No One Wakes a Sichuaner—Unless You Say "Breakfast Time!

The Underrated Breakfast Capital of Southwest China,

Missing Sichuan breakfast means missing Sichuan. Across the province, from plains to mountains, Sichuan breakfasts are nothing short of spectacular.

In the bustling Chengdu Plain, centered around Chengdu, vibrant red oil hides bold and hearty carb-loaded delights that make one exclaim: "This is breakfast? This is breakfast!" In Jiangyou, people start their day with fatty intestines—a plate of intestines paired with a bowl of rice, a symphony of fat and carbs. Brain noodles served in bowls might seem bloody to outsiders, but to Sichuanese, they’re the ice cream of noodle dishes.

As one of China’s most spice-loving regions, Sichuan’s breakfasts surprise with their fiery and diverse heat. In southern Sichuan alone, breakfast spice comes in two styles: the fermented bean paste-infused mellow heat of Yanbian lamb rice noodles in the west, and the fresh pepper-driven green spice of Zigong’s beef noodles in the east.

In northern Sichuan, near Shaanxi, breakfasts are a carb feast—steamed cold noodles, stewed bread, and oil tea—blurring the line between Northwestern flavors with a Sichuan twist or Sichuan flavors with a Northwestern touch.

Chengdu, Leshan, Mianyang...

Chengdu and its surroundings are arguably Sichuan’s most vibrant areas, giving birth to iconic dishes like Dan Dan noodles, Mianyang rice noodles, and Jiangyou fatty intestines.

But breakfast here isn’t limited to these. As one of China’s most inclusive regions, you can find common staples like steamed buns, soy milk, and fried dough sticks, as well as countless novel morning treats.

Steamed buns are common in Chengdu, but Sichuanese make them anything but ordinary—

like dyeing the bun skins red or black.

Fig.1 Photo/Duan Tui, Fig.2 Photo/Ye Tracy

Take Chengdu, for example—how lavish are its breakfasts? Noodles tell the tale. In Sichuan and Chongqing, noodles are ordered by weight (e.g., "a bowl of two liang" in Chongqing). But in Chengdu, to sample more flavors, locals order two or more single-liang bowls of different noodles: classic minced pork or beef noodles, quirky rabbit or offal noodles, or Chengdu’s unique sweet-water noodles.

Sweet-water noodles are famed as "three strands to a bowl," with chopstick-thick strands boiled, tossed in oil, and stored without drying or clumping. The key is sweetness, from a secret-recipe sweet soy sauce. Mixed well, each strand coats in thick sauce, blending wheat’s aroma, soy’s sweetness, and chili oil’s spice—pure bliss.

Sweet soy sauce works in many dishes,

but it’s a perfect match for sweet-water noodles.

Of Leshan cuisine, a saying goes: "Outsiders eat in Chengdu; Chengdu locals eat in Leshan." At the foot of the Giant Buddha, Leshan’s day starts with spicy tofu, stuffed flatbreads, and dry minced pork noodles.

In Sichuan, tofu pudding (douhua) and bean curd jelly (doufunao) differ. The latter, made earlier in the process, is more tender—Leshan’s version included. Here, tofu pudding shops skip brine or sugar, serving it with a bowl of chili oil instead. Yes, Leshan’s tofu pudding is spicy.

Leshan’s tofu pudding is neither sweet nor salty—spice is the star.

Silky tofu swims in thickened meat broth, topped with layers: salt, soy sauce, vinegar, chili oil, Sichuan pepper, sugar, scallions, ginger, garlic, soybeans, sesame, peanuts, pickles—then upgraded with shredded chicken, crispy pork, steamed beef, or sausage. A symphony of textures and flavors elevates the bland tofu to perfection. A few-yuan breakfast with a dozen toppings—only Sichuan’s gourmands could achieve such extremes.

Ran noodles, lamb rice noodles, tofu rice, "chicken head" noodles...

How delicious is breakfast in southern Sichuan?

Southern Sichuan is close to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, but the eastern and western regions have completely different styles.

People in Jianyang start their day with a bowl of mutton soup.

The Panxi area in the west has complex terrain, with high mountains and deep valleys, making transportation difficult. In the past, this region produced very little cooking oil and no salt, so the dishes here are light on oil and salt, often seasoned with green peppercorns and millet peppers. However, due to the abundance of mountains, the local beef and lamb are excellent, making breakfast here exceptionally fragrant and fresh.

Yanbian mutton rice noodles are made with black goat broth, flavored with fermented bean paste, millet peppers, peppercorns, and mint leaves—refreshing and not greasy, completely different from the oily style of rice noodles in other parts of Sichuan.

The southern wing of Sichuan in the east lies on the plains, especially Zigong, which has been prosperous since ancient times due to its salt wells and proximity to the Yangtze River, giving rise to the unique Salt Gang cuisine. Under its influence, breakfast in Zigong is particularly rich and innovative. Locals enjoy fresh pepper beef noodles or fresh pepper rabbit noodles for breakfast, with fresh peppers being a key ingredient in Salt Gang cuisine.

They also eat a type of noodle called "chicken head noodles," somewhat similar to "blanket noodles," named because the dough pieces resemble the long cloth scarves women used to wrap their heads. Topped with soft-cooked peas and freshly fried dough sticks, it’s a flavor only Zigong locals truly appreciate. Piglet buns are another common breakfast in Zigong, with pork and pickled vegetables wrapped in glutinous rice flour—the pickles adding a hint of freshness while the pork is rich and savory.

When people mention Luzhou, they often think of Luzhou Laojiao liquor. But in Sichuan, Luzhou’s white cake, tofu pudding, and rice blocks are just as famous. Rice blocks are somewhat similar to rice noodles or kway teow, which can be boiled or mixed, and are a must-try delicacy for locals.

Shuiwei morning tofu pudding is a Luzhou specialty that sells out quickly—tender white tofu dipped in a savory sauce, bursting with bean fragrance and lingering flavor. Paired with rice blocks and tofu pudding is Luzhou white cake, which older locals call "bubble buns" or "duckling buns." Freshly steamed, it’s sweet, soft, and sticky, made with sugar, lard, and osmanthus syrup—a treat to sweeten the whole day.

Freshly steamed Luzhou white cake is soft, sticky, and sweet.

Beyond these, southern Sichuan’s breakfast universe also includes Neijiang beef noodles, bean soup noodles, Sweet City white sugar cakes, red oil rice rolls, Yibin燃面 (spicy noodles), and Xichang rice noodles.

In northeastern Sichuan, there’s oil tea and cold jelly.

The Jialing River flows from the Qinling Mountains through Shaanxi, Gansu, and Sichuan before reaching Chongqing to join the Yangtze. This "mother river" of Sichuan and Chongqing has nourished generations of locals and added another dimension to Sichuan’s breakfast culture.

Guangyuan, located in northern Sichuan bordering Gansu and Shaanxi, is a city blending northwestern and Sichuan-Chongqing influences—its breakfast reflects this. Locals start their day with Guangyuan stewed buns, where chewy white buns soak in rich bone broth, strikingly similar to Shaanxi’s mutton stewed buns.

There’s also steamed cold noodles—freshly made, soft and slippery, served hot or cold, topped with fragrant chili oil and spicy garlic sauce. For Guangyuan people, it’s not just breakfast but also lunch, dinner, and late-night snacks.

Further east in Bazhong and Dazhou, a more common breakfast is oil tea. Sichuan’s version is unique—made from rice ground into slurry, boiled into a glossy white porridge, then mixed with caramelized sugar or brown sugar to create an enticing brown-yellow bowl. Topped with various seasonings and side dishes, the plain porridge transforms into irresistible oil tea.

Despite its name, there’s no tea in oil tea.

The soul of oil tea is crispy fried dough twists—best when freshly fried, thin and delicate. The perfect moment is when the twists are slightly softened by steam but still crispy inside, paired with the soft porridge—a Sichuan culinary marvel.

Besides oil tea, Dazhou locals enjoy a "dark cuisine" in northerners’ eyes: savory glutinous rice dumplings filled with pork or bacon, served in seaweed broth—simply bursting with umami.

Mianyang rice noodles are famous, but nearby Nanchong holds its own. For Nanchong locals, a morning without "drinking" noodles is incomplete. They call eating noodles "drinking" because the broth is so flavorful and the noodles so smooth that once you start, you can’t stop—slurping them down without even needing to chew.

Mianyang rice noodles are thin and tender, offering a softer texture when eaten.

But for all Sichuanese, what truly stirs their appetite is Langzhong's Baoning vinegar, a staple on every Sichuan breakfast table. No one understands vinegar—or fermentation—better than the people of Baoning. Baoning also has a steamed bun infused with sugar, carrying the aroma of fermented yeast, snow-white in color, crumbly and fluffy, falling apart at the first bite. There’s even a street named "Steamed Bun Street," where the faint scent of freshly steamed buns greets you in the early morning.

When talking about Sichuan, the Tibetan regions of western Sichuan are often overlooked. Fortunately, the rise of Ding Zhen in recent years brought places like Ganzi and Aba—both beautiful and delicious—into the spotlight. Breakfast in western Sichuan is often just a bowl of butter tea, simple yet fragrant enough to make you forget all other delicacies...

People truly underestimate Sichuan breakfasts.

Perhaps Chengdu is too dazzling, making people remember only dan dan noodles. Perhaps Sichuan has too many culinary delights, leaving no room for breakfast. Or perhaps Sichuan’s late-night snacks are too lavish, making it hard to wake up early.

But if you rise early and give Sichuan breakfast a chance, you’ll discover just how abundant and surprising it is. Sichuanese use all their most endearing words to describe their breakfast: "soft and tender" for chitterlings, "crispy and crunchy" for the fried dough atop noodle tea, "tangy and sour" for Baoning vinegar, and "fragrant and aromatic" for Zigong noodles...

Sichuan is more than just Chengdu, and breakfast is more than just dan dan noodles. Next time you visit Sichuan, remember to wake up early for a few days—Sichuan breakfast is a flavor you simply can’t miss!

The lavish Sichuan breakfast is a culinary delight you absolutely must try. Photography / Fish Swimming Upstream

Without being "starred," the full cover cannot be displayed.

Please light up the "star" to show your support.