Hotpot is China most human food: a table of people around one boiling pot, dipping and chatting in warmth and noise. Sichuan and Chongqing are home to the mala broth, Beijing does lamb hotpot, and Guangdong keeps it light with da bian lu.
Choosing the pot: first-timers should order yuanyang - half spicy, half mild. If you can take spice, try the nine-grid or full red pot; "wei la" (mild) already carries real heat.
Order of eating: meat first (beef/lamb rolls, tripe, duck intestines), then vegetables (potato, lotus root, mushrooms), finishing with noodles or rice cakes. Tripe follows the "seven up, eight down" rule - a few seconds in the pot keeps it crisp.
Dipping sauce is the soul: northern sesame paste with fermented tofu and chives; southern garlic oil with oyster sauce and coriander. Each is a distinct flavour - try both.
Cost: hotpot runs 80-150 yuan per person; some places are all-you-can-eat buffets at 50-100 yuan.
Eat slowly and talk - that is the point. Hotpot is one of the Chinese favourite ways to socialise.
