14 hours ago, Honkman said:The recipe was named that way - I am not an expert on regional Chinese cuisine but would be curious to get your input what characterizes Hunan cuisine
I did wonder as I lived in Hunan in the 1990s and return frequently. There is nothing in your recipe that wouldn't be found in Hunan except the roasted chili oil and Chinkiang vinegar which is from eastern China. They do use a lot of vinegar, but would use a local one. It was just the combination struck me as odd. Hunan would, I'm sure, use actual chilies, dried or fresh or both. Chili oil tends to be more SIchuan.
Hunan cuisine is famous for two things, smoke and fire. They love smoked and cured meats. And they love chili. Many people think Sichuan is the chili capital of China. It isn't. Hunan is. Guizhou province is runner-up and Sichuan only gets bronze. You may want to have a look at this topic describing a trip I made back to Hunan in 2016. It describes the food and shows many examples.
I'm not saying you wouldn't find that recipe in Hunan, but I doubt anyone there would describe it as Hunanese. But, hey, if you enjoyed it no one is complaining.
