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Well-known around the world, Chinese cuisine took shape in
the Shang Dynasty over 3,000 years ago and entered its heyday
in the 17th century.
 China
features a vast area, numerous ethnic groups, different climates
and differentiated geographical environments. Even the Han people,
the majority in china, have varied customs and dialects due
to their different historical and cultural background, and locality.
Naturally, the different areas also developed different tastes
in food: some preferred sour food while others might have a
sweet tooth. Different dishes with local features flourished,
evolving into the so-called "four, eight and ten"
cuisine styles. These styles refer mainly to the Hannationality.
Among them, the top four are Shadong Cuisine, cuisine Cuisine,
Huaiyang (Jiangsu Province) Cuisine and Guangdong Cuisine, Shandong
Cuisine employs scallions and rich materials and prefers salty
flavors, such as Stewed Scallion and Sea Cucumber. cuisine Cuisine
is famous for its spicy food, such as Shredded Pork with Chilli
and Garlic Sauce. Huaiyang Cuisine attaches importance to soup
and has a mild and sweet flavor, as in Steamed Shad. Guangdong
Cuisine has fresh, tender and nourishing dishes like Roast Piglet
with Crispy Skin.
 Apart
from the Han, china also has 55 minority ethnic groups whose
living and eating habits vary greatly. Living on the grassland
and engaging in herding and hunting, the Mongolians are called
the "ethnic group on horseback." Their typical food,
like Roast Whole Lamb, Roast Lamb Leg, Mutton Eaten with Fingers
and Milky Tea, is well known both inside and outside china.
The Tibetans dwell on the roof of the world. Due to high altitude,
water's boiling point is too low to cook highland barley. So
they bake the barley and grind it into flour to make a special
staple, known as zanba. The minorities living in muggy zones
in southwest China favor sour, bitter and spicy food, such as
Roast Fish Wrapped in Lemongrass created by the Dai people.
Apart from adding ingredients like ginger and pepper, they wrap
the fish with lemongrass and then grill it on a fire. Fish dressed
this way is delicious.
The Chinese prefer to combine gourmet food with festivals and
occasions. The most interesting part of cuisine culture lies
in the feasts offered on various occasions, including festivals,
birthday parties, weddings, funerals. During Spring Festival
(the lunar Chinese New Year), Han families usually eat jiaozi
(dumplings) shaped like gold ingots, symbolizing good luck.
Spring Pancake, Eight-Jewel Rive Pudding (steamed glutinous
rice with bean paste, lotus seeds, preserved fruits, etc.) and
Eight-Jewel Rice Porridge are also served during this period.
Theatrical performances and temple fairs are the places where
you can find lion dances, acrobatics and various traditional
foods. Other ethnic groups also have their distinct recreational
activities and festive foods, such as the Baked Cake of the
Man people, the Fried Pastry of the Hui people, the pyramid-shaped
Glutinous Rice Dumpling Wrapped in Bamboo Leaves of the Zhuang
people and the Mutton and Rice Eaten With Fingers of the Uygur
people.
 Of
course, people with different social status and different religious
beliefs may have different eating habits. In the ancient Chinese
royal palace, the food served for royal members was extremely
exquisite and later formed the Palace style of dishes. The many
Buddhists in china can be divided into Great Vehicle believers,
who are vegetarian, Little Vehicle believers, who can eat meat
without doing the killing, and the Tibetan Buddhists, who eschew
meat from animals with odd number of toes, poultry with paws
and fish.
China also boasts all kinds of snacks favored by tourists from
all over the world. Guangdong residents have the habit of drinking
morning tea. Tea-drinkers enjoy various snacks with tea, such
as Goose Sausage, Steamed Bread with Stewed Sweeten Pork Filling
and Fish Fillet Porridge. At Qianmen Hotel in Beijing,k there
is Liyuan Theater where you can appreciate Peking Opera while
sinking your teeth into snacks like Sweet Corn Cake, Fruit Cake
and Sweet Pea Cake.
China is known for its etiquette, and this also is reflected
in eating rituals. Usually, cold dishes are served first, then
main dishes, and then staples. Soup and desserts are the last
to be served. Liquor or wine is almost a must for feasts. Chopsticks
are the unique pieces of tableware employed by the Chinese.
This book on Chinese cuisine is the latest of its kind. Following
the four-style cuisine series, it systematically introduces
the special dishes and snacks as well as dishes of famous star-rated
hotels in the tourist cities around China.
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