Crystal China 味缘
Chinese restaurant · Borough ·
Dry hot pot featuring Dongbei & Sichuan dishes, intestines, trotters
Dry hot pot featuring Dongbei & Sichuan dishes, intestines, trotters
"Thought hot pot meant simmering ingredients in flavoursome broth and causing a bigger dripping mess than Splash Mountain? Think again. Crystal China specialises in dry hot pots cooked in ma la, and ingredients are ordered by weight. Vegetarians and vegans can rest easy with loads of meat-free options to choose from including aubergine, taro cake, bamboo shoot, black fungus, tofu puffs and mooli. For the carnivores in the party, Chinese lap cheong sausage, chicken gizzard, beef balls, fried fish bean curd and Thai sausage await." - Angela Hui
"Where Dongbei meets Sichuan, around one of London’s best dry hotpots. Pick a mix for the pot, steering wide of the higher heat levels — they run from one to four — which are palate-razingly hot. Outside the pot, Dongbei dishes are particularly strong: braised aubergine in yellow bean sauce; a dry-fried, waxed Chinese sausage with a curiously, then compulsively chewy texture; tea tree mushrooms with the delicious texture of slightly decomposing meat. On the Sichuan side, get the fried green beans with minced pork. This is a place to embrace intestines, pigs trotters, secret sauce. Bear in mind that it’s also a homing device for London’s Chinese student population, so get there early or book." - Virginia Hartley
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