中国厨师在都柏林办“孔府家宴” Chinese chefs offer Sichuan cuisine at Confucius Institute in Dublin

A Chinese chef prepares cold dishes of Sichuan Cuisine at "Confucius Institute Banquet -- A Taste of Sichuan" in Dublin, Ireland, May 15, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua/Liu Xiaoming]

A special banquet(宴会 yànhuì) to promote China's food culture was hosted by the Confucius Institute at the University College Dublin (UCD) on Wednesday night, attracting(吸引 xīyǐn) nearly one hundred local Chinese food afficionados.

Chinese chefs pose for a group photo with chief guests at "Confucius Institute Banquet -- A Taste of Sichuan" in Dublin, Ireland, May 15, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua/Liu Xiaoming]

The event dubbed "Confucius Institute Banquet -- A Taste of Sichuan", gave participants a rare chance to enjoy authentic(地道的 dìdào de) Sichuan-style dishes(四川菜 Sìchuān cài) prepared by seven master chefs(厨师 chúshī) coming from Sichuan Tourism University (STU) in southwest China.

A Chinese chef (2nd L) shows the dough figurines he made at "Confucius Institute Banquet -- A Taste of Sichuan" in Dublin, Ireland, May 15, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua/Liu Xiaoming]

The dishes included two starters(开胃菜 kāiwèi cài), four main courses(主菜 zhǔcài) and two Chinese-style desserts(甜点 tiándiǎn), followed by tea exclusively from the mountains of Sichuan province. On-the-spot bilingual introduction was provided by a food culture professor from the STU.

UCD's is one of the earliest Confucius Institutes established in the world. It was recognized as one of the model institutes by the relevant Chinese authorities due to its outstanding contributions to the promotion of cultural exchanges(交流 jiāoliú) between China and Ireland.

Former Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny speaks at "Confucius Institute Banquet -- A Taste of Sichuan" in Dublin, Ireland, May 15, 2019. [Photo: Xinhua/Liu Xiaoming]

Currently, there are three Confucius Institutes in Ireland. The other two are located in Cork in the south and in Galway in the west.

中国八大菜系 "Eight Cuisines" of China:

[Chuāncài] 川菜 Sichuan cuisine
[Lǔcài] 鲁菜 Shangdong cuisine
[Yuècài] 粤菜 Cantonese cuisine
[Sūcài] 苏菜 Jiangsu cuisine
[Zhècài] 浙菜 Zhejiang cuisine
[Mǐncài] 闽菜 Fujian cuisine
[Xiāngcài] 湘菜 Hunan cuisine
[Huīcài] 徽菜 Anhui cuisine