Chinese Cooking - An Overview

In Summarising Chinese cooking, Confucious said :

"Rice affected by the weather or turned a man must not eat, nor fish that is not sound, nor meat that is high. He must not eat anything discolored or that smells bad. He must not eat what is overcooked, nor what is undercooked, nor anything that is out of season. He must not eat what has been crookedly cut, nor any dish that lacks its proper seasoning. The meat he eats must at the very most not be enough to make his breath smell of meat rather than rice. As regards wine, no limit is laid down: but he must not be disorderly." From "THE ANALECTS OF CONFUCIOUS"

Time has minimized the influence that the teachings of Confucious exert on the Chinese of today, especially the young who resent his high-morality preachings. However, his outlook on eating and enjoying one's drink is embraced by all. It is actually the basic key to the perfect balance between culinary delight and healthy consumption. It's not suprising that this sage advice comes from a member of the population of a country that feeds the majority of the world's largest ethnic group on a daily basis. The Chinese don't eat for the sake of merely filling their stomachs, rather every meal is viewed as an occassion unto itself, and each dish is prepared to stimulate not just the taste buds, but all the senses. Perhaps because of the rural nature of China and the prevelence of poverty among the majority of the population for so many thousands of years, they have learned to enjoy the simple things in life and to make the absolute most of them. And they do! Chinese cuisine is now considered to be one of the top two respected cuisines of the world along with French, and Chinese cooking has indeed developed into a very fine art. It is one of the world's oldest civilizations, and the Chinese chef has had many thousands of years to develop his craft. Another reason for the magnificence of Chinese cooking is the size and diversity of the country and its climate. China is the fourth largest country in the world behind Russia, Canada and the United States, and its range of climates exceeds all of them. This biodiversity provides and assortment of different living conditions, crops and ingredients, resources, and consequently different styles of cooking. Let's briefly look at the four major styles of Chinese cooking Honan (Peking), Szechwan, Fukien and Cantonese, which are named after the areas where they have developed.

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The Honan style of cooking developed in northern China in Peking, Shantung and Honan. It was here that dishes like Peking Duck were developed for emperors, who recruited the finest chefs in the land and encouraged them to be creative and experimental. Honan is famous for its sweet and sour fish made from carp caught in the Yellow River. Due to its proximity to Mongolia, it was here that lamb was first introduced to Chinese cooking and has remained a local favorite ever since, spawnig such delicacies as the Mongolian grill, an indoor barbecue where thin strips of mutton are roasted over an open charcoal fire.

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Szechwan and its neighboring provinces are home to the Szechwan pepper, and as such is known for its fiery, spicy dishes. Szechwan Duck, though not as famous in Chinese cooking circles as its famous neighbor Peking to the north, is a notable recipe from this area. The duck is spiced with Szechwan pepper, steamed to remove the fat, and then deep fried; the resultant meat being melt-in_your-mouth tender.

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The Fukien style of Chinese cooking embraces dishes form Fukien in the south (adjacent to Taiwan) up to Shanghai in the north (bordering the East China Sea). Fukien produces China's best soy sauce and so dishes from this area are comprised of lots of stews and soups. Supreme spring rolls are another of Fukien's contributions to Chinese cooking, and its pork and chicken dishes are amongst the best. The cooks on the coast in the Shanghai area naturally produce lots of seafood dishes, but spiced blends of meat,chicken and duck combined with a multitude of vegetables are produced here. The most famous of this area's contributions to Chinese cooking is the reknowned Bird's Nest Soup.

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Everyone is familiar with egg rolls, egg foo young and dim sum. These are all Cantonese recipes brought to America and the West by the first Chinese to emigrate in large numbers. Cantonese is one of the most colorful styles of Chinese cooking, mostly due to the fact that they use less of, and a lighter colored version of soy sauce, so the hues of the other ingredients are allowed to shine through. There is a variety of styles within this style of Chinese cooking, partly because of the abundance of resources, and partly from the incorporation of the other three major styles into their cuisine by chefs from those areas who have migrated there.

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