P
Chinese · Chongqing
Chongqing Mao Xue Wang — Offal and Blood Hot Pot
Mao xue wang (毛血旺) is a Chongqing specialty: a volcanic dish of coagulated duck blood, tripe, pig intestine, luncheon meat, bean sprouts, and sliced beef, all submerged in a deeply spiced broth of Sichuan peppercorn, dried chili, and doubanjiang. The name 'mao xue wang' references the duck blood and the flooding (wang) of the ingredients. A test of nose-to-tail commitment.
‹Swipe for the next dish›
I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
400 g
duck blood (ya xue)
cubed into 3 cm pieces
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
200 g
honeycomb tripe
pre-cleaned and blanched separately
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
200 g
pig intestine
pre-cleaned and blanched separately
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
200 g
luncheon meat
sliced 5 mm thick
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
200 g
beef
thinly sliced
Your own market
150 g
bean sprouts
rinsed
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
For the broth base
80 g
doubanjiang (broad bean chili paste)
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
30 g
dried red chilies
whole or roughly broken
Your own market
2 tsp
Sichuan peppercorns
plus extra freshly ground for garnish
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
60 ml
chili oil
deep red; generously applied
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
750 ml
stock or water
pork or chicken stock preferred
Your own market
II
The Method
1
Clean the tripe and pig intestine thoroughly under cold running water, removing all residual matter. Blanch each separately in a large pot of boiling unsalted water until any odour dissipates, then drain and set aside. The offal must be entirely neutral in smell before it enters the broth — if any animal odour persists, blanch again.
2
Bring a separate pot of water to a gentle simmer. Add the cubed duck blood and poach for no more than 5 minutes. The cubes should be just set — soft and custardy at the centre, firm enough to hold their shape when lifted. Remove carefully and reserve.
3
Heat the chili oil in a wok or deep heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the doubanjiang and fry, stirring constantly, until the oil runs a deep, luminous red and the paste is fragrant. Add the dried chilies and Sichuan peppercorns and continue frying briefly until the spices bloom and the heat of the chili reaches the back of the throat.
From the canon — Doubanjiang — the 'soul of Sichuan cuisine' — is a fermented paste of broad beans (fava beans) and chillies that is to Sichuan cooking what soy sauce is to J… Doubanjiang (Sichuan Fermented Bean Paste — Aged vs Fresh) →
4
Pour in the stock or water and bring to a rolling boil. This is the point at which the dish is decided: the broth must be aggressively oily, deeply red, and built on a correct ratio of doubanjiang to chili — too timid here and the dish fails to be mao xue wang. Taste the broth; it should be bold, spicy, and complex before a single solid ingredient enters it.
5
Add the blanched tripe, pig intestine, sliced luncheon meat, and sliced beef to the broth. Simmer briefly — this is a bold, fast dish, not a long braise. The beef should be just cooked through, the tripe and intestine heated and supple.
6
Add the poached duck blood cubes and the bean sprouts. Simmer for no more than 2 minutes. The blood must remain custardy, not rubbery; the bean sprouts must retain a discernible crunch. Remove from heat the moment these conditions are met.
7
Transfer to a deep serving bowl or bring the pot directly to the table. Spoon the deep-red oil from the surface over the dish. Finish with a generous dusting of freshly ground Sichuan peppercorn. The surface should be a vivid, oily scarlet.
From the canon — Sichuan peppercorn (huā jiāo — flower pepper) — the dried berry of Zanthoxylum simulans or Zanthoxylum bungeanum — is not a pepper (Piper nigrum) but a citru… Sichuan Peppercorn: The Numbing Spice Surveyed →
III
Quality Hierarchy
01
Reserve — Fresh duck blood from a live-poultry market, cleaned tripe and intestine from a specialist butcher, hand-ground Sichuan peppercorn from the current harvest, and artisan doubanjiang aged a minimum of three years.
02
Estate — Packaged fresh duck blood from a Chinese grocer, pre-cleaned offal from an Asian butcher, whole Sichuan peppercorns ground to order, and a reputable branded doubanjiang such as Pixian.
03
Market — Supermarket-sourced fresh duck blood where available, commercially cleaned tripe, pre-ground Sichuan pepper, and standard doubanjiang from a Chinese supermarket.
04
House — Frozen duck blood thawed under refrigeration, blanched commercial offal, dried chili flakes substituted for whole chilies; the dish remains recognisable but loses textural delicacy and spice complexity.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Smell. Blanched offal is completely odour-neutral before entering the broth.
◇Touch. Poached duck blood yields gently under a spoon — custardy, not firm or rubbery.
◇Sight. Finished broth surface is a vivid, unbroken deep red from chili oil.
◇Touch. Bean sprouts resist slightly when pressed between the fingers — crunch is present, not wilted.
◇Where it lives or dies. The broth must be built to full aggression — deeply red, generously oily, and sharp with doubanjiang and chili — before any solid ingredient is added; a timid broth cannot be corrected once the dish is assembled.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year
VI
What to Pour
A cold, lightly bitter Chinese lager or a plain baijiu served neat; the carbonation or the clean spirit heat cuts the chili oil and resets the palate between the contrasting textures of blood, tripe, and sprout. A heavily tannic or oaked wine would be overwhelmed by the doubanjiang and Sichuan peppercorn.
The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
Enter · from $49 a year