Excellent, juste bien pimenté

Discovered this about 10 years ago at my local market. I put a tablespoon of it in my spaghetti sauce. It adds a wonderful complex flavor and a nice controlled heat. So instead of using Italian sausage for a little heat, I heat (spice up) the sauce and cut up small breakfast sausages with kitchen shears to add to the sauce.

With this My taste-buds perk right up. I've been working on my Spaghetti sauce recipe for 60 years and with the addition of this wonderful condiment my striving is over. If you have ever had the spicy eggplant and pork, the spice they use for that is this.

Be aware that it is quite high in salt.

The cost of this item is about $10 more than what you pay in a store but, ... you don't have to drive or own a car, pay insurance, pay for gas or car maintenance to get it so in reality it is much more cost effective to have it delivered to your door.

This really is just as good as everyone says it is. So tasty. A little pricey for such a small jar. But it'll go quite a ways even so. An absolute must if you're into Sichuan cooking.

Used to make Mapo Tofu

While I like the taste of this bean paste I am leaving off a star for the high sodium content.