bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Alice Yan

A hotpot-mad woman in China has spent a total of 270,000 yuan (US$38,000) to eat her favourite dish 627 times in more than 20 cities over the past nine years.
The hotpot devotee, surnamed Kong, has caused a splash on mainland social media after she revealed her addiction to getting her favourite hotpot meals from the famous mainland restaurant chain, Haidilao.
Kong, from Nanjing in the eastern province of Jiangsu, revealed her hopelessness for hotpot on a social media platform on November 17, the Yangtze Evening News reported.
“I don’t cook. I don’t have other hobbies and I am not interested in clothes or makeup like other girls. My only hobby is eating, especially eating Haidilao,” Kong was quoted as saying.

Haidilao is a household hotpot brand in China famous for its spicy Sichuan food and considerate service.
Kong, who is a manager at a bed and breakfast hotel, said she first sampled Haidilao hotpot about nine years ago after many recommendations.
“My initial impression was that its raw ingredients were fresh and the taste was super,” she said. “Since then, my affection for Haidilao has been out of control.”
The woman said she is not only fond of the restaurant’s food, but touched by its service.
She recalled a time when she went on a business trip to the northern province of Shanxi, a Haidilao outlet there agreed to let her sleep in the eatery because she needed to catch a flight the next morning, they even gave her a quilt and pillow.
Kong said she usually went to Haidilao outlets with friends, rather than with her family, because her relatives were concerned about the danger of eating so many hotpot meals.
She admitted her habit had caused her to put on 13.5kg in weight.
“I am aware that eating a lot of hotpot is likely to increase the level of lithic acid in our bodies, a cause of gout,” Kong said.
“My physical checkups have shown some indexes are not as good as they were before, so I will restrain my enthusiasm for hotpot a bit.”
Wang Yan, a doctor from the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, wrote on the website baidu.com that diners should not eat hotpot more than once every one to two weeks.

“Eating hotpot too often will result in shang huo (a Chinese term referring to excessive internal heat),” she said, adding: “I suggest people consume a lot of vegetables when they eat hotpot.”
Kong’s addiction triggered a heated discussion on mainland social media.
“She is just flaunting her wealth,” one person said.
“I doubt it is an advertisement by Haidilao. An ordinary person couldn’t stand eating hotpot so frequently for nine years,” said another online observer.


Chinese woman, 103, dies after 80-year wait for husband who worked abroad

China woman and friend save crash driver, share story with shop boss who turns out to be dad

‘Fearless’ China boys make history, achieving Top 4 at renowned France street dance contest

Outrage as ‘evil’ man in China tortures cat to death, only gets fine, detention

Trending in China

‘Out of control’: woman in China spends US$38,000 on hotpot meals across China over 9-year period, shocking social media

A woman in China has revealed that she is so “addicted” to eating hotpot that she has spent US$38,000 consuming the dish more than 600 times over the past nine years. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Douyin

The woman is not only addicted to the restaurant chain’s food, she loves its warm and considerate service. Photo: The Paper

Experts have warned that eating too much hotpot can be bad for your health. Photo: Shutterstock

‘Relationship surveillance tool’: China dating apps launch location tracking for couples to monitor each other, claim it enhances trust, security

New features added to dating apps in China which allow couples to monitor the movements of their significant other have sparked an online debate about suspicion in relationships. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock

Those behind the new features say they are designed to boost transparency in relationships but critics claim they are simply a surveillance tool. Photo: Baidu

One woman who used the new location-tracking features said they wrongly situated her in a hotel, when in fact she had been at home all day. Photo Shutterstock

‘Disgusting’: video of China butcher shop worker deboning raw lamb ribs with mouth in ‘decades-old’ technique sparks food safety debate online

A wave of revulsion has hit mainland social media after a video emerged of a butcher’s shop employee deboning raw meat with his mouth. Photo: SCMP composite/Douyin

Video shows butcher using his mouth on raw meat and claiming the practice is a “decades-old” technique. Photo: Baidu

Hygiene officials have debunked the notion that the practice is one passed down by older generations and issued a public health warning. Photo: Shutterstock

‘Hard to accept’: China villagers give 1,400-year-old Buddhist statues innocent paint job of thanks, damage artefacts

A set of 1,400-year-old Buddhist statues in China have been damaged inadvertently by villagers who gave them a gaudy paint job. Photo: SCMP composite/Baidu

The villagers painted the 1,400-year-old statues to thank the deities for making their wishes come true, unwittingly damaging the ancient artefacts. Photo: Baidu

Officials have warned the villagers about applying paint to the relics and are investigating ways to restore them. Photo: Baidu

‘Bring it to me’: woman in China barks at ride-hail driver to travel 50km to return phone she left in car for free, triggers online backlash

A selfish woman in China has faced a barrage of criticism on mainland social media after she tried to bully a ride-hailing driver to travel 50km to return a phone she left in his car for free. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Weibo

The driver remained calm while the woman ranted at him but eventually lost his temper and hung up on her. Photo: Weibo

The woman has faced a barrage of criticism for her attitude on mainland social media. Photo: Shutterstock

‘No gratitude’: brave woman in China who suffered horrific injuries to save roommate from crazed, knife-wielding ex-boyfriend shunned by ‘friend’

A brave woman in China who intervened to stop her roommate’s ex-boyfriend from killing her has told of her hurt after her “friend” shunned her in the wake of the incident. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/The Paper

He suffered terrible injuries during a sustained knife attack by the ex-boyfriend. Photo: The Paper

The attack left He out of a job and suffering from long-term physical and psychological damage. Photo: The Paper

News

People & Culture

Woman piles on 13.5kg in weight by eating so much hotpot
No interest in clothes or cosmetics, ‘my only hobby is eating’, she says


A woman in China is so addicted to eating hotpot from the mainland restaurant chain Haidilao that she has consumed the meal 627 times in the past nine years at a total cost of 270,000 yuan.


Chinese cuisine

China society

‘Out of control’: woman in China spends US$38,000 on hotpot meals across China over 9-year period, shocking social media

Woman piles on 13.5kg in weight by eating so much hotpot No interest in clothes or cosmetics, ‘my only hobby is eating’, she says

Woman piles on 13.5kg in weight by eating so much hotpot

No interest in clothes or cosmetics, ‘my only hobby is eating’, she says