Chinese cuisine

Chinese cuisine originated from the various regions of China and has become widespread in many
other parts of the world — from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe and Southern
Africa. In recent years, connoisseurs of Chinese cuisine have also sprouted in Eastern Europe and
South Asia. American Chinese cuisine and Canadian Chinese food are popular examples of local
varieties.

Regional cultural differences vary greatly within China, giving rise to the different styles of food
across the nation. Traditionally there are eight main regional cuisines, or Eight Great Traditions
Anhui, Cantonese, Fujian, Hunan, Jiangsu, Shandong, Sichuan and Zhejiang. Sometimes four of
the Eight Great Traditions are given greater emphasis, and are considered to dominate the culinary
heritage of China, known in turn as the "Four Great Traditions" They are notably defined along
geographical lines: Sichuan (Western China), Cantonese (Southern China),Shandong (Northern
China), as well as Huaiyang Cuisine (Eastern China), a major style derived from Jiangsu cuisine and
even viewed as the representation of that region's cooking.

1. Anhui cuisine
Anhui cuisine is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of China. It is derived from the native cooking
styles of the Huangshan Mountains region in China and is similar to Jiangsu cuisine.

Methods and Ingredients

Anhui cuisine is known for its use of wild game and herbs, both land and sea, and simple methods of
preparation. Braising and stewing are common techniques. Frying and stir-frying are used much less
frequently in Anhui cuisine than in other Chinese culinary traditions. Anhui cuisine consists of three
styles: Yangtze River region, Huai River region, and southern Anhui region. Anhui has ample
uncultivated fields and forests, so the wild herbs used in the region's cuisine are readily available.

Representative dishes

Some famous dishes include:

Stewed soft shell turtle with ham: One whole soft shell turtle, pork, ham, bamboo shoots, a clove of
garlic, shallot, ginger, soy sauce, salt, rice wine, black pepper, lard are all stewed together in a pot on
charcoal fire. The dish is not greasy and can lead diners to endless aftertastes.

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 Stewed soft shell turtle with ham

Steamed stone frog: Inhabited in caves, stone frog is a special product in Huangshan Mountain.
Itweights 250 grams or so, whose belly is white and back black with stripe. Stone frog is rich in
protein, calcium and so on. It has the functions of clearing heat, improving vision and nutrition.

Bamboo shoots cooked with sausage and dried mushroom: One traditional flavor in Huizhou
mountainous area. Cooked with sausage and dried mushrooms, the bamboo shoots are more fragrant.
It is delicious, and noted for its good color, juicy meat and thick soup.

Bamboo shoots cooked with sausage and dried mushroom

Li Hongzhang Hodge-Podge: Li Hongzhang hotchpotch is a popular dish named after one of Anhui's famous person
Li Hongzhang, who was a top official of the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). When he was in office, he paid a visit to the US
and hosted a banquet for all his American friends. As the specially prepared dishes continued to flow, the chefs, with limited
resources, began to fret. Upon Li Hongzhang's order, the remaining kitchen ingredients were thrown together into an
impromptu stew, containing sea cucumber, squid, tofu, ham, mushroom, chicken meat and other less identifiable food
materials! Thus appetites were quenched and a dish was created.

Li Hongzhang Hotchpotch

2. Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese (Yue) cuisine comes from Guangdong in Southern China Of all the regional varieties of
Chinese cuisine, Cantonese is renowned both inside and outside China Its prominence outside China is
due to its palatability to Westerners and the great numbers of early emigrants from Guangdong. In
China, too, it enjoys great prestige among the eight great traditions of Chinese cuisine, and Cantonese
chefs are highly sought after throughout the country.

Cantonese cuisine incorporates almost all edible meats, including organ meats, chicken feet, duck and
duck tongues, snakes, and snails. Many cooking methods are used, steaming and stir-frying being the
most favoured due to their convenience and rapidity, and their ability to bring out the flavor of the
freshest ingredients. Other techniques include shallow frying, double boiling, braising, and deep-
frying.

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Elements of cooking

Sauces and condiments

Blanched kailan with oyster sauce

Classic Cantonese sauces are light, mellow and perhaps bland compared to the thicker, darker, and
richer sauces of other Chinese cuisines. Spring onion, sugar, salt, soy sauce, rice wine, corn starch,
vinegar, sesame oil, and other oils suffice to enhance flavor in most Cantonese cooking, though garlic
is used heavily in some dishes, especially those in which internal organs, such as entrails, may emit
unpleasant odors. Ginger, chili peppers, five-spice powder, powdered white pepper, star anise and a
few other spices are used, but often sparingly.
Sauces and condiments include:

• Hoisin sauce • Fermented bean

• Oyster sauce paste
• Plum sauce • Shrimp paste
• Sweet and sour sauce • Red vinegar
• Black bean paste • Master stock
• Char siu sauce

Hoisin sauce

Hoisin sauce, or Haixian Sauce, (hǎixiānjiàng) also called suckling pig sauce, is a Chinese dipping
sauce. The word Hoisin is a romanization of the Chinese word for seafood as pronounced in
Cantonese. Mandarin-style Hoisin sauce ingredients include water, sugar, soybeans, white distilled
vinegar, rice, salt, wheat flour, garlic, and red chili peppers, and several preservatives and coloring
agents. Traditionally, Hoisin sauce is made using sweet potato. Despite the literal meaning of
"seafood," Hoisin sauce does not contain fish. It is similar to the sweet noodle sauce made from
fermented soybeans, but has the added ingredients of garlic, vinegar, and chili peppers. Additionally, it
tastes less pungent than sweet noodle sauce.

Oyster sauce

Oyster sauce is a viscous dark brown sauce commonly used in Chinese, Filipino, Thai and Khmer
cuisine. It is especially common in Cantonese cuisine. Oyster sauce is prepared from oysters, brine,
umami flavour enhancers such as MSG, and typically contains preservatives to increase its shelf life.
A "true" oyster sauce of good quality should be made by condensing oyster extracts, the white broth
produced by boiling oysters in water.

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 Vegetarian oyster sauce is prepared from mushrooms, often oyster mushrooms, is also popular and
generally lower in price. It may contain more taste enhancers if less mushroom extract is used to
reduce costs.

Plum sauce

Plum sauce is a viscous, light brown sweet and sour condiment. It is used in Chinese cuisine as a dip
for deep-fried dishes, such as spring rolls, egg rolls, noodles, and deep-fried chicken balls as well as
for roast duck. It is made from sweet rotted plums or other fruit such as peach or apricot, along with
sugar, vinegar, ginger and chiles.

Sweet and sour sauce

Sweet and sour is a generic term that encompasses many styles of sauce, cuisine and cooking
methods. It has long been popular in North America and Europe, where it is stereotypically considered
a component of standard Chinese cuisine. It does in fact originate from China, and is now also used in
some American and European cuisines.

Fermented bean paste

Fermented bean paste is a category of fermented foods typically made from ground soybeans, which
are indigenous to the cuisines of East and Southeast Asia. In some cases, such as in the production of
miso, other varieties of beans such as broad beans, may also be used.

The pastes are usually salty and savory, but may also be spicy, and are used as a condiment to flavor
foods such as stir-fries, stews, and soups. The colours of such pastes range from light tan, to reddish
brown and dark brown. The differences in colour are due to different production methods such as the
conditions of fermentation, the addition of wheat flour, pulverized mantou, rice, or sugar and the
presence of different microflora such as bacteria or molds used in their production, as well as whether
the soybeans are roasted (as in chunjang) or aged (as in tauchu) before being ground.

Due to the protein content of the beans, the fermentation process releases a large amount of free amino
acids, which when combined with the large amounts of salt used in its production, produces a highly
umami product. This is particularly true with miso, which can be used as the primary ingredient in
certain dishes such as miso soup.

Shrimp paste

Shrimp paste being dried under the sun in Hong Kong

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Shrimp paste or shrimp sauce, is a common ingredient used in Southeast Asian and Southern
Chinese cuisine. It is known as terasi (also spelled trassi, terasie) in Indonesian, Ngapi in Burmese
kapi (กะปิ ) in Thai, Khmer and Lao language, belacan (also spelled belachan, blachang) in Malay,
mắm ruốc, mắm tép and mắm tôm in Vietnamese (the name depends on the shrimp used)[1],
bagoong alamang (also known as bagoong aramang) in Filipino and hom ha/hae ko (POJ: hê-ko) in
Min Nan Chinese.

It is made from fermented ground shrimp, sun dried and then cut into fist-sized rectangular blocks. It is
not designed, nor customarily used for immediate consumption and has to be fully cooked prior to
consumption since it is raw. To many Westerners unfamiliar with this condiment, the smell can be
extremely repulsive; however, it is an essential ingredient in many curries and sauces. Shrimp paste
can be found in most meals in Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the
Philippines. It is often an ingredient in dipping sauce for fish or vegetables.

Master stock

Master stock refers to an aromatic, reusable stock in which meat is poached, typically used in
Cantonese and Fujianese cuisine. Master stock has its roots in Chinese cooking and the base stock is
made from typical Chinese ingredients: water, soy sauce, rock sugar, garlic and ginger. A variety of
other spices and flavourings are usually also added such as scallions, shallots, star anise, dried citrus
peel, cassia bark, sand ginger, Chinese rice wine, Szechuan pepper, and dried mushrooms

Siu haau sauce

Siu haau sauce is the primary barbecue sauce used in Chinese and Cantonese cuisine. It is used during
the barbecue-cooking process as opposed to a flavoring sauce after the food is made

Duck sauce

Duck sauce is a translucent sweet and sour orange condiment used in some Chinese-American
restaurants. It may be used as a dip for deep-fried dishes such as duck, chicken, fish, spring rolls, egg
rolls, or with rice or noodles. It may be made of apricots, plums, or peaches added to sugar, vinegar,
ginger and chilis. It is rarely, if ever, used in traditional Chinese cooking. Due to fruit content it may
be called "plum sauce".

Dried and preserved ingredients

Though Cantonese cooks pay much attention to the freshness of their cooking ingredients, Cantonese
cooking also uses a long list of preserved food items to give a depth of flavour to a dish

• Dried scallops • Preserve-salted pork

• Fermented tofu ( laap yuk)
• Fermented black beans • Salted duck egg
• Chinese sausage • Century egg
• Preserve-salted fish • Dried cabbage ( choi
( haam yu) gon)
• Preserve-salted duck • Chinese sauerkraut
(laap ngaap) ( haam suen choi)
• Dried small shrimp
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 • Tofu skin • Pickled Chinese
• Dried shrimp/ha gon cabbage (mui choi)
(usually deveined, shelled, and • Pickled diced daikon
sliced in half) ( choi po)

Conpoy

Conpoy or dried scallop is type of dried seafood product made from the adductor muscle of scallops.
The smell of conpoy is marine, pungent, and reminiscent of certain salt-cured meats. Its taste is rich
and umami due to its high content of various free amino acids, such as glycine, alanine, and glutamic
acid. It is also rich in nucleic acids such as inosinic acid, amino acid byproducts such as taurine, and
minerals, such as calcium and zinc.

Douchi

Douchi, also called Chinese fermented black beans, is a flavoring most popular in the cuisine of
China, and is used to make black bean sauce.

Douchi is made by fermenting and salting soybeans. The process turns the beans black, soft, and
mostly dry. The flavor is sharp, pungent, and spicy in smell, with a taste that is salty and somewhat
bitter and sweet.

Douchi should not be confused with black turtle beans, a variety of common bean that is commonly
used in the cuisines of Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.

In Japanese, douchi is also referred to by the same kanji (豆豉) and pronounced as touchi.

Salted duck egg

Salted duck egg

Salted duck egg is a Chinese preserved food product made by soaking duck eggs in brine, or packing
each egg in damp salted charcoal. In Asian supermarkets, these eggs are sometimes sold covered in a
thick layer of salted charcoal paste. The eggs may also be sold with the salted paste removed, wrapped
in plastic, and vacuum packed. From the salt curing process, the salted duck eggs have a briny aroma,
a very liquid egg white and a yolk that is bright orange-red in colour, round, and firm in texture.

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Salted duck eggs are normally boiled or steamed before being peeled and eaten as a condiment to
congee or cooked with other foods as a flavouring. The egg white has a sharp, salty taste. The orange
red yolk is rich, fatty, and less salty. The yolk is prized and is used in Chinese mooncakes to
symbolize the moon.

Despite its name, salted duck eggs can also be made from chicken eggs though the taste and texture
will be somewhat different, and the egg yolk will be less rich.

Century egg

Century egg, also known as preserved egg, hundred-year egg, thousand-year egg, and thousand-
year-old egg, is a Chinese cuisine ingredient made by preserving duck, chicken or quail eggs in a
mixture of clay, ash, salt, lime, and rice straw for several weeks to several months, depending on the
method of processing. After the process is completed, the yolk becomes a dark green, cream-like
substance with a strong odor of sulphur and ammonia, while the white becomes a dark brown,
transparent jelly with little flavour or taste. The transforming agent in the century egg is its alkaline
material, which gradually raises the pH of the egg from around 9 to 12 or more. This chemical process
breaks down some of the complex, flavorless proteins and fats, which produces a variety of smaller
flavourful compounds.

Chinese cabbage, Bok Choy

Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa subspecies, see below), also known as snow cabbage, is a Chinese
leaf vegetable often used in Chinese cuisine. The vegetable is related to the Western cabbage, and is of
the same species as the common turnip. There are many variations on its name, spelling, and scientific
classification.

Dried shrimp

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Dried shrimp are shrimp that have been sun dried and shrunk to a thumbnail size. They are used
primarily in Chinese cuisine, imparting a unique umami taste. A handful of shrimp are generally used
for dishes. When cooked, the flavor is released as an ingredient. Despite the literal meaning of the
name "shrimp rice", it has nothing to do with rice other than the fact that the shrimp are shrunk to a
tiny size similar to grains of rice.

Tofu skin

Tofu skin also known as dried beancurd, yuba or bean skim, is a Chinese and Japanese food
product made from soybeans. During the boiling of soy milk, in an open shallow pan, a film or skin
composed primarily of a soy protein-lipid complex forms on the liquid surface. The films are collected
and dried into yellowish sheets known as tofu skin or soy milk skin. Because it is derived directly from
soy milk, the name tofu skin is technically inaccurate

Cantonese dishes

Traditional dishes

A number of dishes have been a part of the Cantonese cuisine collection since the earliest territorial
establishments of Guangdong province. Home-made Cantonese dishes are usually served with plain
white rice.

Chinese steamed eggs

The three color version of Chinese steamed egg

Chinese steamed eggs or Water egg is a Chinese home-style dish found all over China. Eggs are
beaten to a consistency similar to what would be used for an omelet and then steamed.

As with the Western omelet, other liquids can be added to this dish. Sometimes water, chicken broth
or soy milk are used. The purpose of adding the extra liquid is to create a more tender texture and to
add extra flavor (as in the case of adding chicken broth). Other solid ingredients may be added too
such as minced pork, minced chicken, and spring onions. The egg mixture is then placed in a bowl or
dish. The dish is then placed in a steamer then steamed until fully cooked. The eggs should be steamed
just until firm, so that the texture of the eggs is still smooth and silky.

Congee with century egg

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Rice congee (pronounced /ˈkɒndʒiː/) is a type of rice porridge that is eaten in many Asian countries.
The word congee is possibly derived from the Dravidian word kanji. The Webster's Dictionary lists the
etymology of "Congee" as coming from China.

In some cultures, congee is eaten primarily as a breakfast food or late supper; while in others, it is
eaten as a substitute for rice at other meals.

Congee can be made in a pot or in a rice cooker. Some rice cookers even have a "congee" setting,
allowing the user to cook their breakfast congee overnight.

Fried rice

fried rice

Fried rice is a popular component of Chinese food and other forms of Asian cuisine. It is made from
rice fried in a wok, typically with additional ingredients left over from other dishes.[1] It is sometimes
served as the penultimate dish in Chinese banquets (just before dessert).

Ingredients used in fried rice are greatly varied. They can include eggs, poultry and meat (chicken,
pork), vegetables (carrots, bean sprouts, celery, peas, corn), spices and peppers, and soy sauce. It is
often stir-fried in a wok with vegetable oil or animal fat to prevent sticking, as well as for flavour.
Onions and garlic add zest and extra flavour. It is popularly eaten either as an accompaniment to
another dish, or as a course by itself.

Sweet and sour pork

Sweet and sour pork

Sweet and sour pork is a Chinese dish that is particularly popular in Cantonese cuisine, American
Chinese cuisine, Canadian Chinese cuisine, British cuisine and Korean Chinese cuisine.

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The dish consists of deep frying pork in bite sized pieces, and subsequently stir-fried in a more
customized version of sweet and sour sauce made of sugar, ketchup, white vinegar, and soy sauce, and
additional ingredients including pineapple, bell pepper, and onion.

Deep fried dishes

There are a small selection of deep fried dishes in Cantonese cuisine, and can often be found as street
food

Zhaliang

Zhaliang is a kind of food in Chinese cuisine. It is made by tightly wrapping rice noodle roll outside
of youtiao (fried dough). It is most popular in the Guangdong province of southern China, as well as in
Hong Kong.

For breakfast, it is usually eaten with soy milk.

For dim sum, it is often sprinkled with sesame and layered with soy sauce. Other ingredients include
hoisin sauce or sesame paste to the likes of tahini

Youtiao

Pieces of Youtiao

Youtiao, you char kway, or yau ja gwai , sometimes known in English as Chinese cruller fried
bread stick or Chinese doughnut, is a long, golden-brown, deep fried strip of dough in Chinese
cuisine and other East and Southeast Asian cuisines and is usually eaten for breakfast. Conventionally,
youtiao are lightly salted and made so they can be torn lengthwise in two. Youtiao are normally eaten
as an accompaniment for rice congee or soy milk.

Dace Fish ball

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 Fishball Rice vermicelli with fishball and beef ball

Fish balls are a commonly cooked food in southern China and overseas Chinese communities. As the
name suggests, the ball is made of fish meat that has been finely pulverized. Gourmet fish balls are
pulverized by hand. Fish balls are a type of food product made from surimi(ground meat).

A dace is any of a number of species of small fish. The unmodified name is usually a reference to the
Common Dace (Leuciscus leuciscus). Like this, most fishes called "daces" belong to the family
Cyprinidae, mostly in subfamily Leuciscinae

Krupuk

Freshly made prawn crackers

Krupuk, kerupuk, or kroepoek in (Indonesia); Keropok in (Malaysia); bánh phồng tôm in

Vietnam; prawn crackers in British English, shrimp chips or shrimp crackers in American English;
is a popular snack in parts of East and Southeast Asia. Krupuk are deep fried crackers made from
prawns and starch.
Krupuk are made by mixing prawns, tapioca flour and water. The mixture is rolled out, steamed, sliced
and sun dried. Once dry, they are deep-fried in oil. In only a few seconds they expand from thumb-
sized semi-transparent chips to white fluffy crackers, much like popcorn, as the small bubbles of air
trapped in the flexible chips expand.

Slow cooked soup

Another notable Cantonese speciality is slow-cooked soup, or lo foh tong in the Cantonese dialect
(literally meaning old fire-cooked soup). The soup is usually a clear broth prepared by simmering meat
and other ingredients for several hours. Sometimes, Chinese herbal medicines are added to the pot.
Ingredients vary greater depending on the type of soup.

• Snow fungus soup

• Spare rib soup with watercress and apricot kernels
• Cantonese seafood soup (not formally considered "slow cooked")
• Winter melon soup (not formally considered "slow cooked")

Cantonese seafood soup

Cantonese seafood soup is one of the main seafood soup within Cantonese cuisine. It is commonly
found in Hong Kong. It is also available in some overseas Chinatowns. The soup is usually considered
midrange to high-end in price depending on the ingredients

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Egg drop soup

A bowl of egg drop soup

Egg drop soup is best known as a Chinese soup of beaten eggs, chicken broth, and boiled water.
Condiments such as table salt, black pepper, and scallions are also commonly added. The soup is
finished by adding a thin stream of beaten eggs to the boiling broth, creating thin, silken strands of
cooked egg that float in the soup. Egg drop soup using a different recipe is also known as a simple
soup in different European countries and Japan.

Winter melon soup

A small bowl of Chinese winter melon soup winter melon soup

Seafood

Due to Guangdong's location on the southern coast of China, fresh live seafood is a specialty in
Cantonese cuisine. As a rule of thumb in Cantonese dining, the spiciness of a dish is usually inversely
proportional to the freshness of the ingredients.

• Steamed fish
• Steamed scallops with ginger and garlic
• White boiled shrimp
• Lobster with ginger and scallions
• "pissing shrimp" (mantis shrimp)

Noodle dishes

A number of noodle dishes are part of the Cantonese cuisine

• Wonton noodle
• Chinese noodles with fish balls, beef balls, or fish slices
• Beef chow fun
• Shahe fen
• Lo mein
• Pan-fried crispy noodles

Wonton noodle
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 Wonton noodle (Hong Kong style)

Wonton noodle or wantan mee is a Cantonese noodle dish which is popular in Hong Kong, Malaysia,
and Singapore. The dish is usually served in hot soup, garnished with leafy vegetables, and wonton.
The types of leafy vegetables used are usually kailan also known as Chinese kale. Another type of
dumpling known as shui jiao is sometimes served in place of wonton. It contains prawns, chicken or
pork, spring onions with some chefs adding mushroom and black fungus

Beef chow fun

Beef chow fun is a staple Cantonese dish, made from stir-frying beef, hefen (wide rice noodles) and
bean sprouts and is commonly found in Chinese yum cha restaurants in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and
even overseas, as well as in cha chaan tengs.

The main ingredient of this dish is ho fun noodles, which is also known as Shahe fen, originating from
the town of Shahe in Guangzhou. The most common methods of cooking ho fun are in soup or stir
fried. Ho fun can be dry-fried (fried without sauce) or wet-fried (fried with a sauce).

Shahe fen

A thinner version of Shahe fen

Shahe fen or he fen is a type of wide Chinese noodle made from rice. While shahe fen and he fen are
transliterations based on Standard Mandarin, there are numerous other transliterations based on
Cantonese Chinese, which include ho fen, hofen, ho-fen, ho fun, ho-fun, hofoen (a Dutch
transliteration in Suriname), hor fun, hor fen, sar hor fun, etc. In addition, shahe fen is often called
kway teow , literally "rice cake strips," transliteration based on Min Nan Chinese, POJ: kóe-tiâu) or
guotiao (pinyin: guǒtiáo; the corresponding transliteration based on Standard Mandarin), as in the
name of a dish called char kway teow.

Lo mein

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Cantonese-style lo mein American-Chinese-style lo mein

Lo mein is a Chinese dish with noodles. It often contains vegetables and some type of meat or
seafood, usually beef, chicken, pork, shrimp or wontons. Traditionally this is a variation of wonton
noodle soup. The soup is simply separated from the noodles and other ingredients and served on the
side. However, the version sold in many places in North America is rather a hybrid of chow mein,
though they are prepared differently. Chow mein is stir-fried while lo mein is not fried.

Siu mei

Siu mei is the generic name, in Cantonese cuisine, given to meats roasted on spits over an open fire or
a huge wood burning rotisserie oven. It creates a unique, deep barbecue flavor that is usually enhanced
by a flavorful sauce (a different sauce is used for each meat). Shops selling these meats are commonly
found in Chinese-speaking regions in East and Southeast Asia.

• Char siu • Roasted goose ( siu

• Roasted duck( siu ngo)
ngap) • Roasted pig

Char siu

Char siu (also spelled cha siu, chashao, and char siew), otherwise known as barbecued pork in
China or Chinese barbecued/roast pork outside China, is a popular way to prepare pork in
Cantonese cuisine.[1] It is classified as a type of siu mei, Cantonese roasted meat dishes.

Roasted pig

Sliced Roasted Pig

Roasted pig is a variety of siu mei, or roasted meat dishes, within Cantonese cuisine. It is made by
roasting an entire pig with seasoning in a charcoal furnace at high temperature. Roasted pigs of high
quality have crisp skin and juicy and tender meat. Usually the meat is served plain, but it is sometimes
served with soy sauce or hoisin sauce.

Lou mei

Lou mei is the name given to dishes made by simmering in a seasoned soy-based sauce. Often, lou
mei is made from internal organs, entrails and left-over parts of animals. It is grouped under the
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heading siu laap as part of Cantonese cuisine. The most common animals involved are cattle, pigs,
duck and chicken. It is widely available in Southern Chinese regions. Selections vary greatly among
overseas Chinatowns, and some restaurants do not offer lou mei at all.

• Beef entrails • Duck gizzard

• Beef stew • Pig tongue

Siu laap

Just about all the Cantonese-style cooked meat including siu mei, lou mei and preserved meat can be
mixed together under the generic name (Siu laap). Siu laap also includes foods such as:

• White cut chicken • Soy sauce chicken ( si

• Orange cuttlefish yau gai)
• Poached duck in
master stock

White cut chicken

White cut chicken with Shanghai bok choy and broth

White cut chicken or white sliced chicken is a variety of siu mei, or roasted meat dishes, within
Cantonese cuisine Unlike most other meats in the siu mei category, this particular dish is not roasted.

The chicken is salt marinated and boiled in its entirety in water or chicken broth with ginger. When the
water starts to boil, the heat is turned off, allowing the chicken to cook in the residual heat for around
30 minutes. The chicken's skin will remain light coloured, nearly white and, if cooked correctly, the
meat will be quite tender, moist, and flavourful.

Due to the simplicity of the preparation, the quality of the ingredients are highly important for the
success of the dish.

Orange cuttlefish

Orange cuttlefish

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Orange cuttlefish or Orange squid is the most common English name used for the cuttlefish dish
within Cantonese cuisine. It is one of the siu mei dishes, though it is not quite roasted. The dish is most
commonly found in Southern China, Hong Kong and overseas Chinatowns.

Little pan rice

Little pan rice

Little pan rice are dishes that are cooked and served in a flat-bottomed pan (as opposed to a round-
bottomed wok). Usually it is a saucepan or braising pan (Clay pot cooking). Such dishes are cooked by
covering and steaming, making the rice and ingredients very hot and soft. Usually the ingredients are
layered on top of the rice with little to no mixing in between. Quite a number of ingredients are used
with many standard combinations.

• Layered egg and beef • Steamed chicken over

over rice rice
• Layered steak over rice • Preserved chinese
• Tofu pot over rice sausage over rice
• Pork spare ribs over • Pork "pastry" over
rice rice

Night dishes

There are a number of dishes that are often served in Cantonese restaurants exclusively during dinner.
Some dishes are more standard while others are quite regional. Some are customized for special
purposes like Chinese marriages or banquets. Salt and pepper dishes are one of the few spicy dishes.

• Crispy fried chicken • Sour spare ribs

• Seafood birdsnest • Salt and pepper rib
• Roasted suckling pig • Salt and pepper squid
• Taro duck • Salt and pepper shrimp
• Roast young • Fried tofu with shrimp
pigeon/squabs

Crispy fried chicken

Crispy fried chicken

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Crispy fried chicken is a standard dish in the Cantonese cuisine of southern China. The chicken is
fried in such a way that the skin is extremely crunchy, but the white meat is relatively soft.

The dish is unique in that it is served almost universally with the same two side dishes, a pepper salt
and prawn cracker .

Seafood birdsnest

Seafood birdsnest

Seafood birdsnest is a common Chinese cuisine dish found in Hong Kong, China and most overseas
Chinatown restaurants. It is also found within Cantonese cuisine. It is usually classified as a mid to
high-end dish depending on the seafood offered.

Basket

The edible nest holding the seafood is made entirely out of fried taro. There are different intricate
netting used in the nest making. In all cases, the basket is tough and crunchy.

Fillings

Despite the name there is nothing bird related in this dish. The most common ingredients are scallops,
peapods, boneless fish fillet, celery sticks, straw mushrooms, calamari, shrimp. There are no dried
ingredients in this dish.

Suckling pig

Suckling pig ( sucking pig is a young pig that has only fed on its mother's milk. The piglet is
slaughtered between the ages of two to six weeks, and traditionally it is roasted. The dish is usually
reserved for special occasions.

The flesh of the suckling pig is pale and tender and the skin is crispy and highly valued as pork rinds.
The texture of the meat is somewhat gelatinous due to the amount of collagen in the young pig.

Dessert

After a night meal or dish, Cantonese restaurants usually offer tong sui(Tong sui, also known as tian
tang, is a collective term for any sweet, warm soup or custard served as a dessert at the end of a meal
in Cantonese cuisine.), or sweet soups [literally meaning sugar water]. Many of the varieties are
shared between Cantonese and other Chinese cuisines. Some desserts are more traditional, while
others are more recent with local chef creativity. Higher end restaurants usually offer their own blend
and customization of desserts.

• Red bean soup • Black sesame soup

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 • Sai mai lo • Coconut bar
• Sweet potato soup • Shaved Ice
• Mung bean soup • Steamed egg custard
• Dau fu fa • Steamed milk custard
• Guilinggao • Double skin milk
• Sweet Chinese pastry

Black sesame soup

Black sesame soup is a popular Chinese dessert that can be widely found throughout China and Hong
Kong. It is generally served hot.

Preparation

In Cantonese cuisine, it is a form of tong sui, or sweet soup (similar to Western pudding). The main
ingredient is crushed black sesame seeds in a flour form. It is boiled with hot water. Sometimes,
granulated sugar is added, though the sesame seeds are usually sweet enough by default. It can now
also be easily home-made using instant packets. The soup is perhaps the thickest of all tong sui.
Tangyuan is also sometimes added into black sesame soup.

Tapioca pudding

Tapioca pudding Hong Kong Sai mai lo

Tapioca pudding (also sago pudding) is a sweet pudding made with tapioca and either milk, or in
lactose intolerant cultures, coconut milk. It is made in many cultures with equally varying styles. Its
consistency ranges from thin (runny), to thick, to firm enough to eat with a fork.

The pudding can be made from scratch using tapioca in a variety of forms: flakes, coarse meal, sticks,
and pearls. Many commercial packaged mixes are available also. Uncooked, tapioca pearls resemble
pellets of styrofoam; cooked, they resemble fish eggs.

Sweet potato soup

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Sweet potato soup is a Chinese dessert found in Southern China and Hong Kong.

In Cantonese cuisine it is categorized as a tong sui or sweet soup, hence the Chinese name. The soup is
usually thin, but potent in taste. The recipe is simple, consisting of boiling the sweet potato for a long
time with rock candy. Sweet potato is one of the most commonly found and abundant vegetable grown
in China. With its simple recipe and large crop supply, sweet potato soup is one of the most accessible
and affordable tong sui in the region.

Coconut bar

Coconut bar

Coconut bar is a refrigerated dim sum dessert found in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Southern China and in
overseas Chinatowns. It is sweet and has a soft, gelatin-like texture but is white in color rather than
translucent like gelatin. It is sometimes referred to as coconut pudding despite not really being a
pudding.

Preparation

The dessert is made of coconut paste. It is sweetened, and sometimes sprinkled with desiccated
coconuts. The texture is smooth, and the standard dim sum version has no filling.

Delicacies

There are some dishes that are prized within the culture. These dishes range from being medium price
to very expensive. Most of these have been around in the Far East for a long time, while some are just
barely becoming available around the world. Many of these prized animals have serious animal rights
controversial issues such as finning of Shark cartilages due to increasing price demands.

• Braised abalone ( bao • Sea cucumber ( hoi

yu) sam)
• Jellyfish • Swallow's nest soup
• Shark fin soup ( yu qi ( yeen waw)
tong)

Bao yu

Cantonese style steamed bao yu in shell

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Bào yú is the common Chinese name given to abalone[Abalone (from Spanish Abulón) are medium-
sized to very large edible sea snails], a highly prized and expensive ingredient used in Chinese cuisine.
In certain regional Chinese cuisines, its status ranks with such prized ingredients as shark's fin, sea
cucumber and bird's nest.

Fresh abalone is rarely used in Chinese cuisine. It is often purchased in dehydrated form and
rehydrated prior to cooking. Recently, the use of canned abalone in recipes has risen in popularity.

Unlike Japanese cuisine, only the adductor muscle of the abalone is consumed in Chinese cuisine.
Abalone innards are rarely, if ever, used in Chinese cooking.

Shark fin soup

Shark fin soup

Shark fin soup (or shark's fin soup) is a Chinese delicacy that has been a popular item of Chinese
cuisine, usually served at special occasions such as weddings and banquets. As a luxury item, the dish
is also considered a symbol of wealth and prestige in Chinese culture.

The "finning" of sharks required to make this soup has become highly controversial in recent years, as
consumption has grown dramatically following certain sectors of Chinese society becoming more
affluent. Animal rights activists and environmentalists have called the practice brutal, and it is also
named as a primary contributing factor in the global decline of many shark species.

Sea cucumber (Hoi sam)

Hoi sam

Hoi sam (also spelled hoi sum) is the name given to sea cucumber or sea slugs when used as an
ingredient in a number of Chinese cuisines. Most cultures in East and Southeast Asia classify it as a
delicacy.

There is a fresh form and there is a dried form. Both the fresh and dried form are used for cooking.
Individually the dried is also used for traditional Chinese medicine. There are a number of dishes made
with hoi sam as this ingredient is expected to have a strong cultural emphasis on health. In most
dishes, the sea cucumber comes out with a slippery texture. Common ingredients that go with hoi sam
dishes include winter melon, dried scallop, broccoli, Chinese black mushroom, and Chinese cabbage.

Bird's nest soup

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The key ingredient of bird-nest soup Bird Nests box

Bird's nest soup is a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. A few species of swift, the cave swifts, are
renowned for building the saliva nests used to produce the unique texture of this soup.

The edible bird's nests are among the most expensive animal products consumed by humans. The nests
have been traditionally used in Chinese cooking for over 400 years, most often as bird's nest soup.

The Chinese name for bird's nest soup, "yan wo", translates literally as "swiftlet's nest" (yan=swiftlets,
wo=nest). When dissolved in water, the birds' nests have a gelatinous texture used for soup or sweet
tong sui.

3. Fujian cuisine

A bowl of Fujian style thick soup . Soups, soupy dishes, and stews are indicative of Fujian style
cuisine

Fujian cuisine is derived from the native cooking style of the province of Fujian, China. Fujian style
cuisine is known to be light but flavourful, soft, and tender, with particular emphasis on umami taste,
known in Chinese cooking as "xiānwèi", as well as retaining the original flavour of the main
ingredients instead of masking them.

The techniques employed in the cuisine are complex but the results are ideally refined in taste with no
"loud" flavours. Particular attention is also paid on the knife skills and cooking technique of the chefs.
Emphasis is also on utilizing broth/soup, and there is a sayings in the region's cuisine: "One broth can
be changed into numerous (ten) forms" and "It is unacceptable for a meal to not have soup".

Styles

Fujian cuisine consists of four styles:

• Fuzhou: The taste is light compared to other styles, often with a mixed sweet and sour
taste. Fuzhou is famous for its soups.
• Western Fujian: There are often slight spicy tastes from mustard and pepper and the
cooking methods are often steam, fry and stir-fry.
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 • Southern Fujian: Spicy and sweet taste are often found and the selection of sauces used is
elaborate.
• Quanzhou: The least oily but with strongest taste/flavor of Fujian cuisine. Great emphasis
is placed on the shape of the material for each dish.

Seasonings

Unique seasoning from the province and it regions include shrimp oil, shrimp paste, sugar, Shacha
sauce, and preserved apricot. As well, wine lees from the production of rice wine is commonly used
in all aspects of the region's cuisine. Red yeast rice is also commonly used in the region's cuisine.

The province is also well know for its "drunken" (wine marinated) dishes and is famous for the quality
of the soup stocks and bases used to flavour their dishes, soups, and stews.

Shacha sauce

Shacha sauce (also spelled sa cha sauce) or paste is a Chinese condiment primarily used in Fujian,
Chiuchow, and Taiwanese cuisines. It is made from soybean oil, garlic, shallots, chilis, brill fish, and
dried shrimp. It has a savory and slightly spicy taste.

The ingredient has multiple uses:

• as a base for soups

• as a rub for barbecued meats
• as a seasoning for stir fry dishes
• as a component for dipping sauces, for example as used in hot pot meals

Red yeast rice

Dried grain red yeast rice

Red yeast rice, red fermented rice, red kojic rice, red koji rice, or ang-kak, is a bright reddish
purple fermented rice, acquires its colour from being cultivated.

Notable dishes

One of the most famous dishes in Fujian cuisine is "Buddha jumps over the wall" （佛跳墙, POJ: hut
thiau chhiun, Pinyin: fotiaoqiang), a complex dish making use of many ingredients, including shark
fin, sea cucumber, abalone, and Shaoxing wine

Other notable dishes include:

• Oyster omelette
• Popiah
• Ban mian : Flat-shaped egg noodle soup
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 • Bak kut teh
• Stuffed fish balls : Fish balls filled with meat
• Wuxian : Fried five-spice roll with pork and vegetables, which is known as kikiam in the
Philippines
• Hongcao chicken : Red yeast rice chicken
• Minshengguo : Stir fried raw peanuts
• Dancao xiangluopian: Snails(xiangluo) cooked with wine lees
• Qīngjiāo ròusī : Green pepper(qingjiao) and pork strips(rousi). It has been adapted to become
"Pepper steak" in Chinese restaurants in the West.
• Jitangcuanhaibang: Clams cooked in chicken stock(jitang)
• Cuipi yujuan: Fried fish filled yuba skin
• Ganbei luobo : Radish(luobo) steamed with conpoy(Ganbei) and chinese ham
• Zuipaigu : Wine marinade pork ribs(paigu)
• Dongbi longzhu : Meat filled longan fruit
• Huangmen tianji: Wine braised frog
• Wucai xiasong: Stir-fried diced shrimp(xia) and vegetables
• Wucai zenzhuko: Squid pearls braised with vegetables

Oyster omelette

Oyster omelette

Oyster omelette is a Chinese dish of Teochew/Fujian origin. It is also popular in places with
Chaozhou and Fujianese influences such as in Guangdong, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, the
Philippines, and Taiwan (where it is often sold in night markets).

The dish consists of an omelette with a filling primarily composed of small oysters. Starch (typically
potato starch) is mixed into the egg batter, giving the resulting egg wrap a thicker consistency. Pork
lard is often used to fry the omelette. Depending on regional variation, a savory sauce may then be
poured on top of the omelette for added taste.

Spicy or chili sauce mixed with lime juice is often added to provide an intense taste.

Shrimp can sometimes be substituted in place of oysters; in this case, it will be called shrimp omelette.

Popiah

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 Closeup of a popiah

Popiah (Poh Piah) is a Fujian/Chaozhou-style fresh spring roll common in Taiwan, Singapore, and
Malaysia. Popiah is often eaten in the Fujian province of China (usually in Xiamen) and its
neighboring Chaoshan on the Qingming Festival.In the Teochew (Chaozhou) dialect, popiah is
pronounced as "Bo-BEE-a", which means "thin wafer" (also in the Hokkien dialect).

Ban mian

Ban mian", so named because of the shape of the noodles, is often served with
vegetables, anchovies and other condiments

Bǎn miàn is a Hokkien-style egg noodle soup common in parts of China's Fujian province, and also in
other parts of the world such as Singapore and Malaysia, although the dish itself may vary
significantly. Some forms of ban mian, for instance, comprise hand-kneaded pieces of dough, while
others use regular strips of noodles.

Ban mian (literally "board noodles") is so named due to the characteristic flat shape of its noodles.

4. Hunan cuisine

Hunan cured ham with pickled cowpeas

Hunan cuisine, sometimes called Xiang cuisine, consists of the cuisines of the Xiang River region,
Dongting Lake and western Hunan Province, in China. Hunan cuisine is consisted of three styles:
Xiang River style which is represented by dishes of Changsha, Dongting Lake style which is
represented by dishes of Hengyang, and western Hunan style which is represented by dishes of
Xiangtan.

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Hunan cuisine is one of the eight regional cuisines of China and is well known for its hot spicy flavor,
fresh aroma and deep color. Common cooking techniques include stewing, frying, pot-roasting,
braising, and smoking. Due to the high agricultural output of the region, ingredients for Hunan dishes
are many and varied.

Known for its liberal use of chilli peppers, shallots and garlic, Xiang cuisine is known for being dry
hot or purely hot, as opposed to the better known Sichuan cuisine, to which it is often compared.
Known for its distinctive málà (hot and numbing) seasoning and other complex flavour combinations,
Sichuan cuisine frequently employ Sichuan peppercorns along with chilies which are often dried, and
utilizes more dried or preserved ingredients and condiments. Hunan Cuisine, on the other hand, is
often spicier by pure chili content, contains a larger variety of fresh ingredients, tends to be oilier, and
is said to be purer and simpler in taste. Another characteristic distinguishing Hunan cuisine from
Sichuan cuisine is that, in general, Hunan cuisine uses smoked and cured goods in its dishes much
more frequently.

Another feature of Hunan cuisine is that the menu changes with the seasons. In a hot and humid
summer, a meal will usually start with cold dishes or a platter holding a selection of cold meats with
chilies for opening the pores and keeping cool in the summer. In winter, a popular choice is the hot
pot, thought to heat the blood in the cold months. A special hot pot called lover's hot pot is famous for
splitting the pot into a spicy side and a milder side.

History

The history of the cooking skills employed in the Hunan cuisine dates back many centuries. During the
course of its history, Hunan cuisine assimilated a variety of local forms, eventually evolving into its
own style. Now it contains more than 4000 dishes, among which over 300 dishes are very famous,
such as fried chicken with Sichuan spicy sauce and smoked pork with dried long green beans.

Representative dishes

• Dongan chicken • Changsha-style stinky tofu

• Mao's braised pork • Mashed shrimp in lotus pod
• Beer duck • Xiangdu roast duck
• Changsha vermicelli • Sizzling rice soup
• Steamed fish heads in chili sauce • Lotus Seeds in rock sugar syrup
• Orange beef • Pumpkin cake
• Hot and peppery chicken • Spicy frog leg
• Spare ribs steamed in bamboo • Oxtail porridge

5. Jiangsu cuisine
Jiangsu cuisine is one the Eight Culinary Traditions of China. It is derived from the native cooking
styles of the Jiangsu region in China. In general, Jiangsu cuisine's texture is characterized as soft, but
not to the point of mushy or falling apart. For example, the meat tastes quite soft but would not
separate from the bone when picked up. Other characters includes the strict selection of ingredients
according to the seasons, emphasis on the matching color and shape of each dish and emphasis on
using soup to improve the flavor. Although sometimes simply called Yang cuisine, named after its
major style, the Huaiyang cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine actually consists of several styles, including:

25
 • Nanjing cuisine: its dishes emphasize an even taste and matching color, with excellent dishes
incorporating river fish/shrimps and duck.
• Suzhou cuisine: emphasis on the selection of material, stronger taste than Nanjing cuisine, and
with a tendency to be sweeter than the other varieties of the cuisine.
• Wuxi cuisine: famed for the numerous types of congee.

Huaiyang cuisine
Huaiyang cuisine is a tradition within the cuisine of China derived from the native cooking styles of
the region surrounding the lower reaches of the Huai and Yangtze rivers, and centered upon the cities
of Yangzhou and Huai'an in Jiangsu province. It is the most popular style within Jiangsu cuisine, to
the point that the latter is sometimes misinterpreted as synonymous with Huaiyang cuisine,
disregarding its other traditions.

Typical features

Huaiyang cuisine characteristically founds each disch on its main ingredient, and the way that
ingredient is cut is pivotal to its cooking and its final taste. The cuisine is also known for employing its
famous Chinkiang vinegar, which is produced in the Zhenjiang region. Huaiyang cuisine tends to have
a sweet side to it and, in contrast to that of Sichuan cuisine, is almost never spicy. Pork, fresh water
fish, and other aquatic creatures serve as the meat base to most dishes, which are usually more
meticulous and light compared to the more “brash” eating styles of northern China.

Characteristic dishes

By far the most famous creation of Huaiyang cuisine is the Yangzhou fried rice.

Yeung Chow fried rice

Fried rice

"Yeung Chow Fried Rice" or "Yang Zhou Chao Fan" is a popular Guangdong style wok fried dish
in most Chinese restaurants in North America and Hong Kong. The ingredients vary, but there are
staple items like:hot cooked rice ,barbecued pork / 'cha siu' ,cooked shrimp ,scallions, chopped,
including green ends ,eggs slightly stirred ,cabbage.

Chinese barbecued pork or 'cha siu' is an essential ingredient in Yang Zhou Fried Rice. It is the
barbecued pork that gives it its special sweetish flavour

Huaiyang cuisine also includes several breakfast choices such as crab soup dumplings ( xie huang
tangbao), thousand layer cake ( qian ceng gao), steamed dumplings (zheng jiao), tofu noodles (da zhu
gan si), and wild vegetable steamed buns ( yecai baozi).
26
 • Other standard Yangzhou dishes include:
• Duck Egg and Pork Porridge (pi dan shou rou zhou)
• Sour Vegetable Fish Pot (suan cai yu)
• Pot Stickers (guo tie)
• Pork and Shrimp Dumpling Noodles (xiazi jiaomian)
• Giant “lion’s head” Meatball (shizi tou)
• Steamed Pork Rice Wraps (shao mai)
• Yangzhou Fried Rice (yangzhou chaofan)
• Sliced Fatty Pork Slices (hou pi xiang zhu)

6. Shandong cuisine
Shandong cuisine more commonly known as Lu cuisine is one the Eight Culinary Traditions of
China. It is derived from the native cooking styles of Shandong, an eastern coastal province of China.
Shandong cuisine consists of two major styles:

• Jiaodong style: This style encompasses dishes from Fushan, Qingdao, Yantai and surrounding
regions. It is characterized by seafood cooking, with light tastes.

• Jinan style: This style encompasses dishes from Jinan, dezhou, Tai'an and surrounding
regions. It is famed for its soup and utilizing soups in its dishes.

Ingredients

Though modern transportation methods have greatly increased the availability of ingredients
throughout China, Shandong cuisine remains rooted in its ancient traditions. Most notable is the
staggering array of seafood, including scallops, prawns, clams, sea cucumbers, and squid, all of which
are well known in Shandong as local ingredients of exemplary quality.

Corn

Beyond the use of seafood, Shandong is somewhat unique for its wide use of corn, a local cash crop
that is not widely cultivated in northern China. Unlike the sweet corn of North America, Shandong
corn is chewy and starchy, often with a grassy aroma. It is often served simply as steamed or boiled
cobs, or removed from the cob and lightly fried.

Peanuts

Shandong is also well known for its peanut crops, which are fragrant and naturally sweet. It is
common at meals in Shandong, both formal and casual, to see large platters of peanuts, either roasted
in the shell, or shelled and stir-fried with salt. Peanuts are also served raw in a number of cold dishes
that hail from the region.

Grains

27
Shandong is also distinct from most of China's other culinary traditions in its wide use of a variety of
small grains. Millet, wheat, oat and barley can be found in the local diet, often eaten as porridge
(Zhōu), or milled and cooked into one of the many varieties of steamed and fried breads eaten in
Shandong. More so than anywhere else in China, Shandong people are known for their tendency to eat
steamed breads, rather than rice, as the staple food in a meal.

Staple vegetables

Despite its rich agricultural output, Shandong has not traditionally used the wide variety of vegetables
seen in many southern styles of Chinese cooking. Potatoes, tomatoes, cabbages, mushrooms, onions,
garlic and eggplants make up the staple vegetables in the Shandong diet. Grassy greens, sea grasses,
and bell peppers are also not uncommon. The large, sweet cabbages grown in central Shandong are
renowned for their delicate flavor and hardiness. As has been the case for generations, these cabbages
are a staple of the winter diet throughout much of the province, and are featured in a great number of
dishes.

Vinegar

Possibly Shandong's greatest contribution to Chinese cuisine has been in the area of brewing vinegars.
Hundreds of years of experience combined with unique local methods have led to Shandong's
prominence as one of the premier regions for vinegar production in China. Unlike the lighter flavored,
sharper vinegars popular in the southern regions, Shandong vinegar has a rich, complex flavor which,
among some connoisseurs, is considered fine enough to be enjoyed on its own merits.

Baochao yaohua Mianjin hongshao paigu Jiuqu dachang Basi digua

7. Szechuan cuisine
Szechuan cuisine, Szechwan cuisine, or Sichuan cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine originating in
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 . Although the region is now romanized as Sichuan, the cuisine is still sometimes
spelled 'Szechuan' or 'Szechwan' in the West. There are many local variations of Sichuan cuisine
within Sichuan Province and Chongqing Municipality, which was politically part of Sichuan until
1997. The four best known regional sub-styles are Chongqing style, Chengdu style, Zigong style, and
Buddhist vegetarian style.

Szechuan cuisine often contains food preserved through pickling, salting, drying and smoking, and is
generally spicy. The Sichuan peppercorn is commonly used; it is an indigenous plant producing
peppercorns which has an intensively fragrant, citrus-like flavour and produces a "tingly-numbing"
sensation in the mouth. Also common are garlic, chili, ginger, star anise and other spicy herbs, plants
and spices. Broad bean chili paste is also a staple seasoning in Sichuan cuisine

Sichuan pepper
28
 Sichuan pepper

Sichuan pepper (or Szechuan pepper) is the outer pod of the tiny fruit of a number of species in the
genus Zanthoxylum (most commonly Z. piperitum, Z. simulans, and Z. schinifolium), widely grown
and consumed in Asia as a spice. Despite the name, it is not related to black pepper or to chili peppers.
It is widely used in the cuisine of Sichuan, China, from which it takes its name, as well as Tibetan,
Bhutanese, Nepalese, Japanese and Konkani and Batak Toba cuisines, among others

Representative dishes

Some well-known Szechuan dishes include.

• Tea smoked duck

• Twice cooked pork
• Mapo dofu
• Sichuan hotpot
• Fuqi Feipian
• Spicy deep-fried chicken
• Shuizhu, or literally "Water cooked", dishes
• Dan dan noodles and Bon bon chicken
• Szechuan Chicken Similar to Kung Pao but with a more savory sauce.

Zhangcha duck

Zhangcha duck

Zhangcha duck, or tea-smoked duck, is a quintessential dish of Szechuan cuisine. It is prepared by

hot smoking a marinated duck over tea leaves and twigs of the camphor plant. Due to its complicated
preparation, zhangcha duck is eaten more often in banquets or festive events than as a daily household
item.

Twice cooked pork

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 Twice cooked pork

Twice cooked pork; also called double cooked pork), along with , hot pot and Kung Pao chicken , is
probably the best-known Sichuan-style Chinese dish. The process of cooking Twice Cooked Pork
involves boiling pork rib steak chunks in hot water with slices of ginger and salt first, then after being
cut into thin slices, the pork is returned to a wok and shallow fried in hot oil. The most common
vegetables to accompany the pork in Twice-Cooked Pork are cabbage and peppers.

Mapo doufu

Mapo doufu, or mapo tofu, is a popular Chinese dish from the Sichuan (Szechuan) province. It is a
combination of tofu (bean curd) set in a spicy chili- and bean-based sauce, typically a thin, oily, and
bright red suspension, and often topped with minced meat, usually pork or beef. Variations exist with
other ingredients such as water chestnuts, onions, other vegetables, or wood ear fungus, but these are
rarely considered authentic Sichuanese.

Fuqi feipian

Fuqi feipian

Fuqi feipian; literally "Married Couple's Slices of Lung" is a popular Sichuan dish - often served cold
- which is made of thinly sliced beef, beef lung/stomach/tongue, and a generous amount of spices,
including Szechuan peppercorns. True to its roots, the desired taste should be both spicy and mouth-
numbing.

Shuizhu

Shuizhu is a Chinese dish that recently became popular in China as well as other countries. It is
originated in Sichuan and the name literally means "water-boiled meat slices". The preparation of this
dish usually involves some sort of meat (usually it is pork, beef, or fish), chili pepper, and a large
amount of vegetable oil.

Dan dan noodles

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 Dan dan noodles

Dan dan noodles is a classic dish of Chinese Sichuan cuisine. It consists of a spicy sauce containing
preserved vegetables, chili oil, Sichuan peppers, pork, and scallions served over noodles. In American
Chinese cuisine and with many modern vendors, ground peanuts, peanut butter, or sesame paste are
added, resulting in a stark contrast from the old, authentic version.

8. Zhejiang cuisine

Dongpo pork a famous dish in Zhejiang cuisine

Zhejiang cuisine is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of China. It is derived from the native
cooking styles of the Zhejiang region in China. Food made in the Zhejiang style is not greasy, having
instead a fresh and soft flavor with a mellow fragrance.

The cuisine consists of at least three styles, each originating from a city in the province: the Hangzhou
style is characterized by rich variations and the utilization of bamboo shoots, the Shaoxing style
specializes in poultry and freshwater fish, and the Ningbo style specializing in seafood, with emphasis
on freshness and salty dishes. Some sources also include the Wenzhou style as a separate subdivision,
characterized as the greatest source of seafood as well as poultry and livestock.

Hangzhou cuisine is the most well-known of the four styles. Some of its representative dishes include
Dongpo rou Fried pork belly stewed in soy sauce and wine), Jiaohua ji (beggar's chicken) and Xi Hu
cu yu (West Lake fish in vinegar). About half the dishes on a Hangzhou menu contain bamboo shoots,
which add a tender element to the food. Ningbo cuisine is regarded as rather salty.

In modern times, Beijing cuisine and Shanghai cuisine on occasion are also cited along with
the classical eight regional styles as the Ten Great Traditions . There are also featured Buddhist and
Muslim sub-cuisines within the greater Chinese cuisine, with an emphasis on vegetarian and halal-
based diets respectively.

Beijing cuisine
Beijing cuisine("capital cuisine") is the cooking style in Beijing, China. It is also formally known as
Mandarin cuisine. There are numerous dishes that has been developed and elvolved along the history
that some may prefer to call Lao Beijing Cuisine ( traditional Beijing cuisine). There are also a
31
number of new dishes developed since recent economic take-off that many people calls Xin Beijing
Cuisine (new Beijing cuisine) or New Chinese Cuisine .

Lao Beijing cuisine

Since Beijing has been the Chinese capital city for centuries, its cuisine has been influenced by
culinary traditions from all over China, but the cuisine that has exerted the greatest influence on
Beijing cuisine is the cuisine of the eastern coastal province of Shandong. Beijing cuisine has itself, in
turn, also greatly influenced other Chinese cuisines, particularly the cuisine of Liaoning, the Chinese
imperial cuisine, and the Chinese aristocrat cuisine. "The Emperor's Kitchen" was a term referring
to the cooking places (means kitchen) inside of the Forbidden City, Beijing where thousands of cooks
from the different parts of China showed their best cooking skills to please royal families and officials.
Therefore, it is at times rather difficult to determine the actual origin of a dish as the term "Mandarin"
is generalized and refers not only to Beijing, but other provinces as well. However, some
generalization of Beijing cuisine can be characterized as follows: Foods that originated in Beijing are
often snacks rather than full courses, and they are typically sold by little shops or street vendors. There
is emphasis on dark soy paste (zhajiang), sesame paste (majiang) sesame oil (xiangyou), and scallions
and fermented tofu (choudoufu) is often served as a condiment. In addition to materials, many
different processing methods are also applied to make differnt tastes. These processes including pan-
frying, saute, steam, deep frying. There is a lesser emphasis on rice as an accompaniment than in many
other areas of China, as local rice production is limited by the relatively dry climate.

Liaoning cuisine
Liaoning cuisine is derived from the native cooking styles of the Liaoning region in China, and it is
the most famous Northeastern Chinese cuisine. Liaoning cuisine has gained increased popularity in
China recently and its chefs have continuously won awards in the national culinary competitions in
China, and the cuisine is heavily influenced by Beijing cuisine. The main characteristics of Liaoning
cuisine is that it is colorful, tastes are strong, food is soft, and one dish has many flavors/tastes,
however, the sweet taste and the salty taste are very distinct

Chinese Imperial cuisine

Chinese imperial cuisine is derived from a variety of cooking styles of the regions in China, mainly
Shandong cuisine and Jiangsu cuisine. The style originated from the Emperor's Kitchen and the
Empress Dowager's Kitchen, and it is similar to Beijing cuisine which it heavily influenced. The
characteristics of the Chinese imperial cuisine is the elaborate cooking methods and the strict selection
of material, which are often extremely expensive and rare. Visual presentation is also very important,
so the color and the shape of the dish must be carefully arranged. The most famous Chinese imperial
cuisine restaurants are both located in Beijing: Fang Shan is in Beihai Park while Ting Li Ting is in the
Summer Palace.

The Imperial cuisine is popular among tourists.

Chinese aristocrat cuisine

Chinese aristocrat cuisine traces its origin to the Ming and Qing dynasties when the Imperial
officials stationed in Beijing brought their private chefs and such different variety of culinary styles
mixed and developed overtime and formed a unique breed of its own, and thus the Chinese aristocrat
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cuisine is often called private cuisine. The current Chinese aristocrat cuisine is a mixture of Shandong
cuisine, Huaiyang cuisine and Cantonese cuisine.

Well known Mandarin dishes

Peking Duck

Peking Duck

Peking Duck, or Peking Roast Duck is a famous duck dish from Beijing that has been prepared since
the imperial era, and is now considered one of China's national foods.

Hot and sour soup

Hot and sour soup

Hot and sour soup can refer to soups from several Asian culinary traditions. In all cases the soup
contains ingredients to make it both spicy and sour.

Instant-boiled mutton

Instant-boiled mutton( Shuàn Yángròu) is a very popular Chinese hot-pot dish.

Eating method

In China, when having instant-boiled mutton, people put a hot-pot filled with water at the middle of a
table. Normally food materials boiled in the pot include Tofu, Chinese leaves, bean vermicelli etc.

Lamb is pre-sliced and served on the table. The requirement on the lamb slices is that the slice must be
very thin like a paper, and each slice is complete.

Because lamb can be cooked in very short time and longer cooking will make the lamb more solid, the
way of having the lamb is to take some pre-sliced raw lamb using chopsticks, put it in the boiling hot-
pot and take out as soon as the lamb changes color.

Each person has a small bowl to hold some sauce. Cooked lamb is eaten with the sauce. The sauce
normally is a mixture of sesame sauce, chili oil, leek etc.

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Soft fried tenderloin (Ruan Zha Li Ji)

Soft fried tenderloin is a traditional dish of Beijing cuisine. The traditional culinary method of this dish
begins with the preparation of the main ingredients that include 200 grams of tenderloin, four eggs, 30
grams of cooking wine, 30 grams of flour, 10 grams of sesame oil, 1 kg of pork fat, and salt. The
tenderloin is cut into slices 4 cm long and 2 cm thick, and soaked in the mixture of rice wine and salt.
Egg whites are mixed with flour in a container to form a paste thick enough to keep a chopstick in a
standing position. Pork fat is heated and the marinated meat slices are fried for five minutes. When the
cooked tenderloin slices are ready for serving, sesame oil is added.

Zha jiang mian

Zha jiang mian

Zha jiang mian (lit. "fried sauce noodles") is a northern Chinese dish consisting of thick wheat
noodles topped with a mixture of ground pork stir-fried with fermented soybean paste.

Laobing

Laobing is a type of unleavened flatbread sold in parts of northern China and used in Beijing cuisine.
It is sometimes referred to as a Chinese pancake.

Laobing can be the size of a large pizza, about one centimeter thick, and is doughy and chewy in
texture. The bing is made by pan frying a thick unleavened batter consisting of salt, flour, and water.
Most laobing are plain, although some have scallions inside the pastry. Laobing is usually cut into
slices and served as a staple food, or can be stir-fried with meat and vegetables to make chaobing (stir-
fried Chinese pancakes).

Almond jelly (Almond tofu)

Almond jelly

Almond jelly is a popular dessert in Hong Kong. The dessert is also popular in Taiwan, Singapore,
and Japan and often found in dim sum restaurants worldwide. Almond jelly can be made using instant
mix or from scratch. It can be eaten alone or with fruit.

Tangyuan

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 Tangyuan

Tāngyuán is a Chinese food made from glutinous rice flour. Glutinous rice flour is mixed with a small
amount of water to form balls and is then cooked and served in boiling water. Tangyuan can be either
filled or unfilled. It is traditionally eaten during Yuanxiao, or the Lantern Festival.

The Lantern Festival ( Yuánxiāojié ) is a Chinese festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first
month in the lunar year in the Chinese calendar.

Xin Beijing cuisine

Since China's economic boom, local consumption in Beijing evolves quickly to accommodate
increasingly diversified new taste among Beijingers as well as travelers. This trend has been led by
two groups of people. The first group of people are cooks looking for ways to differentiate themselves
among others. The second group are local gourmets constantly looking for new tastes. The creative
ideas that feed into the recent development in Beijing come from other cuisines. As a result, non-
traditional ingredients and processing methods have been introduced or developed into Beijing
Cuisine, which is now commonly referred as New Beijing Cuisine. These new ingredients include
pepper, onion, cheese, pepper oil, and salad dressing. Baking, which is not popular among the Old
Beijing Cuisine, has become increasingly popular

Popular dishes among new Beijing cuisine

Sea Food

• Fresh abalone pumpkin soup • Deep fried fish w/ special sauce

• Spicy & sour fish fillets soup • Crispy & spicy shrimp
• Spicy & fermented crab • Rosted Cumming Pork

Pork, Chiken and Beef

• Deep fried pork w/ tea leaves • Fried Pork ribs w/ Coffee

• Fried egg w/ pickled radish • Fried chicken gristle w/ fresh chilies
• Rosted Cumming Pork

Vegetarian

• Vegetarian spicy & sour “fish” fillets • Fried vegetable w/ barbecued pork
soup • Fried dried bean curd w/ chilies
• Fried mushroom w/ XO sauce

Snacks

• Spicy codfish puff • Fresh cream tart

• Durian puff • Steamed green tea cake

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Shanghai cuisine
Shanghai cuisine , also known as Hu cai is a popular style of Chinese cuisine.

Shanghai does not have a definitive cuisine of its own, but refines those of the surrounding provinces
(mostly from adjacent Jiangsu and Zhejiang coastal provinces). What can be called Shanghai cuisine is
epitomized by the use of alcohol. Fish, eel, crab, and chicken are "drunken" with spirits and are briskly
cooked/steamed or served raw. Salted meats and preserved vegetables are also commonly used to
spice up the dish.

"Red cooking" is a popular style of stewing meats and vegetables associated with Shanghai

Red cooking

Red-cooked pork belly served with thickened braising sauce

Red cooking is an English umbrella term used to describe two slow braising Chinese cooking
techniques: hóng shāo or lǔ. While the former can be done in less than 20 minutes and usually does
not require much water, the latter usually requires prolonged cooking upwards to several hours and the
items must be more or less submerged in the cooking liquid. These two Chinese cooking techniques
are popular and common throughout most of northern, eastern, and southeastern China. The name is
derived from the dark red-brown colour of the cooked items and its sauce.

Red cooking can also be referred to as Chinese stewing, red stewing or red braising, and sometimes
also described with the term flavour potting.

"Beggar's Chicken" is a legendary dish of Beijing origin, called "jiaohua ji" in the Shanghainese
dialect, wrapped in lotus leaves and covered in clay. Though usually prepared in ovens, the original
and historic preparation involved cooking in the ground. The lion's head meatball and Shanghai-style
nian gao are also uniquely Shanghainese, as are Shanghai fried noodles, a regional variant of chow
mein that is made with Shanghai-style thick noodle. Lime-and-ginger-flavoured thousand-year eggs
and stinky tofu are other popular Shanghainese food items.

Shanghainese people are known to eat in delicate portions (which makes them a target of mockery
from other Chinese), and hence the servings are usually quite small. For example, famous buns from
Shanghai such as the xiaolong mantou (known as xiaolongbao in Mandarin) and the shengjian
mantou are usually about four centimetres in diameter, much smaller than the typical baozi or mantou
elsewhere.

Lion's head

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 Red-cooked (soy-braised) lion's head meatballs

Lion's head is a dish from the Huaiyang cuisine of eastern China, consisting of large pork meatballs
(about 7-10 cm in diameter) stewed with vegetables. There are two varieties: the white (or plain), and
the red ( cooked with soy sauce). The plain variety is usually stewed or steamed with napa cabbage.
The red variety can be stewed with cabbage or cooked with bamboo shoots and tofu derivatives. The
minced meat in the meatball tends to be made from fatty pork (lean pork making for a less desirable
taste), often with some chopped water chestnut for textural variation.

The name derives from the shape of the cabbage, which together with the meatball and a bit of
imagination, resembles a lion's head.

Shanghai fried noodles

Shanghai fried noodles

Shanghai fried noodles is a dish made from Shanghai-style noodles, which can be found in most
Chinese food markets. The more commonly known Japanese udon can be used as a substitute. The
noodles are stir-fried with beef cutlets, cabbage or spinach, and onion. The dish is a staple of Shanghai
cuisine, which is usually served at dumpling houses.

Chow mein

Chow mein (chao mian in Mandarin-speaking communities) is a generic Chinese term for a dish of
stir-fried noodles, of which there are many varieties. Chow mein is generally made of soft noodles,
however Hong Kong-style chow mein is made from thin crispy noodles.

Cu mian

Cu mian

Cu mian or thick noodles are a type of Chinese noodle commonly used in the cuisines of northern
China. In addition, it may also be found in Hong Kong, as well as in restaurants specializing in
northern Chinese cuisine in other parts of China.

Stinky tofu

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Stinky tofu is a form of fermented tofu, which, as the name suggests, has a strong odor. It is a popular
snack in East and Southeast Asia, particularly Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia, and China, where it is
usually found at night markets or roadside stands, or as a side dish in lunch bars.

Baozi

A baozi or simply known as bao, bau, nunu, pow is a type of steamed, filled bun or bread-like (i.e.
made with yeast) item in various Chinese cuisines, as there is much variation as to the fillings and the
preparations. In its bun-like aspect it is very similar to the traditional Chinese mantou. It can be filled
with meat and/or vegetarian fillings. It can be eaten at any meal in Chinese culture, and is often eaten
for breakfast

Mantou

Mantou

Mantou sometimes known as Chinese steamed bun, is a kind of steamed bun originating in China. It
is typically eaten as a staple in Northern parts of China where wheat rather than rice is grown. Made
with milled wheat flour, water and leavening agents, they are similar in nutrition and eating qualities
to the white bread of the West. In size and texture, they range from 4 cm, soft and fluffy in the most
elegant restaurants, to over 15 cm, firm and dense for the working man's lunch.

They are often sold pre-cooked in the frozen section of Asian supermarkets, ready for preparation by
steaming or heating in the microwave oven.

A similar food, but with a filling inside, is baozi. In some regions, mainly in Southern China, mantou
can be used to indicate both the filled and unfilled buns.

Shanghai Foods

Dim sum
Dim sum (literally meaning "touch heart") is the name for a Chinese cuisine which involves a wide
range of light dishes served alongside Chinese tea. It is usually served in the mornings until noon time
at Chinese restaurants and at specialty dim sum eateries where typical dishes are available throughout
the day. Dishes come in small portions and may include meat, seafood, and vegetables, as well as
desserts and fruit

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Sheng Jian ("Sangji" - in Shanghainese)

Breakfast is commonly bought from corner stalls which sells pork buns, for the best xiaolongbao
(small steamer bun). These stalls also sell other types of buns, such as Shengjian mantou ( literally
"fried bun") and Guo Tie (fried jiaozi), all eaten dipped in black vinegar.

A typical breakfast combination is youtiao, a dough-like food that is deep fried in oil until crisp and is
eaten in all parts of China, wrapped in thick pancake, accompanied by soy milk.

Xiaolongbao

Xiǎolóngbāo

Xiǎolóngbāo, also known as soup dumpling, is a type of baozi from eastern China, including
Shanghai and Wuxi. It is traditionally steamed in small bamboo baskets, known as xiao long

You tiao

You tiao

You tiao, you char kway, or yau ja gwai , sometimes known in English as Chinese cruller fried
bread stick or Chinese doughnut, is a long, golden-brown, deep fried strip of dough in Chinese
cuisine and other East and Southeast Asian cuisines and is usually eaten for breakfast. Conventionally,
youtiao are lightly salted and made so they can be torn lengthwise in two. Youtiao are normally eaten
as an accompaniment for rice congee or soy milk.

Typical Shanghainese breakfast

Shanghainese people do not usually spend too much time on having breakfast, so breakfast in
Shanghai is pretty simple. Shanghainese people are used to grabbing some food in small snack stores
or having a bowl of pao fan ( rice in soup or water) at home.

"Four Heavenly Kings"

The most well-known food for breakfast is “Four Heavenly Kings”, which includes da bing (Chinese
pancake), youtiao (deep-fried twist stick), ci fan tuan (steamed sticky rice ball) and soymilk beverage.

Ci fan tuan
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Cí fàn tuán is a kind of food in Chinese cuisine, originated in Shanghai. It is made by tightly
wrapping a piece of youtiao (fried dough) with glutinous rice. It is usually eaten as breakfast together
with sweetened or savory soy milk in Eastern China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Main course

Da Zha Xie

Chinese mitten crab

Chinese mitten crab

(Da Zha Xie ) a kind of crab found in the Yangcheng Lake. And it is normally consumed in the winter
(September & October in every year). The crabs are tied with ropes/strings, placed in bamboo
containers, steamed and served.

Chinese mitten crab, Eriocheir sinensis, also known as the big sluice crab( dà zhá xiè) and
Shanghai hairy crab ( shànghǎi máo xiè), is a medium-sized burrowing crab that is native in the
coastal estuaries of eastern Asia from Korea in the north to the Fujian province of China in the south,
but has been introduced to Europe and North America where considered an invasive species.

Crispy chicken

One of the local favourites in Shanghai is Shanghai crispy chicken. Crispy chicken is made by first
boiling the body of a chicken until its flesh is tender, then roasting it for long periods of time or until
the skin goes dry and crispy.

La mian

La mian is a type of hand-made or hand-pulled Chinese noodle. It is also the name of the dishes that
use these noodles.

Zongzi

Elongated "Northern-style" zongzi with red bean

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Zongzi (or zong) is a traditional Chinese food, made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and
wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. They are cooked by steaming or boiling. They are known in
Japanese as chimaki. Laotians, Thais, Cambodians, and Vietnamese (bánh tro) also have similar
traditional dishes influenced by zongzi.

Etymology and preparation

Dishes using la mian are usually served in a beef or mutton-flavored soup, but sometimes stir-fried and
served with a tomato-based sauce. Literally,(lā) means to pull or stretch, while (miàn) means noodle.
The hand-making process involves taking a lump of dough and repeatedly stretching it to produce
many strands of thin, long noodle.

Five Chinese cereals

The Five Chinese cereals (sometimes known as the five sacred grains or crops) are a group of five
grains important in ancient China and regarded as sacred. They are first listed in Fah Shên-chih's text
on farming circa 2800 BCE entitled Fah Shên-chih Shu.

There are various versions of which five crops are represented in the list. One version includes
soybeans, rice, wheat, proso millet, and foxtail millet. Another version, given in the Classic of
Rites(also known as the Book of Rites, the Record of Rites), excludes rice and includes hemp. All but
soybeans are cereal grains

Chinese desserts

Panfried water chestnut cake, a type of Chinese gao dessert

Chinese desserts are sweet foods and dishes that are served with tea or at the end of meals in Chinese
cuisine. The desserts encompass a wide variety of ingredients commonly used in East Asian cuisines
such as powdered or whole glutinous rice, sweet bean pastes, and agar. Due to the many Chinese
cultures and the long history of China, there are a great variety of desserts of many forms.

Types

The desserts found in China can be roughly divided into several types.

Bing

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Bing are baked wheat flour based confections, these are either similar to the short-pastry crust of
western cuisine or flaky like puff pastry, the latter of which is often known as su. The preferred fat
used for bing is usually lard. One of the more commonly known bing is the moon cake.

Mooncake

Mooncake

Mooncakes are Chinese pastries traditionally eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival. The festival is
for lunar worship and moon watching; moon cakes are regarded as an indispensable delicacy on this
occasion. Mooncakes are offered between friends or on family gatherings while celebrating the
festival, one of the three most important Chinese festivals.

Typical mooncakes are round or rectangular pastries, measuring about 10 cm in diameter and 4-5 cm
thick. A thick filling usually made from lotus seed paste is surrounded by a relatively thin (2-3 mm)
crust and may contain yolks from salted duck eggs. Mooncakes are rich, heavy, and dense compared
with most Western cakes and pastries. They are usually eaten in small wedges accompanied by
Chinese tea.

Candies

Chinese candies and sweets,called táng), are usually made with cane sugar, malt sugar, and honey.
These sweets often consists of nuts or fruits that are mixed into syrup whole or in pastes to flavour or
give the candies their textures. Tanghulu, dragon's beard candy, and White Rabbit Creamy Candy
are a some examples of this category.

Tanghulu

A variety of bing tanghulu for sale on the street in Shanghai

Tang hu lu is a popular traditional winter snack in northern China, especially in Beijing, Tianjin and
cities of Northeast China, and particularly for children. It consists of candied fruits on bamboo skewers
that are approximately 20cm long. This snack can be found widely along the snack street of
Wangfujing but there are street vendors who travel from place to place selling it.

Tang hu lu typically has a hardened sugar coating that comes from dipping the skewer in sugar syrup,
but versions can also be found with a second chocolate coating, or sesame sprinkles.Chinese hawthorn
(or shānzhā in Chinese, is a fruit of a small to medium tree. The tree bears bright red fruits that are

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1.5 inches diameter, which ripen in September.) but in recent times vendors have also used mandarin
oranges, strawberries, blueberries, pineapples, kiwifruit, bananas, or grapes, resembling a fruit kebab.

Dragon's beard candy

Dragon's beard candy

Dragon's beard candy (or Chinese cotton candy) is a form of spun sugar traditional in China. It is
said to have been invented for the emperor about 2,000 years ago. It consists of many very fine strands
of sugar, giving it the appearance and consistency of a fine beard – hence its name.

White Rabbit Creamy Candy

White Rabbit Creamy Candy is a brand of candy manufactured by Shanghai Guan Sheng Yuan
Food, Ltd.

Gao

Gao or Guo are rice base snacks that are typically steamed and may be made from glutinous or normal
rice. In Fukien speaking Chinese populations, these are known as Kuei, which are based on the
pronunciation of . These rice based snacks have a wide variety of textures and can be chewy, jelly-
like, fluffy or rather firm. One of the more commonly known gao is the niangao.

Nian gao

Nian gao, Rice cake, Year cake or Chinese new year's cake is a food prepared from glutinous rice
and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is available in Asian supermarkets and from health food stores.
While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during Chinese New Year. It is
considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time, because "nian gao" is a homonym for "higher
year."

Jellies

Chinese jellies are known collectively in the language as ices . Many jelly desserts are traditionally set
with agar and are flavored with fruits, though gelatin based jellies are also common in contemporary
desserts. Some Chinese jellies, such as the grass jelly and the aiyu jelly set by themselves

Grass jelly

Grass jelly, or Leaf jelly , is a jelly-like dessert found in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast
Asia. It is sold in cans or packets in Asian supermarkets.

Aiyu jelly

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 Closeup of Aiyu jelly served with a lime slice and cranberries

Aiyu jelly is a jelly made from the gel on the seeds of a variety of fig (Ficus pumila var. awkeotsang)
found in Taiwan and East Asian countries of the same climates and latitudes. The jelly is not
commonly made or found outside of Taiwan though it can be bought fresh in specialty stores in Japan
and in canned in Chinatowns. It is known as ò-giô in Taiwanese and used in Taiwanese cuisine.

Soups

Chinese dessert soups typically consists of sweet and usually hot soups and custards, and are
collectively known as tongsui in Cantonese. Some of these soups are made with restorative properties
in mind, in concordance with traditional Chinese medicine. A commonly eaten dessert soup is douhua,
which is sometimes taken for breakfast.

Douhua

Dòuhuā or dòufuhuā is a Chinese dessert made with an extra soft form of tofu. It is also referred to as
tofu pudding

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