Chengdu, Sichuan — the codification of 23 compound flavours was formalised by the Sichuan Culinary Institute in the 20th century; the flavour system itself is ancient
The Chinese system of flavour classification (wei xing) goes beyond Western five-tastes model: the Sichuan culinary tradition recognises 23 distinct compound flavour profiles. Key categories include: salty-fresh (xian xian), sour-spicy (suan la), ma la (numbing-spicy), sweet-sour (tang cu), litchi-flavour (li zhi wei), fish-fragrance (yu xiang), home-style (jia chang wei), strange-flavour (guai wei). Each compound flavour has a specific sauce formula.
A conceptual framework — the taxonomy organises the entire flavour universe of Sichuan cooking into a reproducible system
{"The 23 Sichuan compound flavours are a codified taxonomy — each is distinct and reproducible","Fish-fragrance (yu xiang) contains NO fish — the name refers to fish-cooking aromatics: doubanjiang, ginger, garlic, vinegar, sugar","Home-style (jia chang wei) = doubanjiang + fermented black bean + soy + chili — the most widely used compound in daily Sichuan cooking","Litchi flavour (li zhi wei) = slight sour and sweet, named for the litchi fruit's character"}
{"The full list of 23 Sichuan compound flavours is documented in The Food of Sichuan — the definitive English-language reference","Understanding the system allows improvisation within Sichuan cuisine — if you know fish-fragrance components, you can apply the profile to anything","Other regions have less codified but equally distinct compound flavours — Cantonese, Shandong, and Jiangnan each have their own systems"}
{"Assuming fish-fragrance contains fish — it never does","Using the 23 flavours without understanding the component ratios","Thinking the compound names are metaphorical — each name describes the flavour profile with precision"}
The Food of Sichuan — Fuchsia Dunlop