Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper: A Sweet-Sour Memoir of Eating in China

First off I should say that I love eating in China. In fact, that is what I most look forward to when I am heading to China. The variety and quality of the various cuisines in China is truly extraordinary. I really related to this book, not only for the eating adventures, but also because I also was once a young student in China trying to figure things out around me. Dunlop was a young girl studying Chinese in Chengdu when she became distracted by the heady smells and tastes that surrounded her. She enrolled in the local cooking school and dove headfirst into the wonderful world of Chinese cuisine, specifically 川菜 chuāncài, or Sichuan cooking, in her case.What makes this book so readable, and persuasive, is Dunlop's ability to engage the reader with personal and intimate stories of regular people and homestyle cooking. As a speaker of Chinese she is able to share experiences with ordinary Chinese that would not be possible without a knowledge of the language. For example, she befriends the cook at the local noodle shop and eventually persuades him to give her the recipe for his famous dandan noodles, which she shares with the reader. I know I have said this before in other book reviews, but knowing Chinese really opens up all kinds of doors and allows one to experience a China that would not be possible if you did not know the language.She correctly states on page 206, "Food has always been of exceptional importance in Chinese culture. It is not only the currency of medicine, but of religion and sacrifice, love and kinship, business relationships, bribery, and even, on occasion, espionage. `To the people, food is heaven,' goes the oft-repeated saying." Though the book focusses on Sichuan cuisine, she does give insight into China's other culinary traditions as well.The book is engaging, entertaining, and very informative. It is obvious that she has done her homework and knows her stuff. She gets added credibility because she experiences all this first hand while she lived in China and on subsequent trips back after returning to the UK.The reader comes away from this book fascinated with Chinese food, and really hungry. The food she describes in the real thing. This is a well written memoir and I highly recommend it.

Fun read, especially for anyone who has been an expat.

For me, this book has a very special place in my heart. I was in Chengdu at the same time, living in the same area and eating in the same restaurants as Ms. Dunlop. I never met her and I don't ever remember seeing someone who looked like her. But her description of Chengdu, of Sichuan cuisine, of being a foreigner in China in the 90s, of decompressing in Hong Kong, and the reverse culture shock when one returns to the West are exactly what I experienced and felt when I lived there. She captures it perfectly, but what she does that I have never been able to do is to verbalize it so precisely and profoundly in writing what all of it means--being someone caught between two cultures and of losing your principles or ideas of what is right or wrong. I think her understanding of China is as accurate and well-articulated as Peter Hessler. I put her on an equal par with him. So if you want to really understand China from an outsiders perspective, add Fuchsia Dunlop's memoir to your list of books to read (along with her cookbooks.) I also think this is a good book for anyone who has lived in China or is going to live there or maybe has lived in any country is eastern Asia.

I am a fan of food and history. This book has the perfect blend of both. This is not merely a book about food, cookery, with some light touches of history. It goes so much deeper, into the culture of the Chinese people, the recent global changes, and really reflects on humanity as a whole. Excellent story telling, beautifully told in a way that when I read it, I felt like I was sitting at the same small kitchen with white tiles, slurping noodles, watching out at the countryside. I loved it so much I bought a second copy to give away as gift, and since I could read Chinese, I also bought the Chinese edition to do a comparison.

The person I bought for really enjoyed it.

I was so excited to read this book, especially after reading such wonderful reviews. But I have to admit that it dragged in many parts and I kept waiting for something exciting to happen. While I thought the chapters on Hong Kong and Hunan were strong, the author didn't show us much about her personal life in China. She was there, after all, before the internet came onto the scene, and it would have been interesting to hear how she dealt with her personal struggles when she was so far from home. It also seemed like she adapted to Chinese life better than any foreigner I've known (except for some revelations in the Hong Kong and Hunan chapters), but then suddenly at the end of the book, she feels so burned out by China that she ponders leaving that life behind forever. I'm thinking, when did that happen? It reminds me of when everyone was reading "Memoirs of a Geisha" and highly recommended it to me. While it was very descriptive and colorful, as is Shark's Fin, I kept waiting for something to happen. I would like for her to write a book about her struggles and relationships there. She mentioned once that the mainland Chinese think all western women are loose, but we never hear about her personal experiences with this cultural difference. If she ever decides to write about her struggles with China, I would read that book.

An amazing culinary and personal journey beautifully written with a lot of heart!It resonated with me since I travel to China often and love experimenting the amazing cuisine. Now I have a framework to rely on

Brilliant!

Die art wie die Kochbücher von F.Dunlop geschrieben sind und die Auswahl der Rezepte vermitteln einen sehr guten Eindruck von der asiatischen Küche.

I have been cooking my way through Every Grain of Rice by Fuchsia Dunlop for about two years now. I finally decided to read her memoir, Shark's Fin and Sichuan Pepper, to my great delight and enjoyment. An incredibly well-researched study of Chinese regional cuisines as well as a thoughtful, passionate, sparkling memoir.

This book got me very interested in Chinese cuisine and I spent a long time (and I mean days) watching YouTube videos about the obsession the Chinese have with food that's moving while it's in your mouth.I love how the book has been written- there are recipes which I will try...maybe never but the author writes very honestly and it's eye-opening to see how stereotypical we can get with the picture in our mind, of people who eat differently from us.Apart from being a very entertaining read, this book has also made me re-think food and the idea of food (nutrition). Highly recommended!

Fuchsia Dunlop nous fait vivre son aventure en Chine populaire, à la recherche des délices de la cuisine chinoise. Remarquable! Je conseille vivement cet excellent livre.