Steamed Beef and Roasted Rice

The popularity of this preparation, once unique to Sichuan, has spread to Beijing and to other parts of China over the years. In Beijing, where the dish is cooked in virtually the same way as it is in Sichuan, the Sichuan peppercorns have been replaced by cinnamon sticks. Rice-based coatings are also used in Hunan and Fujian, to cite just two more examples.