Chinese Cuisine Introduction Chinese cuisine is any of several styles originating in the regions of China, some of which have become increasingly popular in other parts of the world — from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe ‘and Southern Africa. The history of Chinese cuisine stretches back for many centuries and produced both change from peried to period and variety in what could be called traditional Chinese food, leading Chinese to pride themselves on eating a wide range of foods. Major traditions include Anhui, Cantonese, Fujian, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shandong, Szechuan, and Zhejiang cuisines. Chinese cuisine is one of the greatest methods of cooking. Many elements that have influenced its development. The Chinese people enjoy eating good food at all levels of society so cooking has developed into a very sophisticated art. There are ‘many kinds of Chinese food from North to South, East to West. Recipes of famous dishes Beijing duck, Shanghai noodles, Sichuan soup and Guangdong dumplings actually are not sofisticated. Many Chinese dishes are cooked with less meat and more vegetables, so the foods contain lower calories and are less rich than Western style food. Vegetables stay bright and crisp by cooking them for a short time over high heat, either in their own juice or in a small amount of water. This method retains most of the vitamins and minerals. Beijing Food Beijing food is the most famous food of China, particularly known for Beijing Duck. Much of this fame comes from the fact that the Imperial cuisines were based out of there, Beijing Duck is a time consuming, dish to prepare of oven roasted duck with a crispy brown skin. Thin slices of the skin are cut off and put onto a plate where it is wrapped with 2 fresh flour tortilla with plum sauce, cucumber, and green onion. The rest of the duck is used with additional dishes. The northern part of Chins has a cold climate unsuitable to grow rice, so wheat is the primary grain consumed. Northern Chinese eat more breads than those in the south, where rice predominates. ‘Cantonese Eoad Cantonese food or Guangdong food is typically steamed, boiled or stir-fried, itis a very healthy food since it uses minimum of oil. The main ingredients of this type of Chinese food are seafood, pork, chicken and vegetables, but could include almost anything. You need white rice to accompany the meal to make it complete unlessit isa special banquet. Its said, “the Cantonese eat every thing that flies except planes, every thing on the ground except cars, and every thing that is in water except boats.” In Hong Kong, you will find all the cuisines of China pretty much, but Cantonese cooking predominates. In the morning you could have Dim Sum for breakfast and Beijing Duck for dinner. ‘Sichuan Food What is typical of this southwestern province of China is the spicy taste of its food. Many Sichuan dishes are prepared using chili pepper oil, which gives a special taste to the food. The most famous Sichuan dish is the Gongbao (Kung Pao} chicken, fried with peanuts and chili pepper.‘Some noodle knowledge There are egg noodles, wheat noodles, and rice flour noodles. Wheat noodles are often found in ‘Shanghai noodle dishes. These are round wheat noodles that are cooked then stir-fried in a savory sauce with chicken, pork and shrimp. Rice flour noadles are often found in Singapore-style noodle dishes and use rice vermicelli noodles cooked with curry powder, shrimp, barbecued pork and ham. Egg noodles are ‘often found in Cantonese restaurants as noadle soup (ike won ton mian), or stir-fried ina dish. There are two types of noadle dish. The firsts lo mian which is a plate of cooked (boiled) noadles with some barbeque pork ar duck and some vegetables on the side of the plate, and accompanied with a bowl of broth. The second is Chow mian in which the noodles are oan fried and then mixed with stir-fried vegetables, meat, and seafood. Soup Chinese soups have been part of Chinese meals for along time. There are many different types of Chinese soups. Sweet corn and hot/sour soups are the most popular soups to westerners. Chinese make their soups with chicken, meat or vegetable stock. Chinese soups are very tasteful and can be light in both texture and flavor. Yet some of the soups are filling enough to be a meal by themselves. Chinese Tea Tea drinking is an integral part of Chinese life and the Chinese food experience. Tea is believed to be good for you. The Chinese were the first to discover the tea leaf and have been drinking tea ever since in many varieties History of Chinese Cuisines ‘When it comes to food, Chinese are equally diverse as they are in language dialects. Food habits are also influenced by regions, as China is has a vast territory that contains deserts, steppes, grasslands and icy mountains. It is due to the diversity of the climate, products and customs that there are widely different food styles and tastes in local regions. One thing is for certain though. Chinese cuisine is highly appreciated and sought-after all over the world, because of its aromatic, delicious and exotic dishes. ‘Some other exotic dishes from the Chinese cuisine include the bird's nest Soup, the Kung Pao Chicken, Mape Dofu, Shark Fin Soup, the Buddha Jumping Over the Wall dish, Prawn with Dragon's Body and Phoenix's tail, or Squirrel with Mandarin Fish. China is one of the colossal civilizations that history gave us. Their traditions, customs and culture are almost unmatchable by a lot of the current peoples of the World. Their diversity and fascinating way of life have made China one of the jewels of Asia. Putting that together with the fact that it’s the most populous country in the World and that it is one of the dominant powers of today, gives you the idea on how big China really. Considered both a craft and an art, Chinese cuisine has been developing and getting richer since the oldest times. During the reign of Emperor fu (20 centuries B.C.}, Chinese people learned how to fish andhunt, but also agriculture and cooking began their evolution. The Chinese cooking and food decorating got to the status of high art during the Chou Dynasty and then it was influenced by Confucianism and Taoism. The principles of Confucius promoted the etiquette of food and the joy that it can bring, Taoism promoted health and hygienic aspects of cooking, as the body should be is search for longevity. Based on the spectrum of these 2 major directions, Chinese cuisine doesn't include unhealthy food, as most of the dishes are low-calorie and low-fat. Added to this, Chinese explored numerous kinds of herbs, spices, seeds, roots and plants and used them in natural traditional dishes and all aliments that Chinese consume have both a physiological need and a spiritual one, as they can bring joy, prosperity or happiness. Thanks to these authentic values, Chinese cuisine is considered nowadays one of the most valuable culinary heritages in the world. A Chinese traditional meal consists of carbohydrates and zhushi, or main food. The carbs are found in rice, noodles, dough and pastries based dishes and the veggies and meats are considered starch. Regional cooking styles Anumber of different styles contribute to Chinese cuisine, but perhaps the best known and most influential are Guangdong (Cantonese) cuisine, Shandong cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine and Sichuan cuisine.These styles are distinctive from one another due to factors such as available resources, climate, geography, history, cooking techniques and lifestyle, One style may favour the use of lots of garlic and shallots over lots of chilli and spices, while another may favour preparing seafood over other meats and fowl. iangsu cuisine favours cooking techniques such as braising and stewing, while Sichuan cuisine employs baking, just to name a few.Hairy crab is a highly sought after local delicacy in Shanghai, as it can be found in lakes within the region. Beijing Roast Duck (otherwise known as 'Peking Duck’) is another popular dish well known outside of China.Based on the raw materials and ingredients used, the method of preparation and cultural differences, a variety of foods with different flavours and textures are prepared in different regions of the country. Many traditional regional cuisines rely on basic methods of preservation such as drying, salting, pickling and fermentation, Chuan (Sichuan) Szechuan cuisine, also called Sichuan cuisine, is style of Chinese cuisine originating in the Sichuan Province of southwestern China famed for bold flavors, particularly the pungency and spiciness resulting from liberal use of garlic and chili peppers, as well as the unique flavour of the Sichuan peppercorn, Peanuts, sesame paste and ginger are also prominent ingredients in Szechuan cooking. ‘Hui (Anhui) Anhui cuisine is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of China, itis derived from the native cooking styles of the Huangshan Mountains region in China and is similar to Jiangsu cuisine. But it emphasizes less on seafood and more on a wide variety of local herbs and vegetables. Anhui province is particularly endowed with fresh bamboo and mushroom crops.