【Sea and River Food Talks】Why is Sichuan’s family banquet called “Jiudouwan”? Never order eight or ten dishes?
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In the rural areas of the Chengdu Plain, whenever there are weddings or funerals, the family hosting the event will invite relatives, friends, and neighbors to a banquet – what is commonly referred to as having a “nine-dou bowl” meal. Furthermore, they are generally held in the courtyards of farmers’ homes, which is why they are also called “courtyard feasts”. Even today, when we go to the countryside to eat*, we still have the chance to taste authentic Jiudouwan.
In the Sichuan dialect, “dou” means large, as one dou equals ten liters; whether it’s a small or large dou, its weight is still around 32–35 jin. That’s why large bowls are referred to as “dou bowls,” or “hai bowls” as well. Why is the total number of dishes on a banquet usually nine? It is said that since nine is the largest positive number, it is regarded as an auspicious figure in folk culture; there are sayings such as \"long life through nine nines,\" \"nine sons achieving success in their exams,\" and \"eternity (represented by nine).\\" Therefore, nine bowls are usually placed on the banquet table as well, to bring good luck.
Speaking of these nine bowls, it’s not the case that all kinds of chicken, duck, fish, and meat are served on the table, nor is there only nine dishes in total. In terms of the dishes, Jiu Dou Wan includes three steamed dishes: pork steamed with rice flour, salt-braised pork, and sweet-braised pork (pork with fillings). It also features nine braised dishes: chicken braised in a sauce, duck braised in a sauce, pork braised in a sauce, steamed pork elbows, braised pig’s trotters, steamed dishes, mixed dishes, and meat soup with crispy texture. It can be considered a simplified version of the full range of Manchu and Han dishes found in traditional cuisine.
To this day, in Shuangliu, Chengdu, there still exists a song titled “The Song of Nine Bowls”: “The host invited me for lunch, and the nine bowls served there were even better than those in Gusu.” The first dish is stir-fried fish liver with fish maw, while the second dish is chicken stewed with fritillary bulb. Three bowls of tofu stewed in lard, four bowls of carp and bird’s nest blanched. Five bowls of golden hooks with vinegar, six bowls of golden gourd lanterns. Seven bowls have a certain amount, eight bowls of fatty meat make a splashing sound. Nine bowls of clear soup to rinse the mouth; full of food and drink, the whole body feels relaxed. ”
Of course, there are poor families that serve seven large bowls, while wealthy families serve eleven large bowls; but it’s never eight or ten bowls. Why is that? It turns out that in the western Sichuan plains, pig feeding troughs are usually made of stone. Since the characters for \"ten\" and \"stone\" have the same pronunciation, there is a popular belief that pigs only eat from ten (stone) bowls – which is actually a subtle way of insulting someone. Therefore, ten bowls cannot be used to entertain guests.
As for why there can’t be eight bowls of dishes on the table, it’s because when a wedding takes place, beggars usually come to offer their congratulations or to mourn. Due to the local tradition that \"a visitor brings prosperity to a household,\" the hosts will not drive away those who come asking for alms; instead, they will receive them warmly.