Chinese Regional Cuisine

• Specialty cuisine instructed by Looverviewille D. Quiño at Cebu Technological University.

Topic Outline

• Leading regional cuisines of China
• Cooking techniques
• The Chinese pantry

Introduction to Chinese Cuisine

• China is geographically expansive and culturally diverse
• Every part of China has unique culinary traditions and customs
• Chinese cuisine is ancient, inventive, diverse and loved worldwide
• Buddhism has heavily influenced and developed a separate school of vegetarian cooking
• Special ingredients like tofu skin were created to imitate meat products
• Arab traders introduced pomegranate, exotic ingredients, and cooking methods such as meat grilling
• Portuguese merchants introduced peanuts, chiles, and potatoes
• Seafaring traders brought prized sea cucumber and shark fin

China's Culinary Culture Includes

• Guangdong/ Yue/ Cantonese Cuisine
• Fujian/ Min Cuisine
• Sichuan/ Chuan Cuisine
• Hunan/ Xiang Cuisine
• Jiangsu/ Su Cuisine
• Zhejiang Cuisine
• Major regional cuisines Cantonese centered on southern Guangdong province and Hong Kong, Sichuan based on the cooking of western province's two largest cities, Chengdu and Chongqing

Major Regional Cuisine continued

• Hunan, the cooking of eastern China- Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai
• Beijing or “Northern” food, with major inspiration from the coastal province of Shandong
• Some would add a fifth cuisine from the southeastern coastal province of Fujian

Guangdong Cuisine

• It is one of the most refined and celebrated cuisines in China
• A popular proverb dictates a good life to "be born in Suzhou, dress in Hangzhou, dine in Guangzhou, and die in Liuzhou"
  • This refers to the many beauties in Suzhou, brilliant silk Hangzhou, sumptuous food in Guangzhou, durable camphor wood for coffins in Liuzhou
• Guangdong cuisine takes advantage of fresh local ingredients to create simple dishes highlighting their natural essence
• Guangdong dishes are often not very spicy
• Signature cooking techniques include steaming, quick stir-frying, barbecuing, braising, and soup making

Fujian Cuisine

• Fujian cuisine is the poster child of the Chinese philosophy yuan zhi yuan wei which means ''original juice, original taste"
• It is typical of the greater southern Chinese style of cooking using simple techniques and ingredients
• Soup making and steaming are very common techniques to prepare fresh ingredients highlighting natural flavors

Sichuan Cuisine

• Sichuan cuisine is the opposite of southern coast cuisine, utilizing powerfully spicy ingredients
• Its spicy heat and numbing sensation, known as mala, can be addictive
• It is still influenced by the local minority’s foodways which has a diet trending toward spiciness
• Spicy hot flavors come from Sichuan peppercorns and chiles introduced by Portuguese traders
  • These two spices became the signature taste of Sichuan

Hunan Cuisine

• Hunan cuisine is a source of well-known Chinese cuisines in the United States and around the world
• Hunan flavors are hot and sour from pickled chiles and pickled vegetables, made by letting brined fresh ingredients ferment naturally

Jiangsu Cuisine

• It is the primary heir of the original Yu cuisine with ingredients and cooking techniques of the Central Plain civilization
• Cooking techniques of steaming, braising, and saucing, liu, are all part of Jiangsu customs
• In addition to pork, chicken, and duck, river fish is one of the main protein sources
• Northeast Jiangsu excels in curing ham
• Jiangsu harvests a wealth of produce and livestock, situated in some of the most fertile and productive farmlands of China

Zhejiang Cuisine

• Zhejiang cuisine is one of the branches of Huaiyang cuisine
• Cooking is similar to Jiangsu and Shanghai cooking
• Braising and liusaucing are two common cooking techniques as river fish are plentiful

Cooking Utensils

• Spatulas are long-handled, shovel-shaped spatulas primarily used for tossing and stirring foods in the wok when stir-frying
• Ladles are stainless-steel spoons with a large, cup-shaped bowls and a long, hollow metal handle with a wood insert at the end
• Strainers are ideal for lowering foods into hot liquids, removing them confidently, and draining foods from stock or oil
• Steamer is traditionally made of bamboo
• Cleavers are primarily used for shredding but can be used for all cutting functions
• Chopsticks are bamboo and can be used for cooking, they are perfect for mixing, turning foods while deep-frying, or loosening cooked food

Ingredients

• Century egg is a processed duck egg covered with a paste of salt, tea leaves or an infusion of tea leaves, ground rice husks and a preservative left to cure for fifty-eight days
• Oyster sauce is a depth of flavour in dishes and is very often used with vegetables
• It is made by boiling large amounts of fresh oysters to arrive at a thickened broth
• Hoisin sauce is a thick, sweetened sauce made from cooked soybeans, garlic, sugar, and chiles
• Five-spice powder is China's “five-fragrance powder”
• Sesame oil is aromatic oil made from toasted sesame seeds
• Sichuan Peppercorns emit a aroma of nutmeg and imparts at tingling sensation to the tongue
• Wonton wrappers are pliable wrappers made from wheat flour
• Fish sauce is used to replace salt and to add a unique savoury taste to any dish

The Chinese Meal

• Rice is essential
• Foodstuffs are divided into “fan” and “cai” categories
  • Fan represents cooked rice and other grain dishes
  • Cai represents cooked meat and vegetable dishes
• The grander the occasion, the more cooked dishes and less grain are served.
• A good supply of fresh jasmine rice and dried egg noodles is a must
• Balancing yin (cooling) and yang (heating) qualities of the foods served is important
• Food is both preventative and a curative medicine deeply embedded in the Chinese psyche.