(pensive music) - When I went to Chengdu the first time, I thought I got it all figured out.

(traffic humming) (crowd murmuring) I thought I knew everything.

(traffic humming) (crowd murmuring) I thought I tasted most of the things I could taste.

Dude, this place is popping off.

I thought I understood a lot about food.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - But I had no idea about Sichuan food.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - And I had no idea that it would like hit me in the way that it did.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh my God.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny Voiceover] You're there and you kind of feel like it's like this secret.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Every time I go back I'm like, this is like the best food in the world.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - I wanna give you a hug.

(Yu Bo laughs) This is insane.

(light music) (door creaking) (playful music) (light dreamy music) (engine revving) (light music) (birds chirping) So last time I was in Chengdu, it was like really surreal and eyeopening, 'cause everything was really confusing.

I was 26 and I was struggling.

I was at a point in my career where I thought I wanted to stop cooking.

(light funky music) (traffic humming) (cars honking) It wasn't until like just coming back the impression that this city left on me, it's really noticeable.

It's kind of haunted me in a weird way that I didn't know about, until now I'm here and it's like very immersive in a lot of ways.

Whoa.

Hot pot.

I remember being here last time, it was one of the last times that I've been somewhere that I just was like curious about something to like an like in an obsessive way.

Eating like 30 restaurants in like three days.

So Yu Bo, I had heard about Yu Bo, is like a Sichuan master chef.

And if you really wanna have a good understanding, I feel like you really have to talk to someone that has a great understanding.

And I feel like Yu Bo embodies Sichuan cooking.

(light music) You know, what's funny, his restaurant is not anything, unlike most two or three-star Michelin restaurants in the world, you're going to be seated in a very small room with not a lot of tables and the chef's gonna cook for you.

This just happens to be in his house.

Have you always been pretty like chill, like you know, like you come across as your very mild mannered.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (both chuckling) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] So a question I have for you, I think there's a common misconception with Sichuan food in that it's only things that were spicy.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Yeah, because when I started making Chinese food, it just tasted like too much was going on and you couldn't taste every ingredient because there's no balance in the beginning.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (light airy music) (Wang speaks Mandarin) (Wang speaks Mandarin) (Wang speaks Mandarin) (Wang speaks Mandarin) (Wang gasping) (Wang speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] So what kind of fish is this?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Yeah, I grew up in Oklahoma and the only fish I ever had growing up was a fish similar to this.

And I never had it steamed or anything.

I always just had a deep fried.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - I think I know what he is making and that's one of my favorite dishes.

(bright music) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - What are the ingredients required to make this?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - So this is oil and rendered pork fat.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] Is this like a more of a classic dish or is this a unique dish to you?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - It's just such a relief to be able to have a frame of reference.

Because to date, like I've never been able to ask a chef how to make something.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] Like literally this is the first time I've ever had a Sichuan chef or a Chinese chef for that matter, show me how to make a dish.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] It's crazy that one of the hardest things for me to learn is balance and like layering flavors together.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh my God.

So good.

(Yu Bo laughs) I've had this dish like so many times and you taste something like this and it's just so pure.

You can feel it that this is what this is supposed to taste like.

I'm gonna make the oil to put on top and one of the coolest parts of this dish is that you make this oil and you pour it on top and it fries up the like the little onions on top and it just becomes very aromatic.

Oh man, that's the one.

That's the one.

That's the one.

(Yu Bo laughing) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] So beautiful.

(Danny slurps) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - It's really- (Yu Bo laughs) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh my.

I'm gonna hug him for every (indistinct).

(light music) (traffic humming) Oh man, I just heard about this today.

I think this is grilled rabbit.

(indistinct) rabbits before.

It seems like this like cooking process too is great for it, 'cause it renders it really slowly, marinates like kind of just cures in the fat.

Can I get the whole diced rabbit?

This one?

(Danny speaks Mandarin) It's given to you in a bag all diced up.

It's like one of the top five things I've ever eaten.

We also just never have like barbecue rabbit like that.

It's usually like braised or stewed, you know what I mean?

Well, the deeper you get in here, it's got a lot of Sechuan pepper in the bottom, like all these bits.

It is definitely a journey getting through this thing.

It's amazing.

(light music) (traffic humming) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] What should I be smelling for?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh wow.

This is very strong.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] So is this something you're happy with?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] What are these good for?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - You're just tasting the tip here.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Danny gasps) (Yu Bo laughs) - Wow, this little guy looks dangerous.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] This is the one, right?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Danny gasps) (Yu Bo laughs and claps) - [Danny] Oh man.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - I'm in pain.

I mean I got lit up.

You know what's funny is that like I cooked for about eight years professionally and then I kind of got really tired 'cause I felt very aimless.

I didn't know what I was gonna do again, you know?

And I remember my friend Brandon took me to eat mapo tofu at a restaurant in San Francisco.

And that moment like a light went off for me and it was like, oh, this is what I wanna do.

And I've always wondered if you wanted to be a chef, 'cause you're so amazing at it.

Like if you wanted to do that, if you knew.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Yeah, the way I started cooking was that I was a horrible student in school.

I didn't go to university, I didn't go to college.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo laughs) - But is that crazy for you though if you think about it, like as a kid, as a student, I hated doing homework and then now in my life, my life is always just a big exam.

Every night is a new test.

I don't know, maybe it's 'cause we were bad students that were very good chefs because we like to prepare, but- (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - I don't know how to put it into words, but like anyone that's really good at what they do, that's really great at what they do.

Being around them makes me feel good at what I do.

(light music) Is this a very traditional dish, Yu Bo?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] What's the traditional way?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (cleaver chopping) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] Oh wow.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (light music) - [Danny] How do you make the clear soup?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Danny slurps) - Oh my God.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (blender buzzing) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] I see.

So basically this is a consomme.

The protein pulls all the impurities out of the stock and clarifies it.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] Is this a dish that you've ever served at Yu Bo's family kitchen?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Me too.

I have no idea what this looks like when it's finished.

It's that's what's so exciting about it.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (stock sloshing) - So there's no tofu in this dish?

This is chicken tofu.

Oh my god.

This is insane.

(Yu Bo laughs) Because it looks exactly the same as when you make tofu.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] Oh wow.

It looks exactly like tofu.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh my gosh.

I could eat all this.

I mean, all seriously, I could eat all of this.

(traffic humming) (water gurgling) (bird chirping) (light music) (traffic humming) (energetic dreamy music) (energetic dreamy music continues) (hammer knocking) (people chattering) (traffic humming) (hammer knocking) (light airy music) - So Yu Bo, how long has this factory been here?

So Doubanjiang is this like salty, spicy flavor that really permeates a lot of dishes.

It's a fermented paste of chilies and fava beans.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Wow.

It's almost like eating when you eat like Parmesan cheese, like the crystals in the Parmesan.

It's like this.

You know what I mean?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - I've never had doubanjiang that's age like this.

The flavor's amazing.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny] dDoes it ever go bad?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Could you imagine Sichuan food without doubanjiang?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Growing up as a kid, did your family cook?

I mean were your parents cooks?

Did they cook at home?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Oh wow.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Person] Rice.

(person speaks Mandarin) (light music continues) (person speaks Mandarin) (light music continues) (person speaks Mandarin) (person speaks Mandarin) (person speaks Mandarin) (birds chirping) - You know, for me, I look at you and you're just a very successful master chef.

Was there ever a time for you where you were like down and then was there a food that kind of brought you out of that?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarinn) (energetic music) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - So this is very untraditional, because traditionally it's just tofu.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (liquid bubbling) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Who taught you how to make mapo tofu before you made your adjustment on the recipe?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (light energetic music) - And is this beef or pork you're using?

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - Wow.

There's so much umami for that doubanjian.

It's spicy but it's not hot.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (light music continues) - Oh yeah, it makes it.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (light music continues) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - [Danny Voiceover] It feels great to have that endorsement and to have someone say that you're doing a great job.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) - But to have it from someone that you have so much respect for, it's pretty great.

Wow.

So light.

All of your food is so clean.

(Yu Bo speaks Mandarin) (Yu Bo laughs) - Time for a hug.

Another hug.

(Yu Bo laughs) Thank you.

Sichuan one food is what made me.

You're the best.

It helped me find out who I am as a person in a weird way.

To think that just food can do that is very powerful.

Just being happy with how something tastes can change your perspective and change a lot of things about you.

(metal clanking) (traffic humming) That can convey so much of what I love about everything in life.

I just feel like a kid in a candy store.

(chain clinks) (air swooshing) (light playful music) (energetic playful music) (energetic playful music) (logo rattling)