Chinese cuisine involves eight branches. Based on different regions, they are cuisines of Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Anhui. Their features are related to the geography, climate, local product and eating habit.
Shandong Cuisine
Consisting of Jinan cuisine and Jiaodong cuisine, Shandong cuisine, clear, pure and not greasy, is characterized by its emphasis on aroma, freshness, crispness and tenderness. Shallots and garlic are usually used as seasonings, so Shangdong dishes usually taste pungent . Soups are given much emphasis in Shandong dishes. Thin soup features clear and fresh while creamy soup looks thick and tastes strong. Jinan cuisine is adept at deep-frying, grilling, frying and stir-frying while Jiaodong division is famous for cooking seafood with a fresh and light taste. The dishes are mainly clear, fresh and fatty, perfect with Shandong’s own famous beer, Qingdao Beer. Shandong is the birthplace of many famous ancient scholars such as Confucius and Mencius. And much of Shandong cuisine’s history is as old as Confucius himself, making it the oldest existing major cuisine in China.
Sichuan Cuisine
Sichuan Cuisine, known often in the West as Szechuan Cuisine, is one of the most famous Chinese cuisines in the world. Characterized by its spicy and pungent flavor, Sichuan cuisine, prolific of tastes, emphasizes on the use of chili. Pepper and prickly ash also never fail to accompany, producing typical and exciting tastes. Besides, garlic, ginger and fermentedsoybean are also used in the cooking process. Wild vegetables and animals are usually chosen as ingredients, while frying, frying without oil, pickling and braising are applied as basic cooking techniques. It cannot be said that one who does not experience Sichuan food ever reaches China.
Chili peppers and prickly ash are used in many dishes, giving it a distinctively spicy taste, called “ma” in Chinese. It often leaves a slight numb sensation in the mouth. However, most peppers were brought to China from America in the 18th century so you can thank global trade for much of Sichuan cuisine’s excellence. Sichuan chafing dish is perhaps the most famous chafing dish in the world, most notably the Yuanyang (mandarin duck) chafing dish-half spicy and half clear.
Guangdong Cuisine
Cantonese food originates from Guangdong, the southernmost province in China. The majority of overseas Chinese people are from Guangdong (Canton), so Cantonese is perhaps the most widely available Chinese regional cuisine outside of China.
Cantonese are known to have an adventurous palate, able to eat many different kinds of meats and vegetables. In fact, people in northern China often say that Cantonese people will eat anything that flies except airplanes, anything that moves on the ground except trains, and anything that moves in the water except boats. This statement is far from the truth, but Cantonese food is easily one of the most diverse and richest cuisines in China. Many vegetables of Guangdong Cuisine originate from other parts of the world. It doesn’t use much spice, bringing out the natural flavor of the vegetables and meats.
Tasting clear, light, crisp and fresh, Guangdong cuisine, familiar to Westerners, usually chooses raptors and beasts to produce original dishes. Its basic cooking techniques include roasting, stir-frying, sauteing, deep-frying, braising, stewing and steaming. Among them steaming and stir-frying are more commonly applied to preserve the natural flavor. Guangdong chefs also pay much attention to the artistic presentation of dishes.
Fujian Cuisine
Consisting of Fuzhou Cuisine, Quanzhou Cuisine and Xiamen Cuisine, Fujian Cuisine is distinguished for its choice seafood, beautiful color and magic taste of sweet, sour, salty and savory. The most distinct features are their “pickled taste”.
Jiangsu Cuisine
Jiangsu Cuisine, also called Huaiyang Cuisine, is popular in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Aquatics as the main ingredients, it stresses the freshness of materials. Its carving techniques are delicate, of which the melon carving technique is especially well known. Cooking techniques consist of stewing, braising, roasting, simmering, etc. The flavor of Huaiyang Cuisine is light, fresh and sweet and with delicate elegance. Jiangsu cuisine is well known for its careful selection of ingredients, its meticulous preparation methodology, and its not-too-spicy, not-too-bland taste. Since the seasons vary in climate considerably in Jiangsu, the cuisine also varies throughout the year. If the flavor is strong, it isn’t too heavy; if light, not too bland.
Zhejiang Cuisine
Comprising local cuisines of Hangzhou, Ningbo and Shaoxing, Zhejiang Cuisine, not greasy, wins its reputation for freshness, tenderness, softness, smoothness of its dishes with mellow fragrance. Hangzhou Cuisine is the most famous one among the three.
Hunan cuisine
Hunan cuisine consists of local Cuisines of Xiangjiang region, Dongting Lake and Xiangxi coteau. It characterizes itself by thick and pungent flavor. Chili, pepper and shallots are usually necessaries in this division.
Anhui Cuisine
Anhui Cuisine chefs focus much more attention on the temperature in cooking and are good at braising and stewing. Often hams will be added to improve taste and sugar candy added to gain freshness.
