Sichuan Spicy Beef Pot

I first ate this in Sichuan restaurants and loved the breathtaking simplicity and hot, nutty flavour the chilli bean paste brings. The hot numbing sensation of the chillies and peppercorns is pretty special too.

I first cooked this dish from Fuchsia Dunlop’s Sichuan Cookery — it’s a truly great book and, like anything from her, very insightful. By the way, this spicy broth with some fish, prawns or squid waved through at the end would be delightful as well.