File photo: The TV series "A Bite Of China"

Who wants "A Bite of China"? That's the name of a new TV show that's sparked a wave of food buying among gourmet-seeking gastronomes, eager to taste something new. The CCTV Channel One show began just two weeks ago, featuring traditional regional specialty dishes. And more importantly, the unusual ingredients needed to make them! It's causing a spending storm.

Specialist food sales have gone through the roof, since the TV series "A Bite Of China" launched on May 14th. Millions have descended on food websites - all looking for those same hard-to-find ingredients.

Searches for "Mao Tofu", a snack popular in Anhui Province, have gone up by a wok-shattering 100 times. Nuodeng Ham from Yunnan Province is also seeing huge sales increases.

And there's been another impact - online food buying trends have shifted - from the afternoon, to after 10 p.m. - just after the show airs.

For those planning to stick to a strict diet, the night-time show is a sweet seduction that's hard to resist. And many end up making a beeline for the kitchen to recreate the on-screen temptations right away.

Online sellers have also reported a rise in cooking equipment - sales of pots and pans have increased by 20 percent.

"A Bite of China" is causing a culinary craze that continues long after the program credits roll. For China's countless delicious dishes, and its vast population of food-lovers, it proves that one bite is never enough.

(CNTV May 28, 2012)