Wu Di had sent his generals Huo Qubing and Wei Qing north to attack the Huns, and commissioned Zhang Qian to open up the Silk Road to the West, and according to Yang Xiong's poem "Shudu Fu," it was via the Silk Road that a variety of new agricultural produce came to China, vastly enriching the quality and variety of Chinese cuisine.
武帝派霍去病、衛青北伐匈奴，張騫打通絲路，根據揚雄所寫的〈蜀都賦〉記載，千禧前後，商人由絲路帶來西域各國農產，芫荽、胡瓜、胡椒、洋蔥、番茄、菠菜，豐富了人們桌上佳餚，中國人飲食在質與量上都大幅提昇。