Yu-Xiang literally means "Fish Scent". It is a condiment in Chinese cuisine, and also refers to the resulting sauce in which meat or vegetables are cooked. It is said to have originated in Szechuan cuisine but has since spread to other regional Chinese cuisines.
Despite the "fish scent", Yu-Xiang does not contain any fish and is not usually used in fish dishes, but is often used in dishes with pork, chicken and vegetarian dishes. Dishes that use Yu-Xiang as the main condiment have the term attached to their names. For example: "Yu-Xiang Rousi" - Yu-Xiang style fried pork strips, "Yu-Xiang Qiezi" - Yu-Xiang style fried eggplant.
The Yu-Xiang mixture almost always contains sugar, rice vinegar, dou-ban-jiang (fermented chili soybean paste), soy sauce, and pao-la-jiao (pickled chili peppers).
