The representative Sichuan dish, mapo tofu, cooked by Dunlop.

In the book, she cites Chinese literati writings about food to show "how deep the roots are of talking about food in China, about considering food as something very important", she says.

"You see that right from the ancient philosophers' using food and cooking as metaphors, and the ideas from The Analects of Confucius. For example, the way you eat is an expression of how civilized you are, and what kind of person you are. It's really fascinating.

"I don't think there's any other culture where food has been taken so seriously, partly because, as I've written in the book, the first duty of the emperors was to feed people. That's the basis of social stability. It's the basis of the home, how you communicate with your ancestors and gods. It's an expression of how cultivated you are."

In 2013, she won the James Beard Award for the fourth time for her book Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking. Three years later, Dunlop published her latest book Land of Fish and Rice: Recipes from the Culinary Heart of China.

Dunlop is working on more books and stories about Chinese food and culture, given the huge diversity of cuisines in China.

Contact the writer at yangyangs@chinadaily.com.