(1)1997 March 14 The Fifth Session of the Eighth National People's Congress decided to approve the establishment of Chongqing. 1997 June 18, Chongqing municipality was formally established. Prior to this, Chongqing has been a sub-provincial city under the jurisdiction of Sichuan Province. Therefore, there is a saying that "Sichuan and Chongqing are not separated." Before Chongqing was listed as a municipality directly under the central government, everything was under the name of Sichuan. For example, Chongqing Hotpot was written as Sichuan Hotpot.

(2) Chongqing hot pot and Sichuan hot pot are not the same because of the difference in pot bottom, dishes and oil dishes.

Many times, we default that "Sichuan Hotpot" and "Chengdu Hotpot" are the same variety, but Chengdu Hotpot cannot fully represent Sichuan Hotpot. Hotpots in most parts of Sichuan also have their own characteristics, such as sauerkraut Hotpot and Jiuchi Goose Intestine Hotpot.

Sichuan hot pot has always been known as "spicy and delicious". Since the birth of hot pot, people like to eat hot pot from vendors to pawns to dignitaries. The audience and influence of hot pot are beyond the reach of other cuisines.

The edible form of "hot pot" first appeared in front of the world in the Western Jin Dynasty about 1700 years ago. Zuo Si, a famous writer in the Western Jin Dynasty, recorded it in his Shu Du Fu. "Sitting in a golden base, the food is delicious, the food is washed with clean water, and purple scales are rare." A few words outlined the embryonic form of hot pot.

Cao Pi, Wei Wendi, divided the hot pot into five independent areas and named it five-cooked pot.

Sichuan hot pot officially appeared on people's dining tables, and the time has come to the light year of the Qing Dynasty (182 1 year-185 1 year). There are different opinions about the birthplace of Sichuan hot pot, including Leshan, Luzhou and Chongqing. Judging from the published data, it is generally believed that it originated from Xiaomi Beach in Luzhou.

At that time, boatmen along the Yangtze River often stopped at Xiaomi Beach to have a rest. Their cookware only has a crock, which contains soup, adds pepper to improve the taste, dehumidifies it with pepper, and then cooks all kinds of vegetables. This convenient and delicious way of eating spread from mouth to mouth and soon spread to Chongqing along the Yangtze River.

The embryonic form of Sichuan hot pot appeared in Luzhou, which is accidental and inevitable under the historical background.

Let's take a look at the historical events that happened in China during the Qing Dynasty (1821-1851).

The Humen Opium War, the First Opium War, the signing of the treaty of nanking, the signing of the Wang Xia Treaty between China and the United States and the outbreak of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement ... The direct consequence of this series of events was that the navigation rights of the Yangtze River began to gradually lose: foreign invaders entered the Yangtze River, Shanghai and the four ports of the Yangtze River for trade, and then the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom used the Yangtze River water transport organization to March.

At this time, the shipping in the remote Bashu area has not been directly impacted by the consequences of the Opium War, but the shipping industry in China in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River has been squeezed by foreign shipping industry. With the opening of the British fleet, foreign merchant ships swarmed in, which directly destroyed the fragile wooden ship transportation industry in China.

Therefore, it is not surprising that a large number of wooden boats and boatmen who make a living from it gather in Sichuan and Chongqing.

Ba-Yu mountains and rivers overlap, and a large number of wooden boats are needed for cargo circulation and passenger transport. At that time, there were only a few boatmen on the small wooden boat, and there were twenty or thirty boatmen on the big wooden boat.

Bayu is full of rapids and dangerous beaches, and the boat runners are "desperate". The life of a boatman is hard, so it is natural to do everything possible to improve it. Bashu area lives on water, which is wet and cold, and naturally there is a soup base with pepper and pepper to remove dampness.

At that time, people living at the bottom tried their best to scratch their mouths, as did boatmen and sticks.

At that time, some sticks in Chongqing (people who worked hard with bamboo sticks) saw the way boatmen ate by the river, so they went to the cattle killing farm to pick up some lost cattle and cooked in the same way. In the long run, there are smart people who carry the burden, put beef offal and side dishes at one end and a stove at the other, and put a big iron basin with a grid on the stove. They walk around the streets every day to sell it.

At that time, a magazine named "Local Records" in Chengdu described the scene of eating hot pot at that time.

"The hot pot that eats buffalo hairy belly originated from Jiangbei on the other side of Chongqing. At first, the average retailer bought buffalo viscera, cut the liver and stomach into small pieces, set up a mud stove at the booth head, and set up a dry pot and iron basin on the stove, in which a spicy and salty marinade was rolled upside down. Therefore, friends who usually sell their labor on bridges by the river will benefit from the burden. Everyone wants a grid, eat it while it is hot, eat a few pieces, and calculate a certain amount of money ... It was not until 23 years of the Republic of China that a small restaurant in Chongqing raised it and moved it from the stall to the dining table. "

In the later War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression period, hot pot became popular in Chongqing. Whether it is government officials, businessmen or journalists or ordinary people in the Republic of China, eating hot pot is a fashion. Later, many Kuomintang veterans who went to Taiwan Province Province were obsessed with Chongqing hot pot. It can be said that Taiwan Province spicy balsamic pot and Chongqing hot pot are also brothers of "one female compatriot".

At that time, Chongqing hot pot was popular and even sought after because of only two words-cheap.

Let's take a look at the social situation in Chongqing at that time.

Since the outbreak of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, the national government moved westward to Chongqing, the rear area, and the important officials of the national government, celebrities and people in war zones also moved. However, due to the Japanese blockade and continuous bombing of Chongqing, the consumption caused by the war is enormous. At that time, the economic environment and living environment of the capital were very bad, especially in the middle and late period of the Anti-Japanese War, Chongqing's inflation was serious and it was difficult to survive.

Food in the wartime capital was very precious. Gu Weijun, the former representative of the Kuomintang government to the United Nations, recalled a banquet in June 2000.

"In Jialing Hotel, I attended a banquet hosted by Dr. Kong Xiangxi and people from the Executive Yuan for the State Councilor. We had an economical and nutritious meal. Everyone has three things on his plate: meat, vegetables and rice. Soymilk is the only drink. There is also a bowl of soup and a dish of sweets, mainly some fruits. "

At that time, in Beijing, Feng Yuxiang often invited people to dinner, including people from all walks of life at home and abroad, and similar plots were also mentioned in Feng Yuxiang's diary.

"The Soviet ambassador invited you to dinner. It's full of alcohol, tobacco and food. Let's invite him to dinner, but it's just steamed bread and bean porridge, and there are only a few dishes. I'm a little embarrassed to see him so rich today. However, he invited me for his country's money and I invited him to dinner for my own money. It is not difficult for me to think of it, and I have completely removed my previous sense of shame. "

The life of government officials is still so tight, and the life of ordinary Chongqing people is even more difficult.

According to the average retail price table of various commodities in Chongqing in June of 1937- 194 1, since 1940, the prices of various foods have suddenly started to climb. Among them, the average rice price in each market in the past few years was 1.253, 1.203,1.297,7.067 yuan, and in June it was 1.94 1.

In such a big environment, it is not surprising that hot pot characterized by "good quality and low price" has sprung up everywhere.

The ingredients of hot pot are very common and change with the seasons, and most of them are cheap. In addition to all kinds of beef offal, there are pig water, chicken blood and goose intestines. There are also cheap vegetables such as fungus, potatoes and lotus root slices, which are also the first choice for hot pot. At that time, cows and pigs were thrown directly into the water, which was affordable for ordinary people even when the price of hot pot doubled. At that time, you can eat meat, which is a rare enjoyment for ordinary people, and you don't care whether you will go into the water or not.

In addition to the "Sichuan three peppers" (pepper, pepper, pepper), there are ginger, onion and garlic and a spicy seasoning in the hot pot soup base. The spicy and exciting taste is beyond the reach of other dishes. Hot pot not only mobilizes the sense of taste, but also makes vision, smell and hearing work together. This is undoubtedly the most powerful impact on the dull and monotonous diet in the rear area at that time.

The characteristics of easy-to-get and cheap ingredients in hot pot have continued to this day, and the constantly improving taste of the bottom material has also made the hot pot enduring. Therefore, it is not unreasonable that Sichuan hot pot has always been sought after by the Qing Dynasty.