowls of rice in one meal.

I often travel on business now, but I have never tasted such delicious bacon.