Although Sichuan is famous for its hot dishes, it wasn't the first place in China to use hot pepper as a flavor. Historical records show that it was in today's Southwest Guizhou Province that hot pepper first began to be considered edible rather than ornamental. In the subsequent years, hot pepper gained popularity in the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, including Central China's Hunan Province.

Diners may find Sichuan-style dishes numbing as well as hot. People from Hunan Province, are known for eating hot pepper in a different way. Hunan-style dishes are all hot - from hot pepper rather than other spicy flavors. It's said that in Hunan, people eat dried or fried chili straight - not just as a flavoring.

In autumn strands of dried chili are hung either on trees in a courtyard, on interior kitchen walls, or even from the roofs. It's a fascinating country scene in Sichuan, Hunan or other places where hot food is popular.

 Salty

People in northern China prefer salty, heavy food; with salty pickles a particular favorite. In autumn, housewives, especially in rural areas, are busy making pickles for the coming winter. Pickle jars of all different sizes are often seen in their kitchens.

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