After the death of Mao's mother, who was called the "Fairy of Cuisine", Mao must strive to become a legendary chef himself, in order to take the title as head chef at his mother's restaurant. To do this, he must travel across China to learn the many ways of cooking, but he learns that the real battle has only just started. The Dark Cooking Society has already begun to move...

Chūka Ichiban! (中華一番!, lit. Chinese Food Number One!) is a manga created by Ogawa Etsushi.
From 1995-1997 it was published as Chūka Ichiban!. However, during the middle of its serialization, the character '真' was added, so from 1997 to 1999, it was serialized as Shin Chūka Ichiban! (真・中華一番!, Truth - China's Number One!).

In 1997, Chūka Ichiban! was adapted into an anime series directed by Anno Masami of the same name. In some countries, the anime adaptation was called Cooking Master Boy.