Oh My, a Fiery Evening.

Mala is the Chinese word that describes Sichuan food.  It means "spicy" + "tingling/numbing."  The tingle comes from Sichuan peppercorns.  Neither peeper nor a chili, it's a seed,I think citrus family thing.  But, it looks like a peppercorn so...

(The real stuff is very hard to get in the USA - once banned.  When I was cooking I bought stuff from https://themalamarket.com/ and I can vouch for their quality and service.  Their vinegar selection is wonderful too.)

I never really took the full plunge.  Until tonight.  Not in the form of the traditional Chongking hotpot.  But in a soup.  Mala Tang

You pick your own ingredients: noodles, pork belly, bok choy, tofu, daikon, noodles, Napa cabbage, potatoes, broccoli (I'll skip the radish, taters, and Napa next time.)  The stuff hits hard.  I was not asked what spice level - they knew better.  I confirmed later it was MILD.  I wisely got a liter of citrus drink.

Sweat beading, rolling off my forehead and face from the heat was one thing.  But the tingling.....woooooowwwww. An hour later my lips are still buzzing with the tingling numbness (yeah, an oxymororn.)  Woooooooooow, it is different.  Tingle, buzz, not a buzz, yet a burn.  And, oddly appealing.  

A little gastro distress is part of exploring the world.  I have Imodium, but I'm trying to build up a local guy friendly biome so I avoid it unless it will impact my day adversely.  With an apartment to rest in, a bum gun to clean me, and a washer (no dryer) it's easy to cope.  I just took a prophylaxis Imodium.  Tomorrow may be a day to stay close to home.

But it was very good.  And, I will go back.  Wooooow.  I drank 2/3rds of the liter of citrus stuff (orange, pomelo, lemon, lime, and something else pictured on the label.  Pretty good.)

And, then the walk home was gorgeous.  Here's what I saw from the balcony:

My lips are going back to normal.