Kou FuJu restaurant

This restaurant is reminiscent of old Beijing.

There are mainly two kinds of hotpot restaurants in Beijing: Mongolian and Sichuan style. The staple of hotpot is mutton.

Mongolian hot pot originated from the northern nomadic tribes. The Chinese hot pot boasts a history of more than 1000 years and became popular during the Tang Dynasty. In the following dynasties, the cooking style was used by imperial chefs in the middle of 17th century. Mutton hot pot became a favorite for the imperial family. Sliced raw mutton is prepared and then put into boiling water in the hot pot which is placed in the middle of the table. The slices are coated with a do-it-yourself sauce and then eaten. The pot itself is made of brass, with a wide outer rim where the charcoal burns to heat the liquid.

Nowadays, hotpot has changed in many aspects, but this Beijing hotpot restaurant, Koufuju, with its independent small pots, looks much cleaner than common hot pot restaurants. Its mutton, sugar garlic and seasoning are known as the best three of the hot pot world and have attracted the patronage of many Chinese celebrities. Though the price might be a bit high, its strong old Beijing flavor makes up for it. This is a good place to dine with friends.

Spicy Sichuan hotpot is divided into half-spicy, half-not. In the past, Sichuan hot pot was very spicy but now people can taste hot pot with spicy, clear or milky soup. A hot pot may be divided into several parts and a customer may instantly boil food of three or four tastes in a same pot.