Where to Start with Erik Videgård
Erik Videgård is a Swedish restaurateur and food writer who has been in the restaurant industry since 1984, involved with roughly 20 restaurants and holding ownership stakes in about 10 of them. His fascination with Sichuan cooking began in the early 2000s and led him to years of studying and developing his own interpretations of the cuisine, adapted for Scandinavian home kitchens with practical advice on sourcing specialty ingredients.
Start here
Facing Heaven
Erik Videgård · 160 pages · 2018 · Easy
Themes: sichuan cuisine, chinese cooking, regional cuisine, sichuan pepper, chili
A Swedish-language cookbook that serves as one of the best introductions to Sichuan cooking available in Scandinavia. Videgård, who ran a Sichuan restaurant for three years, shares around 40 recipes and his personal journey into one of the world’s most exciting cuisines. The title refers to the “facing heaven” chili pepper, a staple of Sichuanese cooking.
Why Start Here
Most cookbooks about Chinese food available in Swedish are either too broad or too complicated for someone who wants to start specifically with Sichuanese cooking. Videgård’s book is different. It is written for someone who has never cooked Sichuanese food before and takes you step by step through ingredients, techniques, and flavors.
The recipes are adapted for Scandinavian home kitchens, with tips on where to find specialty ingredients and how to build your Sichuan pantry. You will learn classics like tofu with Sichuan pepper, twice-cooked pork, and bang bang chicken. What makes the book the right starting point is the combination of accessibility and authenticity. Videgård does not simplify the cuisine, but he makes it manageable.
What to Expect
A compact book at 160 pages with beautiful photography by Pål Allan. The recipes are clearly written and manageable for a home cook. You will need to source some specialty ingredients like Sichuan pepper, doubanjiang, and dried chili, but the book helps you find the right ones. The tone is personal and inviting. Note that this book is written in Swedish.
Alternatives
Erik Videgård · 102 pages · 2025 · Easy
Videgård turns his attention from Sichuan to Vietnam in this compact, beautifully photographed collection of 28 recipes that traces a culinary journey from Hanoi in the north through Hue and Da Nang to Ho Chi Minh City in the south.
Why Read This
After the success of Facing Heaven, Videgård applies the same approach to Vietnamese cooking: personal, curated, and adapted for Scandinavian home cooks. The book captures the regional diversity of Vietnamese cuisine, from the heartier broths of the north to the sweeter, herb-heavy dishes of the south, with practical advice on sourcing and substitution.
What to Expect
A short, focused cookbook with 28 recipes of varying difficulty. Strong noodle dishes, fresh salads, and plenty of herbs. Beautiful photography by Joel Wäreus. At 102 pages, it is a curated introduction rather than an encyclopedia.