Sichuan · main
Dongpo Elbow
东坡肘子 · Dōngpō Zhǒuzi
Slow-braised pork hock in Shaoxing wine and soy, named after the Song-dynasty poet Su Dongpo.
Dongpo elbow is a Sichuan adaptation of the Hangzhou original, both attributed to the Song-dynasty polymath Su Shi (Su Dongpo). A whole pork hock is blanched, then slow-braised for two to three hours in Shaoxing wine, soy sauce, rock sugar, ginger, star anise and spring onion until the collagen collapses and the skin turns gelatinous. The result is a glossy, mahogany-coloured knuckle that parts from the bone at the slightest touch. The Sichuan version often adds a touch more sugar than Hangzhou's and is paired with pickled vegetables (suancai) to cut the richness. It appears at festive banquets and home cooking alike. Portions are large — one hock typically serves two to three people alongside rice.
Where to try
Sichuan province: traditional Sichuan restaurants in Chengdu and Leshan frequently offer it. Meishan, Su Dongpo's birthplace, has restaurants built around this dish.
Dietary notes
Pork, soy, wheat (Shaoxing wine). Contains gelatin from pork skin.
Cities to try Dongpo Elbow
Other southwest dishes
- Baba Flatbread粑粑
Yunnan's daily flatbread — a thick wheat or rice-flour round cooked on a griddle and eaten plain or stuffed.
- Bang Bang Chicken棒棒鸡
Cold poached chicken shredded by hand, dressed in chilli oil, sesame paste and Sichuan peppercorn.
- Boiled Fish in Chilli Oil水煮鱼
Fish slices submerged in a deep pool of chilli oil and Sichuan peppercorns. Served bubbling.
- Chongqing Hotpot重庆火锅
The original mala hotpot — a simmering cauldron of beef tallow, Pixian doubanjiang and Sichuan peppercorn for communal dipping.