10 hours ago, KennethT said:My wife and I get takeout from a Hunan place around the corner from us probably once a week. I've never tried their version of Chairman Mao's favorite dish though. I'm curious what you think of their menu
Interesting.
It doesn't strike me as particularly Hunan orientated. Several of the dishes, including your favourite Bamboo Shoots with Pork can be found anywhere in China. Some are distinctly Sichuan: Pork & Pickled Mustard Greens, Hot & Sour Fish Soup Noodle, Hot & Sour Chicken Gizzard, Stir Fried Chicken W. Chili Paste and as you know, Mapo Tofu.
Hunan certainly has rice noodles; it is one of the leading rice growing areas in China. But I've never seen them being offered as an alternative to rice in that way. In fact noodles of all kinds tend to be incorporated into specific noodle dishes. I've never seen plain unadorned noodles on a menu like that, other than in hotpot restaurants, where they may be added to the broth in which everything else has been cooked and eaten by the diners.
There is a dish called Hunan Rice Noodles but it is a fully composed dish of the rice noodles in which the noodles are boiled then placed in a bowl with broth and a selection from chopped chili, shredded radish, pickled vegetables, cooked pork shreds, chopped beef, minced garlic, etc according to the restaurateur's whim.
Finally, if the pictures of the dishes are accurate, Hunan folks would be asking if there is a sudden shortage of chillies. 🌶🌶🌶.
It does seem strange that they attribute stopping the pickled mustard greens to unavailablity, yet still offer Pork & Pickled Mustard Green (another Sichuan dish) on the menu .
