It has long ceased to be exotic, and is popular with gourmets around the world. It is not necessary to visit a restaurant to eat Chinese food, the recipes with photos offered in this article will help you easily cook it at home. Dishes prepared according to traditional recipes, can be served both for family gatherings and guests on holidays.

Chinese Food: Noodle Recipe

The inhabitants of the Celestial Empire are very fond of rice flour or a flour mixture of soy and green beans. The preparation of such noodles is a long and laborious process.

It will take only 2 ingredients: half a glass of water and 250 grams of any flour - rice or soy. You need to knead a cool dough, which then cool well. Next, the dough is rolled out very thinly, it must be pulled, tossed, folded in half when it reaches its maximum length. You need to continue such manipulations until you get a lot of thin, long threads from the dough, folded in half over and over again - this is noodles.

This is such an easy Chinese meal! The recipe is simple, but takes a lot of time and effort. Today it’s easier to buy noodles in a store than to bother like that, but it’s so inexpensive.

Chinese Rice with Egg and Onion

There are a lot of rice recipes in Chinese food! If you are a rice lover, then try cooking it in a new way. The Chinese know a lot about cooking this cereal, because it is the basis of Chinese cuisine. Let's take the simplest ingredients that every housewife has in stock. This side dish goes well with both meat and fish.

To cook rice you will need:

• half a glass of rice;
• 250 ml of water;
• onion head;
• a small bunch (about 50 grams) of green onions;
• one egg;
• a tablespoon of sunflower oil and soy sauce;
• a third of a teaspoon of salt.

This small food set makes 2 servings of delicious traditional Chinese food. See below for a step by step recipe.

How to cook Chinese rice

1. Pre-boil water in the amount indicated above.
2. Put the rice in boiling water, add salt, cover with a lid.
3. From the moment of boiling, you need to cook rice for 15 minutes. During this time, you can not interfere with the cereal and open the lid.
4. If after 15 minutes the water has not boiled away completely, then you need to evaporate it: open the lid and turn on the gas at maximum power, stir the cereal, otherwise it will burn.
5. Transfer the rice to a wide dish, it needs to cool slightly.
6. The onion must be peeled, cut into small cubes, fry in sunflower oil for three minutes.
7. Put the rice to the onion in the pan, fry everything together for a couple of minutes.
8. Break the egg into a bowl, beat a little, then pour it into the rice with onions, mix, fry everything together until the egg is ready.
9. Next, you need to turn off the fire, put the rice in a deep dish. Then pour in the soy sauce, put the chopped green onion, mix.

Everything, the dish can be laid out on plates. Chinese food, the recipes that we offer, is universal. It can be served as a separate dish or added meat ingredients. The same applies to all meat dishes described below. They can be served with or without any side dish.

Sweet and sour meat

We propose to consider the preparation delicious meat according to this recipe. Chinese food is notable for the fact that the taste is difficult to guess, it is both sour, and sweet, and salty, and spicy - real gourmets will appreciate it!

To cook meat in Chinese you will need:

• 400 grams of any meat, but it is better to take beef or boneless chicken;
• two chicken eggs;
• half a glass of flour;
• half a glass of sunflower oil;
• three tablespoons of soy sauce;
• some salt;
• a teaspoon of sugar and the same amount of dried paprika or Korean carrot seasoning.

The dish will appeal to everyone who does not like onions in any form!

How to cook sweet and sour meat

Such a dish should be prepared "yesterday". That is, in order to serve it on the table tomorrow, we begin to prepare today, since the meat must be marinated for a day, so that in the end it turns out tender and soft.

1. The meat must be cut into thin, long pieces, rinsed, then put on a paper towel so that the moisture is gone.
2. Mix the meat with seasonings, sugar and salt, soy sauce, a spoonful of sunflower oil. Cover the dish with a lid or wrap cling film, put in the refrigerator to marinate for a day.

The next day, you can start cooking the dish itself.

1. Prepare a batter of two eggs and half a glass of flour. If it turns out too thick, then you can dilute it with milk, water or mayonnaise.
2. Heat in a frying pan or deep fryer sunflower oil, the amount of which should be such that the pieces of meat are completely immersed in it.
3. Mix meat with batter, or dip each separately, fry until red.

Such meat - The recipe at home can be modified, for example, sugar can be removed from the ingredients, because not everyone likes the sweet taste in meat dishes. As a result, the meat will be fragrant, with a slight sourness, tender and very tasty. The main thing is to marinate for at least a day in soy sauce.

Pork with sweet and sour sauce

Is it possible to cook real restaurant Chinese food at home? The recipe offered here was borrowed from the chefs of Chinese restaurants; this is a traditional dish that is very fond of the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire.

To cook meat you will need:

• 0.6 kg pork tenderloin without fat;
• a third of a glass of soy sauce;
• big carrot;
• 4 tablespoons of starch;
• a teaspoon of sesame;
• two teaspoons of chopped parsley (you can take both fresh and dried);
• a glass of vegetable oil.

Ingredients for sweet and sour sauce:

• half a glass of water;
• two tablespoons of sunflower oil;
• three tablespoons of 9% vinegar;
• 4 tablespoons of sugar, two - tomato paste (not ketchup, but thick paste);
• half a teaspoon of sesame oil.

There are no supernatural products on the list, everything is simple and affordable. The preparation itself is also easy, everyone can handle it, even those who have never cooked Chinese food. We will describe the recipe step by step, so you will not get confused.

Chinese cooking pork

1. The meat needs to be frozen so that it can be easily cut into thin layers. Cut, pour soy sauce and marinate for 20 minutes in the refrigerator.
2. Next, add starch, mix well to wrap each piece.
3. In a deep fryer or in a deep frying pan, you need to heat the sunflower oil, fry the pieces in it on both sides for about three minutes to form a golden crust.
4. Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat from the oil, place it at a distance from each other on a paper towel so that all excess fat is absorbed into it.
5. Carrots need to be grated for Korean carrots, or cut into thin, long strips, mixed with parsley.

1. Put sugar and tomato paste in a saucepan, turn on low heat, stirring, fry until the sugar dissolves.
2. Then add water and vinegar, simmer for a couple of minutes.
3. Next, you need to add 2 tablespoons of sunflower oil, you can take what is left in the deep fryer after frying the meat.
4. Put the meat in the sauce, then the carrots and parsley, mix well, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Sprinkle the meat with sesame seeds when serving.

Rice prepared according to the recipe in this article is suitable as a side dish. You can simply boil rice, cook mashed potatoes, noodles (at least Chinese, at least ordinary), or any other side dish.

Chinese sweet and sour meat

There are many recipes for making sweet and sour meat sauces in China, and this allows every lover of exotic food to choose the one that is more preferable. We suggest considering delicious option cooking meat traditional chinese cuisine.

For 4 servings you will need:

• a pound of pork with a small layer of lard (if you don’t like lard, then take it without it);
• 200 grams of pineapples;
• onion head;
• carrot;
• bell pepper;
• a tablespoon of starch, the same amount of flour;
• half a glass of soy sauce;
• some salt.

For sauce:

• 4 tablespoons of tomato paste;
• two tablespoons of sugar and table vinegar (9%).

Cooking sweet and sour meat

1. We wash the meat, cut into wide, thin slices;
2. Soy sauce should be mixed with starch and flour, salt, pour meat over it, put in the refrigerator to marinate for half an hour.
3. Carrots, onion cut, fry until golden brown, then add pineapple and bell pepper, diced.
4. Fry the meat in a small amount of oil on both sides. When the second side is browned, pour in the mixture of tomato paste with vinegar and sugar, simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Next, pour in the sauce in which the meat was marinated, spread the fried vegetables, salt, if thick, add a little water. Cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes.

by the most the best side dish for such meat will be a simple boiled rice. You can also serve meat without a side dish, because it has a lot of vegetables.

Chicken in Chinese sauce

This is also a menu item. Chinese restaurant. The chicken is easy to prepare, all the ingredients are available. As a result, the dish turns out to be very tasty and fragrant, it will not leave anyone indifferent!

Products for cooking:

• 400 grams of chicken breasts;
• two bell peppers;
• two cloves of garlic;
• two tablespoons of soy sauce, apple cider vinegar and sunflower oil;
• three tablespoons of water;
• a teaspoon of starch, half - salt;
• a tablespoon of sugar;
• parsley and sesame - to taste.

How to cook Chinese chicken

1. The first step is to properly cut the breasts - into thin strips and only along the fibers;
2. Heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan, fry the pieces on both sides until white.
3. In the same pan, fry the bell peppers, cut into strips. Ideally, if the top of the pepper is soft, but remains elastic inside - check with a fork.
4. Now prepare the sauce by mixing sugar, salt, starch, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar and water.
5. We transfer the meat to a pan with pepper, pour over the sauce and simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes, until the liquid thickens.
6. When serving, sprinkle the chicken with sesame seeds and parsley.

Rice or Chinese noodles are ideal as a side dish.

In this article, we have suggested popular ways to cook Chinese food at home. Recipes with photos will help you cook these wonderful dishes correctly and very tasty. Bon Appetit!

The attitude to food in China is characterized by three words: everyone eats everything. In a local's plate, you can see something previously alive, dead, flying, floating, walking, growing and blooming. This does not mean that the Chinese do not care about their diet at all. Food here affects the minds, behavior and daily routine of the layman no less than any other religion.

Imagine how you look into the eye of a kaleidoscope, only instead of beads in it - all kinds of tastes. Twenty such kaleidoscopes will give you a rough idea of ​​Chinese cuisine. Everything here is too varied. In China, they say that the north is salty, the south is sweet, the east is spicy, and the west is sour. Tasting food from other provinces for the Chinese is like traveling, and finding famous dishes in one province from another is quite simple. You can taste northern Peking duck in eastern Shanghai, and Szechuan sauce in southern Guangzhou. However, before diving into the fragrant and spicy world of local Chinese dishes, it is worth mentioning a few ubiquitous dishes.

FOR EVERYBODY

Rice for the Celestial Empire - like bread. It is eaten by people of all ages, backgrounds and at any time of the day. It is usually glutinous, fine-grained unleavened rice, the simplicity of which well overcomes the difference in tastes of the main dishes. In conveyor canteens, it is served with meat and vegetable side dishes, is not a separate dish and costs symbolically ¥ 1. In street restaurants, ask for rice for free.

Rice can also be an independent dish - for example, fried rice chaofan(炒饭). It is cooked in a bowl-shaped pan with thick walls and a narrow bottom - it is easy for the cook to constantly stir the dish in it for strong fire. The most popular variety is tribute to chaofan(蛋炒饭), fried rice with egg, green peas and bacon.

Soup In China, it is considered a healing food. The liquid cleanses the body, and the individual ingredients are supposed to cure diseases, improve mood and grant immortality in the future. During large feasts, soup is served to clear the mouth of the taste of the previous dish. Most soups are made with chicken or pork broth (they don't have much flavor). Vegetable broth based on seasonal lettuce or Chinese cabbage is also popular. This is often served free as an aperitif, in a glass or mug (included in the order price).

“The texture of the soup is like jelly, but the cost is like a small spaceship”

Soups have a neutral taste and do not always contain meat. They can be ordered by vegetarians and people who are not ready to put their stomach and liver into acquaintance with Chinese cuisine. Dishes that can be prepared even at home - egg soup with tomatoes(fanjie tribute hua tang 番茄蛋花汤), chicken broth with egg chunks(tribute hua tang 蛋花汤) or clam, onion and tofu soup(qindan qiuhuo 清淡去火汤).

Of the delicacies gourmets prefer turtle soup(chia yu tang 甲鱼汤). Turtle meat, despite its healing properties, is quite tough and difficult to cook. When ordering it in a restaurant, be prepared to wait at least an hour. Often served at weddings or celebrations shark fin soup(and chi 鱼翅). While scientists doubt the ethics of killing sharks just for the sake of food, ordinary Chinese joyfully devour it on holidays. Shark fin, according to beliefs, cleanses the blood of toxins, improves the skin and restores potency. Has a similar effect imperial nest soup(yang in 燕窝). By consistency, it resembles jelly, and by cost - a small spaceship.

A more satisfying main dish - noodles. Wheat(mian 面) common in the north of the country, rice(fen 粉) - in the south. Regardless of the raw material, a steaming bowl of noodles with meat or vegetables can be ordered at any restaurant for ¥8-10. Foreigners most often order it because of the cheapness, predictability of the composition and satiety. Classics of the north noodles in beef broth(nu rou mien 牛肉面). The broth in the noodles is hot enough to warm a traveler in a normally unheated diner. "Drawn" noodles(lao mian 撈麵) comes from Gansu province but is popular all over the country. It is fried with beef, vegetables and herbs like cilantro or garlic, or served with meat broth.

Other popular dish from flour - dumplings. In Chinese, there are 12 names for their varieties. The simplest of them is jiaozi (餃子), flat oblong dumplings with meat, cabbage or egg. They are eaten with soy sauce, salt, broth and garlic.

An important place in the diet of the Chinese is occupied by soy products. 80-90% of Chinese adults are lactose intolerant, so soy milk or dou qian (豆漿) is much more common in the market than the animal. It is slightly sweeter and less fatty than cow's. The range of derived dishes is amazing - yoghurts, cheeses, desserts, coffee foam. Another important product for the Chinese is prepared from it - tofu, soy milk curd, rich in protein. Historically, it has been valued as a substitute for expensive meat. Now bean curd is an important product for vegetarians. Tofu doesn't have a distinct taste of its own, so it's just a cooking chameleon. soft tofu(hua dou fu 滑豆腐) is used to make sweet puddings, sweets, salads and soups. hard tofu(dou gan 豆干) smoked and fried - this is how spicy snacks with red pepper and spicy Szechuan sauce. A Shanghainese dish popular throughout China is stinky tofu. This street delicacy smells like a pile of rubbish that has rotted in the sun for three days. However, trays with chow dofu(臭豆腐) there are always long queues.

“This street delicacy smells like a pile of rubbish that has rotted in the sun for three days. However, there are always long queues at the stalls with it.”

The most famous soy product for foreigners is the eponymous sauce(jiangyu 酱油). Bottles of soy sauce are on the tables in any diner, along with salt, pepper and toothpicks. The taste and smell of the classic soy sauce made from beans, wheat, soy and water is no different from Western counterparts, but there are variations. For example, sweet soy sauce is served with rice flour desserts, sour soy sauce with meat and seafood.

The Chinese love to eat outside. A common street snack - steamed pies baozi(包子). They look like manti, but the dough resembles a savory biscuit in texture. The filling is pork with cabbage, a mixture of cabbage and pumpkin. There are also sweet baozi with bean paste. Another popular snack is skewers. jianbing(串儿). The strung foods and spices vary from stall to stall. Most often they sell beef skewers, chicken wings and seaweed, richly seasoned with cumin, coriander and pepper.

For the Chinese, there is no concept of "dessert" - both a side dish and meat can have a sweet taste. After the main meal, fresh pineapples, tangerines, strawberries and caramelized apples are sometimes eaten. Classic sweetness - mooncakes yuebins(月餅). The gingerbread got its name from the Mid-Autumn Festival, when people watch the moon. During this festival, the Chinese receive boxes of gingerbread from friends, family, and colleagues. The yuebins themselves can be made from hard or puff pastry, stuffed with sweet beans, nuts, fruits, and even ice cream.

BY REGION

China consists of 23 provinces with their own history and nationalities living there, so the dishes are different everywhere. Cooking features and ingredients can vary even within the same city. For convenience, the “Eight Great Culinary Schools” are singled out - it was they who had the greatest influence on the culinary map of the country.

Shandong

Where: northeast, coast of the Yellow Sea
Briefly: seafood, vegetation, variety

Shandong cuisine has been influenced by proximity to water and a climate favorable to fruits, vegetables and grains. Potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, onions, garlic and zucchini are the main guests on the table of the inhabitants of this province. local snack digua basses(拔絲地瓜), or caramelized sweet potato, served with soy sauce, which emphasizes the already sweet taste. Another popular delicacy is corn. It is boiled, sometimes slightly fried and served on the cob.

Shandong cuisine is known for a variety of culinary techniques, from pickling to high-fire frying. Most seafood, such as abalone or sea cucumber, is preferred to be stewed. Shrimp, squid and sea ​​fish more popular than animal meat due to its availability. However, this is where the best guifei chicken, or imperial chicken, is cooked. Shandong vinegar is distinguished from sauces, which, out of a sense of pride in the product, is added to everything conceivable and unthinkable.

SICHUAN

Where: southwest
Briefly: fiery, fat, satisfying

It will take a long time to get used to the heavy and spicy dishes of Sichuan province. But after such an acquaintance, even kharcho drowning in red pepper will seem insipid. The culprit of the sharpness of all dishes is Sichuan pepper, or Chinese coriander. It is used together with red pepper to make an oily sauce. ma la(麻辣), the heat of which makes the tongue go numb. The inhabitants of the province definitely prefer meat: pork, beef, chicken, duck, and especially rabbit meat. Famous dishes - chicken gongbao(宫保鸡丁) and Szechuan style pork(回锅肉). As a seasoning for meat, a mixture of Sichuan pepper and salt, fried in a wok until Brown. Local chefs have a very rich imagination - this is the only way to explain duck or rabbit blood jelly (毛血旺), "fish flavored pork"(鱼香肉丝) and "ants on a tree"(蚂蚁上树). When cooking the latter, not a single ant was harmed: the name of the dish was given by the appearance of pieces of minced pork on crystal noodles, which resemble insects on a branch.

GUANGDONG/CANTON

Where: south
Briefly: omnivorous, varied, strange

Guangdong Province is the worst place to return animals after reincarnation. Locals eat everything - snakes, raccoons, crocodiles, monkeys, turtles, mice and cats. In the summer there is a festival of eating dog meat. Famous dishes - chicken stew with snake(鸡烩蛇) and monkey brain soup(猴脑汤). The meat is served with one of the local sauces: oyster, plum or black bean sauce douchi(豆豉). Common snack - century egg(皮蛋). Usually this is a duck or quail egg, which is soaked in a special marinade without access to air. As a result, the protein turns black, and the egg has a strong ammonia smell. Advantages - it is stored for several years and is an excellent souvenir.
If you don't feel like eating someone's murzik stew, then try local fruits: mango, papaya, dragon's eye and durian. Here, in a warm climate, they are the juiciest and cheapest.

FUJIAN

Where: Taiwan island, south
Briefly: gentle, sweet, fresh

Fujian cuisine is similar to Shandong cuisine with an abundance of seafood, vegetables and fruits. They are thinly sliced, almost chopped, and stewed for a long time - this is how a traditional side dish is prepared. Mushrooms and plant parts are also often used, such as bamboo shoots or lotus root. The province is rich in sugar cane plantations, so the dishes have a sweetish or sweet and sour taste. From seafood, carp, herring, shellfish, squid, shrimp and oysters are used. Oyster omelette(蚵仔煎) is made from egg yolks with the addition of starch and is very tender and airy. The most popular dish in the province "Temptation of the Buddha"(佛跳). More than 30 ingredients are needed to make it, including exotic quail eggs, the pancreas of a pig and the swim bladder of a fish. A mixture of all products should give such a flavor for which even the Buddha will jump over the wall after him.

HUNAN

Where: southeast
Briefly: spicy, oily, colorful

Hunan cuisine is characterized by the use of smoked meats, mixing different types meat and lots of hot peppers. For the last point, this cuisine is often compared to Szechuan cuisine. Dishes here are cooked in pots or fried, onion and garlic are added to everything. Chefs care not only about compatibility different products, such as trepang, River fish and pork, but also about the compatibility of colors. The dishes look like paintings from the abstract era - for example, fiery red chickens dong'an(东安鸡). Another manifestation of abstractionism - carp squirrel(松鼠鯉魚). According to legend, the cook was ordered to cook the carp so that it did not look like a carp, so as not to incur the wrath of the emperor. For the cook, everything ended well, but the fish, even when fried, resembles a squirrel very remotely. Sweet chili is added to the carp, stewed tomatoes and lots of salt.

CUISINE OF JIANGSU PROVINCE

Where: East
Briefly: soft, simple, smart

Compared to the rest of China, Jiangsu uses few spices. All attention is paid to the taste and aroma of the original product. For the same reason, it is often cooked here by stewing or boiling, because when frying with a temperature, the real taste of the product disappears. The main dish of the province is a stew of turtle and chicken in wine with a mysterious name "Farewell, my concubine"(银鱼炒蛋). Another meat delicacy - braised pork ribs(红烧排骨), known for their sweet taste and delicate texture.

ANHUI

Where: East
Briefly: fragrant, delicate, uncomplicated

Anhui cuisine is the sister cuisine of Jiangsu Province. In cooking, simplicity is valued, in products - freshness. The Anhui people add wild herbs to the prepared dish, and stewing is their preferred cooking method. Unlike Jiangsu, seafood is used much less frequently here. Poultry meat prevails over any other - for example, popular winter pheasant(雪冬山鸡) and huangshan stewed pigeon (黄山炖鸽).

ZHEJIANG

Where: East
Briefly: fresh, delicate, fishy

The main meat consumed in Zhejiang is pork and fish. Pork dong pu(東坡肉) is slow cooked with yellow wine. Thus, the fat becomes more tender and soft. Rolls are also popular here. zongzi(粽子), in which the whole family takes part in cooking. Sticky rice is stuffed with pork or sweet bean stuffing and then wrapped in a steamed flat sheet. Traditionally, the leaf should be bamboo, but for the sake of an unusual taste, it is wrapped in corn, banana or lotus leaves. The main product supplied from the province - green tea longjing(龙井茶). It is harvested and processed by hand, so it costs many times more than other varieties. Despite the price, longjing is considered best tea China due to the sweet aftertaste and light aroma.

Other cuisines that are not included in the "Great Eight", but anyway
contributed to the food image of the country:

Uighur cuisine (north). The Uighurs are a Turkic people living in the Xinjiang region. The Uyghurs profess Islam, their diet does not include pork and alcohol. Mostly Central Asian dishes are prepared, such as pilaf or lagman. Uighur restaurants are popular with tourists and locals alike and can be found from the north to the south of the country. The main reason for adoration is that there are photos of dishes on the menu. Rice is usually served with beef, mushrooms, potatoes and peppers. You can ask to do the same, but without meat - even a vegetarian version will saturate two adults.

Beijing Cuisine (Northeast). For rare ingredients and rich taste, it is often called "imperial". The most famous dish Peking duck(北京烤鸭) with a sweet crispy crust.

Harbin cuisine. Harbin is a city in northeast China near Russia. Its cuisine has been greatly influenced by Russian cooking - Moscow is brewed here. Borsch(莫斯科红菜汤) and eat a lot of black bread. Local dumplings are shaped like Russian ones: they are round and small, and not oblong, like their Chinese counterparts. Dishes are served in broth and heavily salted.

Shanghai Cuisine (East). Pungent, sour, smelly and predominantly outdoorsy. The meat is cooked using wine, which is why Shanghainese dishes are sometimes referred to as "drunk".

FROM THIRST

Surprisingly, the most popular drink in China is plain hot water. Tip: Buy a reusable container before you travel and save ¥2 a bottle on water. There are coolers at train stations, airports, supermarkets and even theaters. You can not weigh down your luggage and buy a mug on the spot. The store near your hotel may not have bread or eggs, but there will be thermoses and special plastic bottles for sure. Boiling water for the Chinese is both a drink and medicine, a way to keep warm in winter and cool in summer. hot water served free before meals in restaurants to improve appetite, and doctors advise drinking it daily - the more the better.

Although the true national drink of China is water, the local drink is more famous abroad. tea. A cup of tea is a way to say "thank you", a sign of family reunion and an important mediator in human relationships. For a traditional tea ceremony, go to the "tea house". Green tea is many times more popular than black, and the most common is buckwheat. It is considered cheap and simple, and is served mostly for free. Added to tea dried fruits and flowers, but never sugar or honey - it spoils the true taste.

You can buy tea both in bulk supermarkets and in specialized stores. The advantage of the latter is a large selection of popular and rare varieties, beautiful packaging and the opportunity to try any of the presented in the range. The big minus is the price. A 500g oolong costs at least ¥100. A similar oolong can be bought in a supermarket for ¥20.

Influenced by the Western fashion for "to go" beverages, Chinese entrepreneurs have launched a multimillion-dollar milk tea industry. Usually it is green tea with soy milk and floating red beans, which must be “pulled out” with a straw. Also popular are tea with jelly pieces, fruit tea with mango or papaya pulp. To the windows of the giants of the market, such as SoCo and Royal Tea in the morning and evening, there are multi-meter queues. On the Internet, you can even hire a person to stand in line for you.

But you will meet coffee to go infrequently. Rich black coffee is a rarity here. The drink is expensive - ¥25 for an American, ¥30 for a cappuccino or latte. You can drink a cup either in European pastry shops or in franchised coffee shops. Small coffee shops are very rare, but Starbucks can be seen in large cities almost more often than ATMs. Its popularity is due to the brand name, as well as the opportunity to experience the atmosphere of the Western world.

Another popular drink among children and teenagers is freshly squeezed fruit juices. The most popular flavors are mango, papaya, dragon's eye and citrus. Often the drink is served with whipped cream, pieces of fruit, and crumbled biscuits on top.

After the first visit to the club, the myth of non-drinking Chinese falls apart and crawls into a corner in disgrace. Drinking a bottle of beer at dinner is the norm for an ordinary resident. The beer here is not very high quality and strong, you won’t get drunk with all your desire. Fortress light beer the most famous brand Tsingtao (Tsingtao) - 4.5%. As for the degree higher, the Chinese drink a lot and extremely chaotically. rice vodka baijiu(白酒) mixed with red wine hongju(红酒), with beer and homemade tinctures. Baijiu has a sharp specific smell and a high percentage of alcohol - from 40 to 60%. The weaker version is called huangjiu(黄酒), which translates to " yellow wine". It is sipped from peaches, rice or plums, so huangjiu has a pleasant sweet smell. Baidze and wine are drunk warmed from small cups. A popular souvenir from China - red bottles Jin Jiu(劲酒). This is a sweetish tincture with the aroma of herbs, vaguely reminiscent of Bitner's balm in taste. You can drink in China from the age of 18. The sale has no restrictions - you can buy alcohol at any time of the day.

DETAILS

At Chinese food there is no clear division into morning, afternoon and evening. If you want to eat pork with rice and soup for breakfast, no one will forbid you. In addition, there is no division into “first”, “second” and “dessert” - products are served on the table as they are ready in a chaotic manner. The eating hours are known to everyone, and the Chinese adhere to them since childhood:

7:00-9:00 - breakfast;
11:30-14:00 - lunch;
19:00-21:00 - dinner.

There are a lot of people in the restaurants during lunch and dinner. Near the entrance to the most popular places there are a dozen plastic chairs - this is how visitors wait for their turn to enter the restaurant. Sometimes the wait is delayed for several hours. If the hunger is too strong, they order food at home. More or less large establishments have delivery within half an hour, food containers are left in special “lockers” at the entrance or handed over personally.

In search of food, the traveler will most often come across small restaurants on the ground floor of the building, or chifanki. They have no doors and heating, but low prices. They serve local meat, fish, a set of vegetable snacks, noodles and, of course, rice. Pastry shops are popular lately, where you can buy pastries and bread. Chinese bread is sweeter and softer than European bread and is baked with red beans or raisins. If doubts bind the soul, you can walk to the nearest KFC, McDonalds or Pizza Hut. You won’t be able to try a burger or pizza “like at home” - there are more spices in Chinese fast food.

They eat with chopsticks in China. They are wooden and long to make it easier to get pieces from common dishes. In some restaurants, for hygiene reasons, special steel nozzles are given to the chopsticks. Soup is eaten with a small wide spoon with a deep bottom. The broth without noodles and meat is drunk directly from the plate.

The most popular place for gatherings is ho go, aka hot-pot (火锅), aka Chinese samovar. In the institutions of the same name, visitors cook their own food in a large vat with sauce. Sometimes the container is divided into two parts - for soft sauce and for spicy. When it boils, various meats, vegetables or greens are thrown into the vat, they are taken out with chopsticks as they are ready and eaten with butter. Ho go is not to be walked alone: ​​large tables with built-in pot holes can accommodate up to 20 people.

For the Chinese, eating is a social affair. It is an act of togetherness, an opportunity to be with friends and family. Basic meat and fish dishes originally designed for two, so that you can share it with someone. Many Chinese people call their spouses or children via video during lunch - so, sitting alone in a restaurant, they are still not alone.

In Chinese culture, and in the life of every Chinese, food plays a very important role, it is almost the main topic of any conversation. The Chinese, even at a meeting, instead of “Hi, how are you?”, They are interested in whether the person has eaten today, and I am absolutely not joking. The phrase "Did you eat today?" (你吃了吗 - Ni chi le ma?) has long been a common form of greeting.

Chinese national cuisine

It is difficult to characterize traditional Chinese cuisine unambiguously, since China is a huge country, inhabited by 56 nationalities, each of which has special culinary traditions and recipes. But that is why Chinese cuisine is so diverse and unique.

To summarize, we can distinguish two main geographical regions: north and south. The main difference is that in the north, noodles are the main dish, or dumplings (fried, boiled, steamed) and unleavened bread (mantou). In the north, food is more salty, fatty and nutritious.

In the south, preference is given to rice dishes (boiled rice, rice noodles, rice cake). At the same time, southern traditional cuisine is characterized by sweeter and spicier food.

As in other hot countries, in ancient China, pepper was used for disinfection, because at high temperatures it is difficult to guarantee the freshness of food, and in order to avoid various intestinal infections, all food was generously sprinkled with hot spices. In addition to the north and south, Sichuan cuisine is also distinguished, which is most famous for its spiciness, they serve such spicy dishes that not every Chinese will be able to digest it, but for the locals, all other food seems too insipid.

But do not think that the abundance of pepper is found only in the south, for most foreigners, almost any Chinese food will seem spicy, simply because we are completely unaccustomed to such an abundance of seasonings and spices.

In general, the Chinese are very fond of various kinds of spices, seasonings, additives and actively use them in cooking. They distinguish five basic tastes and five ingredients that are responsible for them: hot - pepper and ginger, sour - vinegar, salty - salt, bitter - wine, sweet - molasses. In the market, even eyes run wide, there are so many things that we don’t even suspect. The most popular are garlic, hot red pepper, ginger, cumin, cloves, anise and others. All this gives Chinese dishes a unique taste and aroma.

At the same time, unlike us, the Chinese practically do not eat salt and sugar. Salt replaces soy sauce, which is part of almost any dish, but they don’t particularly like sugar at all, and even more so they don’t add it to tea like we do. But they are very fond of adding various flowers and dried fruits to tea.

The advantage of Chinese cuisine is the use of a large amount of vegetables and herbs, while most of them have minimal processing (scald with boiling water, boil a little, steam), which allows you to save more nutrients and vitamins. In general, China has a very wide range of vegetables and fruits all year round, not only in the south, but also in the north of the country. Here and in winter you can buy tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, asparagus, all kinds of cabbage and more. The locals have not even heard about conservation, why, if everything is sold on the market in fresh?

Among the Chinese, the main measure of weight is one jin ( 斤 jīn), which is equal to 0.5 kg, and therefore the price of all products by weight is indicated in jing, not kilograms. Prices for vegetables depend on the season: in winter and spring everything costs a little more than in summer or autumn, it also depends on the province: cheaper in the south, more expensive in the north. Here are some examples on the market:

• broccoli - 6-8 yuan,
• eggplant - 6,
• cucumbers - 3.5-4,
• cherry tomatoes - 5,
• cabbage - 2.5,
• black Eyed Peas – 6-7,
• potatoes - 2-2.5,
• zucchini - 4. (all prices are in yuan, for 0.5 kg, the approximate rate is 1 USD = 6.4 yuan)

In addition to our usual vegetables, the Chinese eat lotus roots, bulbs and seeds, bamboo sprouts, tree mushrooms, etc. Surprisingly, many of these are very tasty!

The variety of fruits here is also amazing, in addition to the banana-oranges already familiar to us, in China you can buy papaya, dragon fruit, jackfruit, durian, lychee, mango, delicious pineapples. Many of these fruits are available in supermarkets all year round, but it is still better to buy seasonal fruits, because they are cheaper and have more vitamins.

In early autumn, the most common fruits are watermelons, melons, apples, grapes, papaya and dragon fruit. At this time, papaya and dragon fruit will cost about 5 yuan each, sometimes 10 yuan can buy 3.

From November they start selling persimmons, tangerines, oranges, the price will be approximately the same from 2.5 yuan per jin.

In February, the pineapple season begins, the price is from 4 yuan per jin, in March-April there are a lot of mangoes in China, which costs 7-10 yuan per jin (the price depends on the size, small ones are cheaper, large ones are more expensive).

Strawberries, coconuts, lychees, peaches will appear in May-June. As already mentioned above, the price is usually indicated per jin, but seasonal fruits are often sold at a so-called discount, for example, 3 jing - 10 yuan, that is, the price is indicated for 1.5 kg. Large fruits such as papaya, coconut or dragon fruit are often priced per piece. Now (April) the market prices are as follows: coconut 10/piece, lemon 2.5/piece, tangerines, apples, bananas 2.5-3 per jin, mangoes 8 per jin.

Is it true that the Chinese are omnivores?

As horrible as it sounds, the Chinese really do eat almost anything that runs, jumps, flies, and crawls. In addition to poultry, pork and beef, in some provinces of China they eat the meat of dogs and cats, pigeons, snakes, frogs, turtles, monkeys, and even rare and protected animals. It is illegal to eat rare animals, but this does not stop the Chinese, believe me. Not so long ago, the Chinese were arrested, who sold the meat of a panda listed in the Red Book, what else can I say? In the course are all kinds of viscera. In ancient times, this was due to the fact that there was not enough food for everyone, and it was not necessary to sort out, in order to survive, people ate everything they could catch. Nowadays, when it comes to exotic dishes, it is more of an opportunity to demonstrate your financial well-being. Another reason to turn to the exotic is the desire to improve your health. The Chinese believe that turtle soup will give longevity, dog meat will cure diseases, and a snake will make you smarter and more cunning. All plants that could be used in cooking are also used. So, in my opinion, they are really omnivores.

Features of eating

The Chinese have one very good habit: they have a well-defined diet from childhood. Indeed, most Chinese eat by the hour:

• breakfast from 7.00 to 9.00;
• lunch from 11.00 to 14.00;
• dinner 17.00 to 19.00.

Perhaps it is because of this that they do not have problems with being overweight. During these periods, all establishments are overcrowded. It is at this time that a large number of stalls with various street food leave the streets. The rest of the time, the establishments also work, but there is no hype, only single visitors who, for one reason or another, got behind the schedule, come to refresh themselves.

Everyone knows that the Chinese eat with chopsticks, but not everyone knows that certain etiquette must be observed. But the Chinese are completely fluent in this skill, they even have a cartoon on this topic that teaches children how to properly handle chopsticks. From what I remember: you can’t leave vertically stuck chopsticks in a plate (a bad sign and a symbol of death), you can’t lick the chopsticks, since food is taken from a common plate, you can’t point with chopsticks at those sitting at the table, knock them on the table or plate, you can’t sorting through food in search of the best piece, what you touched, then take it, and much more.

Another feature of the Chinese can be called the fact that a very small percentage of people cook food at home, most of the population prefers to eat in establishments or take food to go. Sometimes it is amazing that many women absolutely do not know how to cook or, if they know how, they will not spend time on it. Holidays are an exception, and even then not in all families. In fact, it is very convenient and cheap, sometimes it seems to me that cooking at home is even more expensive. Moreover, on every corner there are a lot of different establishments for every taste and budget.

By the way, the Chinese meal is also different from ours. If in our restaurant everyone orders a separate dish for himself, then the Chinese are completely opposite. If there is more than one person at the table, then several different dishes are always ordered for everyone. Large meals are served on the table. common meals and separate bowls of rice or mantou according to the number of people. Everyone takes a little from each dish. Many establishments have made special round tables with a rotating stand to make it easier to get all the dishes.

If we start our meal with a liquid (soup), then the Chinese finish it, believing that it is better for health. At the same time, their soup is absolutely not like ours, it has no meat, no potatoes, nothing that we are so used to. It's more like a viscous cloudy broth with egg, herbs, perhaps rice.

The Chinese also litter a lot at the table. Everything that cannot be eaten, such as seeds or skins, pieces of pepper is not spat out on your plate, but straight on a common table or on the floor. In general, for me personally, eating with the Chinese at the same table is not entirely pleasant, because we have completely different ideas about the correct behavior at the table, what is natural for them is bad form for us.

Unusual foods and dishes for us

As I said, the Chinese eat everything. I call it non-waste production, on the one hand, it's good that they find ways to get the most out of everything, on the other hand, it's strange when people in an expensive restaurant eat various offal or gnaw bones. One such wonderful dish, "Phoenix Claws" (泡椒凤爪 - pàojiāo fèngzhǎo), sounds pretentious, doesn't it? In fact, these are chicken legs, the ones with claws. Don't believe? See for yourself. Chicken paws marinated in various sauces are sold in stores, these are the so-called snacks or in Chinese 小吃 xiǎochī, the Chinese often gnaw them with beer. In addition to chicken legs, they also eat duck necks, paws, heads, and mutton heads, cow stomachs, there is even a dish of duck blood, but I think we can do without a photo, because I personally hate to look at it, so you have to take my word for it .

soy milk products

I don’t know if this is true or a myth, but the Chinese consider lactose intolerance as a national feature. Most of them do not consume the dairy products we are used to, instead they eat soy cheese and drink soy milk. For the most part, they are unaware of the existence of products such as kefir, fermented baked milk and cottage cheese. Foreign cheeses, butter and yoghurts are very expensive and not everyone can afford it. In the morning, the Chinese often drink soy milk, and they cook from tofu (soy cheese) various dishes.

For the most part tofu(豆腐 – dòufu）harmless and sometimes tasty dish, but there is one of its varieties - chhou tofu (stinky tofu - 臭豆腐 chòudòufu), the smell is really nauseating. It cannot be expressed in words, it must be felt, but the stench is really terrible.

Canned Sunhuadan Eggs (松花蛋, sōnghuādàn)

This dish is also called "thousand-year" or "imperial" eggs. For its preparation, duck or chicken eggs are used. The shell is coated with a special composition of ash, lime, salt, soda, plant leaves and left in a special place where air does not enter, to ripen for 1-3 months. After the eggs are thoroughly washed, peeled and ventilated. It turns out here is such an unusual dish. They say it does not smell very pleasant, but it tastes normal, but I did not dare to try it.

Weird taste buds

The Chinese are big fans of unusual flavor combinations, for example, on the shelves of supermarkets you can find potato chips with cucumber, tomato, lime, honey and even chocolate.

Ice cream with peas, corn, beans, salty meat candies, sweet buns with beans or meat rope and much more will be familiar to them. Gourmets, in a word.

exotic

Sea urchins, swallow nests, shark fins, monkey brains, snakes, turtles and other exotic foods are quite common in Chinese cuisine, but the pleasure is not cheap. Such dishes can be tasted in many restaurants in China.

But the most extreme in this regard is the southern province of Guangdong, with the capital Guangzhou. Local taste preferences shock not only foreigners, but also many Chinese from other provinces. Despite protests by animal rights activists around the world and Chinese government bans, smugglers here trade in rare species of animals that are then eaten or used in Chinese traditional medicine. Personally, I am against all this exoticism, but if anyone is interested and wants to try, then you are welcome. Here are the names of some exotic dishes:

• shark fin soup 金汤鱼翅 jīntāng yúchì,
• frog legs with chili sauce 鲜椒馋嘴蛙 xiānjiāo chánzuǐwā,
• snake and chicken soup 龙凤汤 lóngfèngtāng,
• snake meat with pepper and salt 椒盐蛇肉 jiāoyán shé ròu,
• fried snake with onion 葱爆蛙肉 cōng bào shé ròu,
• a dish of sea ​​urchins海胆蒸蛋hǎidǎn zhēng dàn,
• swallow nest soup 燕窝汤 yànwōtāng,
• turtle soup 甲鱼汤 jiǎyútāng,
• braised turtle in brown soy sauce 红烧甲鱼 hóngshāo jiǎyú,
• fried frog in soy sauce 红烧田鸡 hóngshāo tiánjī,
• sea ​​cucumber (trepang) fried with onion 葱烧素海参 cōngshāo sùhǎishēn.

There is one dish, it is called "the fight of the dragon with the tiger", its poetic name attracts many, but only until they learn that snake meat acts as a dragon, and cats act as a tiger. Ingredients are not written on the Chinese menu, and if you are completely unfamiliar with Chinese cuisine, then from the name it is not at all clear what this or that dish is prepared from. V good restaurants, of course, there should be a menu in English, but this is not always the case and everywhere. In large tourist cities, this is really easier. In small ones, most likely, you won’t find anything at all except Chinese, it’s good if there are pictures, and if there aren’t even those, then it’s really bad. In this case, it is better to have a translator with you, it can be easily installed on your smartphone.

But, by the way, the Chinese do not eat various insects in Everyday life. And all these skewers with scorpions, grasshoppers, cockroaches and caterpillars, which are offered at Wangfujing in Beijing, or other cities, are nothing more than a tourist attraction. Perhaps it used to be food, but not now for sure. Although with the Chinese you can not be 100% sure.

About Chinese taste preferences You can argue endlessly, but it is not necessary, because to each his own. Our borscht, aspic or herring under a fur coat also seem absurd to the rest of the world.

Popular food in China. What to try

Peking Duck

This is almost the first thing that comes to mind when mentioning China. Do not deny yourself the pleasure of trying a dish that has actually become one of the main symbols of Chinese cuisine. You can taste it in any city in China, and although the duck is called Peking duck, the original recipe for its preparation came from the Shandong province. In many cities there are restaurants that specialize in cooking Peking duck, and bear the appropriate name, but in an ordinary restaurant or cafe it will be no less tasty. The peculiarity of this dish is that before cooking, the duck is marinated in a special sauce of honey, jam and various spices. Sweet and crispy crust is the main highlight of this dish. Before serving, the duck is cut into small pieces, similar to plates, but they can be served whole, and then cut in front of guests. Peking duck can be tasted not only in a restaurant, but also bought in special street shops. They do not have to order the whole duck, you can take half or even a quarter.

Sweet and sour pork (糖醋里脊 tángcù lǐji）

Another of my favorite foods that I would recommend ordering while in China is pork in sweet and sour sauce, or as it is also called tansulji. Small pieces of meat are rolled in starch and fried in a wok, then added special sauce, ready meal sprinkled with sesame seeds. The dish is very pleasant: tender, sour and sweet are very well combined in it, and, most importantly, it is absolutely not spicy. By the way, in some places pork is replaced with chicken, which is also good.

Marinated carp or sweet and sour fish (糖醋鲤鱼tángcù lǐyú)

This dish is very similar to pork in sweet and sour sauce, but instead of meat, it uses fish, as the name implies, mainly carp. The fish is cooked and served on the table as a whole, and to make it more convenient to eat with chopsticks, special cuts are made. For cooking, the same sweet and sour sauce is used, but the dish itself is more tender. The only negative, in my opinion, is that it is not very convenient to choose bones with chopsticks, and I have not learned how to deal with fish like the Chinese. For fish, as well as for almost all other dishes, rice must be ordered separately. For lovers of a combination of sour and sweet, I recommend trying both fish and pork.

Noodles in beef broth (牛肉面 niúròu miàn）

The signature dish of all Chinese Muslims is noodles in beef broth (niu rou mien). You can try it in almost any city in China, but its homeland is the city of Lanzhou, in northwestern China. The noodles are cooked by hand, boiled and poured with beef broth. Then greens (cilantro, onion), pieces of meat are put on a plate and spices are added. If you do not like spicy, then you can ask not to add pepper, and the broth itself is not spicy.

Noodle cooking is mostly done by men, because it is a very difficult job and strong hands are needed, at least I have not seen women doing this. The dough is punched, stretched, and then beaten on the table, and so on several times. The thinner the resulting noodles are, the more skillful the master is considered to be.

Fried noodles (炒面 chǎomiàn)

By the way, in China, noodles are not just a dish, but also a good sign. Long stripes symbolize long life, so the Chinese believe that eating it is not only tasty, but also healthy. In addition to Muslim noodles, you should also try fried noodles(chao mien). In a special sauce, the Chinese fry the noodles along with an egg, various vegetables, meat or seafood. It turns out tasty, but, as for me, too greasy.

Personally, I think that Chinese cuisine is quite fatty and therefore difficult for the stomach, but how many people have so many opinions. I once asked why add so much oil to all dishes, it's tasteless. Then a familiar Chinese woman explained that earlier, not only in ancient times, but also after Mao Zedong came to power, the majority of the country's population lived very poorly, and they could not afford the use of oil. It was considered a sign of prosperity and well-being, so now, pouring oil on the dishes abundantly, they want to show that everything is fine with them and they do not feel sorry for anything for the guests.

Baozi (包子 bāozi)

Chinese baozi are large, steamed so-called dumplings, or pies made from unleavened dough. Their filling can be both meat and vegetarian (various greens, carrots, mushrooms).

They are usually served with vinegar, which is also dark in color, so do not confuse it with soy sauce, and various seasonings. Baozi can be bought both on the street and in a restaurant. In China, there is even a famous fast-food chain that exclusively deals with their preparation.

Jiaozi (饺子 jiǎozi)

Jiaozi are Chinese boiled or fried dumplings. They can also have absolutely any filling, they differ from baozi in size and method of preparation.

Chicken, or gongbao chicken (宫保鸡丁gōngbǎo jīdīng)

Another famous Chinese dish is gongbao chicken. Traditionally, it belongs to Sichuan cuisine and is very spicy. I don’t eat spicy myself, but I really like the combination of ingredients in this dish (chicken, peanuts or cashews, carrots, cucumber or zucchini). When I order a non-spicy gongbao chicken, the Chinese laugh and get angry, and they always say that without hot Szechuan pepper, it becomes completely different. If you are a spicy lover, then you should try the dish prepared according to the original recipe, and if not, you can always ask to make it without pepper, you just have to say bu yao lazi (不要辣子bùyàolàzi)

Ho-go (火锅 huǒguō)

There is another interesting dish in China, it is called ho-go (or samovar). It is interesting because visitors cook their own food. Either one large container with broth or several small ones (depending on the number of people) and raw prepared foods are brought to the table. It can be various types of meat, seafood, tofu, mushrooms, vegetables, herbs. The container is placed on a heating surface, and when the broth boils, it means that it is time to throw food there. When the products are cooked, they need to be taken out and eaten with special sauces. The broth and sauces are different, spicy and not, with various additives. In fact, this is a very pleasant way to spend time in the company, and the Chinese very often go to eat ho-go, and at the same time sing karaoke right there.

"Spicy Pan" (麻辣香锅 málàxiāng guō)

For this dish, you must first choose products, as on a buffet. It can be vegetables, mushrooms, meat, seafood, tofu, and then they are cooked in a special sauce and spices. The price depends on the number of selected products. Usually the price for vegetables is one, for meat and seafood another. When you have chosen the ingredients, they are weighed, and the price is determined by weight.

Pork in fish sauce (鱼香肉丝 yúxiāng ròusī)

For this dish, the meat is cut into strips and fried for big fire adding sauce, garlic and hot peppers. According to the most Chinese, the sauce gives the dish a fishy smell, so the literal translation of the name sounds like "fish-flavored pork." In fact, the fishy taste is not felt there, and the dish is quite tasty and interesting.

If you do not eat meat, then in China this will not be a big problem, because there are quite a lot of different vegetarian dishes, in this case you need to know the word - su 素 sù, which means lean, or vegetarian. Meat will be hun 荤 hūn. For example, you can say wo bu chi hong de 我不吃荤的 (wǒ bù chī hūnde) I don't eat meat, or show them this phrase, they will understand you and offer food for vegetarians.

Chinese desserts

As such, there are no desserts in Chinese restaurants, and in traditional Chinese cuisine, there is no abundance of sweets even in stores. In fact, the Chinese do not really like everything sweet, somehow it has not worked out for a long time. Therefore, I would say that China is not a country for the sweet tooth. Delicious sweets here are only imported. But they found an excellent and healthier substitute - fruits.

Fruit

As a dessert, restaurants often serve sliced ​​papaya with some kind of sweet syrup, or sometimes it can be other fruits, such as mango or pineapple.

Most often, a Chinese festive meal ends with a large platter of beautifully arranged fruit, although fruit can be served at the very beginning, there are no strict rules on this. Fruit plates are ordered even in bars for beer.

Street vendors everywhere sell other fruit treat tanhulu - fruits on a stick (糖葫芦 tánghúlu) filled with either caramel or sugar syrup. Any fruit can be used, but most often these are small Chinese apples. Worth a try for a change. By the way, the Chinese also refer to the cherry tomato as a fruit, so it can be found in fruit juices, and in sweet salads, and even on cake decoration, and in such tanhulu too.

Even before coming to China, when I went to our Chinese restaurants, I tried simply amazing dessert - fruits in caramel (拔丝水果básīshuǐguǒ, and was very surprised that I could not find them in my supposed homeland. If you are a friend, you are lucky to see it on the menu restaurant something like that, be sure to try it, it must be very tasty.

Bakery products

Pastries and cakes 蛋糕

Recently, various confectionery and European cafes have become very fashionable in China, which offer a variety of cakes, pastries and other desserts. But I can't call them delicious. Chinese cakes and pastries look insanely beautiful and appetizing, each cake is a work of art, but, unfortunately, they do not have special taste qualities. So different in appearance, they all taste the same: a biscuit, a lot of cream and fruit on top, this is where the fantasy of Chinese confectioners ends. Under the influence of the West, in recent years, the Chinese have begun to buy birthday cakes, although there was no such tradition before.

Egg cream tart (蛋挞 dàntà)

Among the Chinese, these tartlets are in great demand and are sold both on the streets, supermarkets, confectioneries, and in cafes and restaurants. The puff pastry base is filled with a delicate egg cream and baked. Such a delicacy is also cheap, from 3 yuan apiece.

Gold and silver mantou (金银馒头 jīnyín mántou)

In general, mantou is a kind of Chinese unleavened bread, but there is also a kind of dessert. Steamed buns are served with condensed milk. Buns of two colors are laid out on one dish, hence the name. Golden ones are covered with syrup and baked in the oven, they are more tasty, white buns are quite bland.

holiday sweets

Safety and cleanliness

Compared to our cafes and restaurants, many Chinese establishments look extremely unpresentable, they are not particularly clean, and much is cooked right on the street, the seller immediately takes the money, butchers the meat with the same hand. Plus, visitors themselves litter a lot, and it is not always cleaned properly, the only exceptions are expensive restaurants. Many first-time visitors to the country experience shock and horror, and I myself was like that. I always tried to imagine, if it's such a mess in the hall, then what's going on in the kitchen? But, to be honest, neither with me, nor with my acquaintances and friends, any food poisoning or other food-related troubles have happened here in 4 years of my life, no matter where we ate.

Most importantly, try to choose crowded and relatively clean places. If the cafe is tasty, then every day there will be a lot of people there, if the place is empty, this is already suspicious. However, the attendance of a place must be judged by time, because, as you remember, the Chinese observe the regime. If the cafe is empty during dinner or lunch, this should be alarming, but if it is empty at other times, then this is almost normal.

Personally, I have doubts about the quality of China's food products, in fact, everyone knows that this is a country of fakes, and products are no exception. Every now and then I read in the news about another scandal, then fake meat went on sale, then fake eggs, then banned substances are found in products. Sometimes the news is also broadcast about unscrupulous owners of establishments who put drugs in food in order to ensure a constant influx of customers. So you always need to be careful, because health depends on it.

When you live here all the time, it's not funny at all. Many Chinese prefer to buy more expensive but higher quality imported products. But still I hope that not everything is as bad as it seems, and at least some useful material in Chinese products all the same is. Of course, if we compare it with home-made ones, then our products are of higher quality, and somehow everything is tastier.

Food prices

Food prices in China are completely different, it all depends on the status of the institution and the city. The cost starts from 1-2 USD per serving of rice with vegetables or noodles and goes up to infinity. Naturally, in large cities, such as Shenzhen, Guangzhou, food prices not only in establishments, but also in stores will be higher, in small towns they will be lower. The price also depends on the quality of the ingredients.

The cheapest food is from street hawkers. In addition to the fact that in every city there are entire streets and markets where food stalls are located, every day, hourly, hawkers go to universities, schools and other public places. For breakfast here for 1-2 USD you can buy a sandwich with an egg, sausage or vegetables, soy milk, boiled egg, corn, fruits on a stick. At other times, kebabs, vegetables are fried here, they sell cold noodles, various flatbreads and other snacks. I would advise you to try the local hamburger, it is called "joujiabing" (肉夹饼, ròujiābǐng) flatbread, inside of which they put fried meat with spices, very tasty and satisfying.

In seaside towns, hawkers prepare seafood and fish; in Muslim towns, various shish kebabs. In general, of course, in every city on the streets you can find very tasty and interesting dishes, and most of the time eating street food in China is quite safe. You should not be afraid to buy food on the streets, but, of course, hygiene must be observed and places chosen carefully.

It will cost a little more to eat in small cafes and eateries. But also within 2 USD you can order a portion of boazzi or jiaozi. For the same money you can buy a portion of fried noodles or rice with egg and vegetables, or with meat, but there will be very little meat. Usually meat dishes are more expensive, vegetarian ones are cheaper. In most establishments, a portion of boiled rice costs 2 yuan - 0.31 USD, you can take any other dish with it, for example, the average price for pork in sweet and sour sauce in an inexpensive cafe will be 20-30 yuan (3-5 USD), if you take, for example, eggplant in fish sauce (鱼香茄子yú xiāng qiézi), it will be less than 20 yuan.

But prices depend on the city and location of the establishment. In tourist places, everything will be about 2 times more expensive. With the exception of rice, which is served individually, portions in China are large enough for two to fill up.

In a restaurant, the price for one dish on average will start from 50 yuan and more, it all depends on the restaurant itself and the quality of service.

Recently, many buffet restaurants have opened in China. The Chinese call them establishments of European cuisine, although, in my opinion, European cuisine it doesn’t smell there, but you can’t call these dishes traditionally Chinese either. Everything is served there: from appetizers to desserts, often there are different seafood. The entrance fee varies from 50 to 200 yuan, but it can be more expensive.

Friends, you often ask, so we remind you! 😉, .

Chinese cuisine- this is rice, noodles, Peking duck, chisanchi, turtle soup, dumplings (jiaozi), sushi, rolls, mushu pork, fish, as well as a lot of various traditional and exotic food. These delicacies, as well as many others, are recognized as a local landmark of China and are its hallmark.

In the national home and restaurant cuisine of the country, culinary masterpieces several Chinese regions. also in culinary specialties ah, a set of traditions (canons) and the recipe for cooking dishes of the ancient Huaqiao diaspora, originating in the Neolithic era, can be traced. Over time, different regions of the country have developed personal taste preferences, based on climatic conditions and court fashion. Over the years, new products and recipes have appeared in Chinese cuisine that came from other countries (Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Thailand), and some traditions associated with cooking have also been revised. The traditional cuisine of China differs markedly from the culinary masterpieces of other territories in a characteristic feature inherent in various nationalities or social classes.

Hot liquid meals in the form of clear soups are widely popular in the country. To prepare the broth, the Chinese use chicken, beef or pork.

Chinese chefs are very skillful in decorating national culinary masterpieces. To give the dish an authentic look, they use various greens, as well as yellow, white and black flowers. The traditional delicacies of the country are very tasty and perfectly absorbed by the human body, as well as very healthy.

On this page of the site section, we have specially selected for you simple step-by-step recipes with photos that allow you to get to know the culinary dishes of China better. Thanks to the described cooking technology and pictures, you can learn step by step how to learn how to cook Chinese dishes at home. Each of the dishes is easy to prepare. In addition, the finished treat turns out to be quite satisfying and appetizing.

Recipes with step by step photos

• Meat in sweet and sour sauce

Description

Chinese cuisine, which has a certain specificity and philosophy (five tastes), is one of the oldest in the world. This concept covers a huge number of territorial cuisines (8 directions), but the most common and authoritative are Cantonese, Jiangsu, Shandong, Huaiyang and Sichuan. In this article, we will try to give brief description Chinese culinary masterpieces, to acquaint with the traditions of their preparation and features.

Each of these cuisines has differences depending on the climate, geographical location, history of development and the prevailing lifestyle of a particular region. For example, stewed or fried dishes are very popular in Jiangsu cuisine. In Sichuan province, most dishes are baked. In most regions, a different method of cooking is used: drying, pickling, canning, salting, and pickling.

Having studied the culture of China, you can find that a lot of things in this country are associated with five elements that symbolize the cardinal points, seasons, colors, tastes, each of which has 5 components.

What are the 5 flavors of food in China:

1. Sour.
2. Spicy.
3. Sweet.
4. Salty.
5. Bitter.

The listed gastronomic tastes are the main ones, and there are also three auxiliary taste qualities of food in the country (herbaceous, amber and fragrant smack).

In the culture of the Celestial Empire, they treat their history, traditions, and folk cuisine, which is no less revered, with great respect. The Chinese culture of cooking originated over 5,000 years ago. The modern cuisine of the Celestial Empire continues to preserve local traditions and great love for ancient origins and traditions.

The famous ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius taught the basics of cooking 25 centuries ago. The recipe for cooking dishes of the eminent sage has been preserved and is very popular today, not only in the homeland of the philosopher (in the town of Qufu), but throughout the world.

There are about 8 varieties of Chinese culinary dishes (cuisines), namely:

• Cantonese, which is known for its crispy and spicy dishes made from different types of meat (goat, lamb, snake or snail) and offal;
• Anhui, containing products of marine origin, mushrooms, local vegetables and herbs;
• Fujian, characterized by special notes of aroma and sweetness (mushroom delicacies, bamboo shoots and others);
• jiangsong, famous for its original and soft bouquets of flavors and represented, for example, by salted poultry (chicken, duck), crystal pork legs, meat balls from pork and crushed crab shell;
• huanese, whose dishes have a different color palette and an oily texture (carp squirrel, steam herring);
• Szechuan (spicy and fatty), known for preserving natural tastes, as well as mastery of knives during cooking (among the dishes of this variety, little, tofu, Szechuan stewed pork, “tongbao chicken” and others are especially popular);
• Shandong, whose dishes have an unusual taste (hot liquid food from shark fins, roast duck or the Chinese delicacy "swallow's nest");
• Zhejiang, famous for its fresh taste and delicious aroma (fish in sweet and sour sauce, shrimp and pork with zongzu or lotus root powder).

In addition to these dishes, dishes of Hong Kong, Malay, Singaporean, American, and Pakistani cuisines are popular in China.

Chinese people love and revere their cuisine very much, so they eat various local spices and meat of animals grown in their homeland. But the main diet of the Chinese since the development of agriculture has been and continues to be plants that give grain.

Masters of national Chinese cuisine have a very high status along with important officials of the Celestial Empire. According to one of the ancient legends, the founder of the Shang clan once made his court chef the prime minister.

In ancient Chinese chronicles it is said that the set of products needed for soup symbolizes harmony. Many of the local philosophers in their statements have repeatedly said that cooks are worthy of imitation, since the ruler is obliged to adequately feed his people.

Ancient Chinese dishes were carefully regulated by law. For example, the emperor was allowed to eat lamb, beef and pork, and the ministers were allowed to eat only lamb.

The diet of the Sui Dynasty included cow, ram, elk, pig, chicken, hare, partridge, and pheasant meat. In addition, the known genus fed on fish such as sturgeon, carp, bream, as well as turtles and snails. From plant foods, this dynasty preferred to eat bamboo shoots, celery, leek and fern leaves, mustard seeds, legumes, reed roots, as well as duckweed, taro or pondweed. From the fruit assortment, peaches, plums, watermelons, melons, citrus fruits, grapes and jujube were present in the diet.

Features and secrets of cooking Chinese cuisine

Features and secrets of cooking at home the best dishes Chinese cuisine is not as intricate as it might seem at first glance. Therefore, traditional delicacies can be prepared at home. To understand the essence of each local dish, you need to immerse yourself in the technology of preparing a particular culinary masterpiece.

They say about traditional Chinese cuisine that it was formed a very long time ago. To date, there are more than 20,000 varieties of food in the Celestial Empire, although this statistics may be underestimated. Since the country has a huge range of various original and classic dishes, master classes and special schools for teaching the art of cooking are very popular in China national food. It is assumed that the more complex the food, the healthier and more colorful it is.

The famous Confucius assured that the meat component of the dish should occupy approximately 1/3 of the total mass of the dish, and he assigned 2/3 to vegetables and fruits. According to the philosopher, for the main dishes of Chinese cuisine, it is necessary to cut the ingredients into slices or small cubes. At the same time, meat, fish and poultry should be made the same size as a set of vegetables. The Chinese people are guided by these rules to this day.

Combinations of different types of dishes, popular not only in the Celestial Empire, but also in European countries, were first recommended by Confucius. One of his famous sayings is: "There is no bad and tasteless food, since every delicacy must be served at the table in the best possible way so that it can nourish not only the body, but also the spirit." East Asians fully agree with this phrase.

Chefs and culinary experts in China believe that in order to prepare a delicious traditional or unusual dish it is necessary to observe certain proportions (meat and vegetables) and features of heat treatment, which include 2 main stages that are closely related to each other. The principle is fast cooking and a large flame. Moreover, the first moment is very important to observe for each local dish.

The kitchen of each Chinese restaurant and cafe is equipped with a special oven, where a flame comes from one burner up 35-40 centimeters, and temperature regime reaches approximately 300⁰С-400⁰С. From another hole on the stove the heat does not rise too high, and from the third the fire breaks out too weakly. Each method of heat treatment of components involves the use of one or another flame and its intensity. The Chinese make some delicacies for a couple, and therefore it is very useful to use them during a diet or in the presence of certain diseases (diabetes or gastritis) on the recommendation of doctors.

Undoubtedly, treats in China are very tasty, bright, exotic, fragrant and beloved not only in their homeland, but throughout the world. A beautiful type of delicacy is most of all inherent in portioned cold dishes and snacks. Each of these dishes is unique and colorful, as it shows a magnificent pattern or theme that is inherent in this country.

The beauty of the local mountains, trees, birds, flowers, fish, animals, and insects are perfectly combined in one plate to give the eater a lot of pleasure and benefit from the process of eating. For each set of Chinese dishes on the menu, an even number of dishes are offered, for example, 4, 6, 8 or 10 - this is how it happened in the country. As one Chinese proverb literally says: "2 plates are for hospitality, and 3 plates are like a turtle."

The desire to always reach an even number of dishes once again suggests that the Chinese in their culture strive with all their might to achieve peace of mind and achieve ideality in everything.

The history of the origin of the national cuisine of China

The history of the origin of the real national cuisine and culture of China (northern and southern) begins 5000 years ago. The technique of preparing traditional delicacies is an integral part of the development of the ancient civilization and cultural heritage of the country.

Moreover, the northern cuisine is quite high-calorie and fatty foods (boiled or fried dumplings, noodles, soup, etc.), while the southern one is famous for its spicy, fresh and savory dishes (rice, vegetables, seafood, sushi, rolls, and others).

It is known that the People's Republic of China occupies a huge territory, the climatic conditions of which are different. In one part of the country there is a subtropical, and in others a tropical, subarctic or temperate type of climate. In addition, the great country is known for high mountains and endless plains, lakes and rivers. For this reason, all kinds of delicious delicacies are found or grown in the PRC, namely, vegetables and fruits, plant and animal foods, and spices.

This people has its own tradition of eating. For example, women, men, old people and young people should sit at the table in a strictly defined sequence. In China, as in most Asian countries, wooden sticks are used instead of cutlery.

Historically, the most populated regions of the country have tried to find the most economical ways to solve issues related to the search for food and fuel resources. In this regard, the Chinese developed their own recipes and special ways of processing raw materials by crushing, making special models of frying pans (woks) and weaving original baskets from bamboo fibers so that several dishes could be cooked in them at the same time.

Most of the ingredients are marinated or soaked before heat treatment in order to speed up the cooking process. In this regard, prepared food in China retains the nutritional qualities of the original products to the maximum.

The Chinese food culture differs markedly from Western or Eastern European in that the people of China do not eat milk in its pure form, and also practically do not use butter, because the Chinese organism simply does not absorb lactose molecules.

Prepared food in the country is characterized by interesting tastes and peculiar smells due to a rich set of elements, such as soybean sauce, fresh ginger root, soy shoots, mushrooms, sweet and hot peppers, garlic, green and Chinese onions, star anise, peanuts and other ingredients.

It is mentioned that the first collection of recipes was created by the artist Ni Zan during the reign of the Li Qing Dynasty. It described in detail the various methods of cooking seafood (octopus, squid, jellyfish, shellfish, shark fins, shrimp and others), poultry, mushrooms, and protein cereals (barley, oats, rye and wheat). The cookbook also describes recipes for sauces, salads, sweet pastries, desserts, alcoholic and non-alcoholic products, as well as traditional drinks. In addition, the collection contains options for dishes for which it is necessary to use petals and seeds of various flowers (chrysanthemum, lotus), frogs and snakes.

Translated into Russian, one of the Chinese proverbs says: "There is no inedible food in the world, but only bad cooks." It is no coincidence that among the Chinese in Cantonese (imperial) cuisine, such dishes in which boiled snake meat appears are very popular. Locals believe that the exotic delicacy has a positive effect on general condition health and do no harm.

Name of the treat	Description of the dish
Pork meat in sweet and sour sauce	The national delicacy is available in absolutely all menus of restaurants and cafes in China. It consists of pork, vegetables, tropical fruits (pineapples) and natural ketchup.
Jiaozi, goubuli, shaomai, baozi (Chinese dumplings)	The well-known dish has many cooking ideas that use different fillings (more than 200 options). Street and homemade food can be eaten both boiled and fried.
Salad "Broken Cucumbers"	The dish consists of fresh cucumbers, chili peppers, garlic, cilantro and parsley.
Gabajou	Under the exotic name of the dish, lean pork (chicken or beef) meat is hidden, tomato paste, soy sauce and spices. Served with a side dish of corn and rice, as well as fresh vegetables.
tea eggs	Fragrant traditional New Year's delicacy includes many options for tea marinades, in which chicken eggs are boiled for at least three hours to achieve the effect of "marbling".
Salad "Harbinsky"	The famous hearty and juicy salad contains funchose, Pekinka, as well as other vegetables (cucumbers and carrots), seasonings and marinade.
Meat in Sichuan	For a spicy delicacy, which is cooked over high heat, pork or beef, ginger root and many spices are used.
Shrimps with asparagus	Useful delicacy non-calorie food that is steamed. It consists of seafood, asparagus and green oil.
Pig ears with cucumber	For an East Asian delicacy, smoked or boiled animal ears are used, fresh vegetables, peanuts, and spices.
Meat string	For delicacy you need beef, fresh vegetables, soy marinade, starch and spices.

In fact, this list of signature dishes can be continued for a very long time, because in the cuisine of the Celestial Empire there are many recipes for original and classic dishes that are easy to cook at home or order with home delivery. Also very popular in China is a business lunch that can be bought to take away.

Among the traditional and inexpensive homemade delicacies, you can also add stews or fried eggplant in sweet and sour sauce or batter, noodles in pineapple, rice with vegetables or eggs, beans, cabbage, zucchini, rustic salad and many other delicacies.

By the way, many of the traditional dishes of the PRC can be safely prepared even for children, vegetarians or pregnant women, because some delicacies have a low calorie content (tofu bean curd or jusai cream cheese and others), do not contain meat or spicy seasonings. Despite this, ready-made meals are very nutritious and incredibly tasty.

Today, Chinese street food is very popular in the country. Schoolchildren are its main fans, although sometimes you can meet a passerby of a very respectable appearance who does not disdain to feast on street fast food. The good thing about this quick meal is that you don't have to wait long because the food is already cooked. They mainly make street Chinese semi-finished products in a special mobile cart, which makes it possible to sell them everywhere.

Most wanted fast food bought on the street are:

• spicy soup malatan, consisting of fish meatballs, cabbage leaves or funchose;
• circles of squid, which are supplemented with chopped red edible seaweed (nori) or mashed dried fish;
• spicy squid, grilled with a lot of spices and hot sauce;
• barbecue (a small dry kebab), in which only vegetables mainly appear;
• cakes for the preparation of which you need to use puff pastry, and then in the finished dish you can wrap any products from the menu at the choice of the client;
• funchose acute-sour, also consisting of different vegetables(sometimes meat) with the addition of spicy sauce;
• chicken (duck) legs are usually simmered over low heat, and then placed in a flatbread and poured with ketchup (at the discretion of the buyer).

This list of Chinese street dishes prepared in haste is far from complete. In fact, in the Middle Kingdom there are a lot of street fast food items that you can enjoy and satisfy your hunger. The menu of mobile carts includes, for example, such national fast food as lyangpi, deep-fried poultry meat, baose, tanhulu and many other dishes for every taste.

Traditional first courses

Traditional first courses in China are mainly prepared with veal, chicken, pork or other types of meat broth. The meat component adds a certain taste and richness to hot food, but soups cooked in vegetable broth are also very popular in the country.

What hot dishes are popular in China:

1. Bouillon with funchose. Hot food is very easy to prepare. You can also use regular pasta instead of rice noodles.
2. Fish soup with mushrooms and vegetables. A tasty and healthy delicacy is prepared quickly and turns out to be very light and unusually tasty.
3. Chicken soup with shrimp, vegetables and noodles. In addition to the vegetable set ( bell pepper, leeks, carrots and garlic), for the dish you need to use mushrooms, ginger root, a little soy sauce, sesame seeds (sesame), and spices.
4. Lagman soup. A thick, rich Central Asian dish is prepared according to different recipes. The main constant component in the dish remains homemade noodles which must be done manually.
5. Shanghai soup. Used to prepare the first course chicken breast or sirloin, vegetables, cognac, chopped herbs and spices.

This short list of hot Chinese dishes is by no means complete, since in fact it can be continued indefinitely. It is also worth noting other hot dishes, for example, meat broth with pork meatballs or pork ribs, beef soup with asparagus, egg, potato, pea and bean soup, rich meat broth with dumplings, soup of pork and chrysanthemum petals in earthenware, as well as other first courses.

The so-called transparent soups are very actively used in the country. To prepare a special base decoction, poultry or chicken bones are used, as well as veal or pork. During the day, the Chinese eat hot dishes more than once, but always at the end of the meal.

Meat and fish dishes in China

Meat and fish dishes in China are as popular as hot meals. The secret of the country's huge population lies in the observance of centuries-old culinary traditions, equated with art, which have a positive effect on the life expectancy of the Chinese.

In the Celestial Empire, along with poultry meat products, chicken offal is very popular, sometimes more often than the meat itself. In addition to chicken, pork is eaten in China, and beef and lamb are cooked only in those provinces where Muslims live. Instead of a fresh piece of meat, the Chinese sometimes use preserved meat, such as salted or smoked. Based on the positive feedback from the local population, the best product in the country is considered to be such a ham, which was aged for 100 days in a weak haze.

No less popular in China is sea fish and seafood. This is because the missing minerals and vitamins in rice - the main food of the Middle Kingdom - the Chinese get more from marine products prepared in different ways.

What main dishes can be cooked in the walls of the house:

• pork with vegetables;
• beef fried in a pan (wok);
• chicken feet;
• meat with a fish flavor;
• chicken (breast) in sweet and sour sauce;
• gan fan (mutton dish);
• chicken breast in pineapple sauce;
• milk in batter;
• pollock in orange sauce;
• cod in Chinese;
• tan su yu (sweet and sour candied fish);
• flounder in Chinese;
• fried carp in Peking style;
• steam roll from pike perch;
• fish fillet with mushrooms and others.

Basically, dishes are fried on pork lard, chicken or duck fat, as well as on vegetable oil(sesame, nut or soy).

Ready-made national delicacies from fish or meat differ both in palatability, and according to external data, namely: elasticity, crunchiness, flexibility, sliminess, pleasantness, stickiness, gelatinousness, juiciness, lightness or fat content.

Salads and cold appetizers

Salads and cold appetizers in China are very original and require finely chopped components, such as squares, sticks or thin straws. Experienced chefs are masters of the art of cutting food, so they can easily chop vegetables in the form of hieroglyphs, for example, for the annual festival of Chinese cuisine, a buffet or a gala dinner.

The method of finely chopping ingredients helps to save more time when preparing a particular dish and saves beneficial features products, their colors and taste. spices and spices added to dishes at the end of cooking. The Chinese actively use sesame (sesame) seed oil, as this product is an excellent dietary supplement.

Quail and chicken eggs are revered in the country, so they build large poultry farms in which quails and other birds are grown. In the country, eggs are fried in a very original way according to own recipe, adding a lot of oil to a hot frying pan to give the dish a crispy crust and splendor.

What is eaten in China as salads and cold dishes:

1. Beef (pork) tripe. The famous Szechuan cold appetizer is made from minced meat tripe, chopped peanuts, cilantro and red dressing.
2. Turkey spring rolls. For dietary stuffed treats in the form of small rolls, rice paper must be used.
3. Vegetable mix. Oysters are used for salad, as well as fresh cucumbers, color and white cabbage, carrot, onion, celery stalks and spices.
4. Eggplant caviar. The delicacy consists of ground eggplant, garlic, soy sauce, lemon juice, oils, herbs and spices.
5. Aspic. Chinese variant cold appetizer prepared from pork knuckle and add wine and soy sauce to the dish.

In addition to the listed culinary delights, in China they love sushi with rice and mushrooms, Peking duck, national wonton dumplings, chicken hee, Kung Pao chicken, fresh freshwater fish, centennial egg, rice porridge tribute or damizhou, stuffed pancakes, and There are also many other equally delicious dishes.

Vegetables and fruits of Chinese cuisine

Vegetables and fruits in Chinese cuisine are also very common, because without them it is impossible to cook many dishes. traditional dishes. Treats are prepared in special woks, practically without oil, steamed or canned.

As a vegetable preparation, the Chinese use almost everything that grows in the country, such as Beijing cabbage, hot and sweet peppers, potatoes, mustard seeds and leaves, carrots, fresh herbs, ginger root, garlic and onions.

From this palette of vegetables in China, chefs and housewives create real culinary masterpieces. The local people not only cook vegetable dishes or fruit desserts, but also perfectly combines fruits with meat, fish, sweets, resulting in excellent original delicacies. Such food is loved not only by adults, but also by children. By the way, little sweet teeth prefer to eat apples or tangerines cooked in caramel sauce, and many other sweet desserts.

What local fruits should definitely be tried by a tourist:

• jackfruit;
• durian;
• wampi;
• kiwi;
• cabosu;
• longan;
• litchi;
• kumquat and others.

You can find the secrets and recipes for preparing Chinese delicacies from the above elements on our website in step-by-step recipes with photos.

The most popular sauces and spices in China

The most popular sauce and spice in China is soy sauce and weisu, as these components are added everywhere and everywhere, whether it is the first, second course or salad. Also in China there are many other equally well-known elements and flavor enhancers, which we will discuss in this section.

At the sight of Chinese spices and sauces on the shelves of supermarkets, many buyers simply do not understand for which dish it is appropriate to use this or that seasoning. For this reason, some domestic consumers are hesitant to buy Asian spices and spices.

For convenience, especially for you, we have collected in the summary table the most popular seasonings and marinades of the Middle Kingdom, which you can use.

Spice "Malacien"	Noodles and meat dishes.
Spice "Weijin"	A very popular spice in the homeland is added to almost all dishes at the very end of cooking.
Fragrant oily seasoning-sauce "Laoganma"	Pretty spicy marinade made with soybeans, chili and sesame oil. The component perfectly complements meat, fish and poultry.
Ginger Butter Sauce	Meat dishes and various salads are flavored with sauce.
Bread mix	Seasoning is sold in two forms (spicy and neutral). The product is ideal for marinating meat, fish and other seafood.

In addition to the above ingredients, in restaurants and cafes of the Middle Kingdom, various alcoholic products are added to food in the form of moonshine, cognac, vodka, yellow rice wine or a dessert counterpart. Also in the menu of restaurants you can find dishes that have added a little ginger wine, vegetable and paprika oils, as well as garlic oil.

Very often, the Chinese add white and black peppers, hot paprika, ginger powder or root, onion, garlic, cinnamon, star anise and nutmeg. It is worth noting that the use of all kinds of spices and sauces adds a special taste to the delicacy.

But still, many Chinese prefer to put seasonings not in the dish itself, but on the edge of the plate or dish, so that each eater can independently season the food with seasoning at their discretion and taste.

Flour products, desserts and sweets

Flour products, desserts and national sweets of China outside of China are not as widely known as at home. And it’s completely in vain, because in the Celestial Empire there are a lot of beautiful and unusual sweets for a Russian or foreign layman, which are definitely worth a try.

The Chinese, unlike the inhabitants of Europe or Eastern countries, almost do not consume such bakery products as pizza or shawarma. But on the other hand, this people has many dishes in which there is unleavened or sweet dough with all kinds of fillings. It is noteworthy that in the country it is not customary to finish the meal with dessert delicacies or sweet pastries, since this food is eaten as a regular dish. Sometimes, at the end of the festival in China, only tea and some fruit can be offered.

What flour, sweet and dessert delicacies are popular in China:

1. Mantou. Small donuts from ordinary dough.
2. Baozi. An analogue of small pies, which is made from puff pastry with various fillings.
3. Chinese dumplings. A stuffed flour dish is often steamed and a wide variety of ingredients are used as fillings.
4. Sweet pork in sugar caramel with candied fruits.
5. Rice cake.
6. Sweets "tan". Sweet yummy is prepared with the addition of fruits, nuts, honey and cane sugar.
7. Sweet pastries "bin" or "su", as well as "moon gingerbread", which are hard on the outside, but tender and soft on the inside.

Of course, to enjoy authentic Chinese delicacies, you need to visit this amazing country or cook this or that dish yourself. It is not necessary to live in this country in order to stock up necessary set components of a treat, since most of the ingredients can be purchased at local supermarkets. Therefore, every housewife can create a Chinese dessert in her kitchen to pamper loved ones with delicious pastries.

Beverages

Drinks in China are very original, starting with unusual tea and ending with alcohol. The Chinese cannot imagine their day without at least one of the 18 favorite varieties of non-alcoholic or alcoholic products.

Top 18 most loved drinks (traditional and outlandish) in China:

1. Tea with pudding bubbles, jelly and pearl milk.
2. Tieguanyin is a flower-fruit-berry tea, which is the golden mean between black and green hot drink, which has a yellowish tint.
3. Fragrant tea from chrysanthemum flowers. A hot herbal drink is extremely useful and is a medicine that can normalize cholesterol and ease nasal breathing during a cold.
4. Soy milk is practically the same protein shake made from yellow wheat beans.
5. Canned coconut milk. Canned very sweet thick drink is made from coconut pulp, water and sugar.
6. Refreshing and soothing summer drink called Suanmeitang. The drink is made from sour varieties of plums, licorice root, hawthorn, osmanthus and salt.
7. Cocoa with unusual additives. Whipped salted cheese and rock salt are also added to the dairy product to tease the taste buds.
8. Yunnan. A type of Chinese coffee roasted in small portion cinnamon, which emits a very pungent odor.
9. Distilled water C100 with grapefruit, lemon and other fruit flavors.
10. Fruit and milk drink Wahaha Nutri-Express. A hybrid of fruit juice and milk that tastes like low-fat milk or a light fruit smoothie.
11. Tonic salty sparkling water with a mint and lemon tint.
12. Kvass. The Russian people contributed to the creation of the amber drink. Sweet low-alcohol products have become cult in many regions of China.
13. Tonic tea based on honey and mint. Herbal tea for sale paper bag or in a tin can.
14. Xinjiang - black moonshine, also called beer, infused with nuts.
15. Chivas is a popular youth energy drink based on Scotch whiskey and green tea.
16. Qingdao is a very unusual weak beer with a pronounced malt bouquet, which is sold in 62 countries.
17. Wine based on osmanthus (an evergreen fragrant herbaceous plant). An alcoholic product is used as a digestif in a warm or chilled form.
18. Yunyan is a liquid soupy substance, which is nothing more than rice unfiltered wine with a low alcohol content.

Of course, one should separately note the famous Chinese tea ceremony in the Celestial Empire, which is popular not only at home, but also far beyond its borders. Preparing and drinking a hot drink helps to set the brain activity in the right way, pacify and throw out negative thoughts associated with daily fuss from the head. Properly brewed drink helps to live in harmony with yourself and the outside world, as well as find peace of mind.

We share interesting facts about the cuisine of the Middle Kingdom with you in this section. Approximately 90% of local culinary exoticism is not associated with a set of products, but with the observance of certain specifics of their preparation.

dash traditional cuisine The PRC, which distinguishes it from Japanese, Thai, Korean or otherwise, is that in China the dishes are very archaic. Chinese cuisine is more than just cooking, the whole culture of a vast country is associated with it.

Food for the Chinese is not only a satisfaction of hunger, but also a whole sacred ritual. In the Celestial Empire, older people even today, when meeting, instead of the traditional welcoming speech, say to each other: “Have you already eaten?” The Chinese say of a man who has lost his job that he "destroyed his bowl of rice."

In the history of ancient China, there were various palace ceremonies that both the courtiers and the emperor were forced to obey. A certain ritual associated with eating took a lot of time. There was a certain sequence of serving this or that dish, especially the design of the table, the uniform of the court servants who served the dishes, and special music was played to facilitate the eating - all these moments were chosen not spontaneously, but very seriously.

Over the centuries-old history, the Celestial Empire has recognized a huge number of talented court culinary specialists, who later received the rank of minister, as well as unfortunates crucified for tasteless cooked food.

In Chinese cuisine, there are 4 main canons that must be observed:

1. Preparatory work. All food components of the dish must be carefully processed. Sometimes this procedure took about 1∕3 of the time needed to prepare the dish. When cooking poultry, the chef never singeed chicken feathers, but plucked them with special tweezers. Vegetable and fruit set had to be washed several times with water.
2. Heat treatment. At fast way heat treatment of products should be spent from three to five minutes. For this purpose, a large flame and a certain type of frying pan or pressure cooker should be used. If all these aspects are observed, then it is possible to save nutritional value ingredients, since each of the elements of the dish should be prepared separately.
3. The use of condiments and different sauces. If you diversify the food with these components, traditional for Chinese cuisine, then the finished dish will sparkle with new notes of taste. There are about 300 varieties of spices in China.
4. Arrangement of food by color, taste and aroma. When serving a dish, the Chinese certainly use this rule and select the ingredients so that they harmonize perfectly with each other. To comprehend this rule means to master the culinary arts masterfully.

It would be useful to recall that Chinese cuisine consists of the healthiest food in the world. This is because the dishes of the Middle Kingdom practically do not contain “heavy” or high-calorie dressings cooked with mayonnaise or cream. The main sauce in China, on the basis of which food is prepared, is soy.

Delicious and Easy Ways to Cook Modern Chinese Food

Delicious and easy ways to cook traditional and modern Chinese food are presented together various recipes which vary by region of the country.

Since the creation of culinary traditions in the country, practically nothing has changed. Many local customs are so ancient that they may seem unusual or even alien to a modern layman. Despite this, Chinese chefs or experienced housewives who have deep knowledge in the field of national culinary arts, unquestioningly follow them.

It is known that in order for the finished dish to turn out very tasty and good, the cook must be a real master of his craft. Among the huge number of delicacies, in order to achieve the original taste, it is necessary to correctly use different methods of processing components by combining them.

There are many important points, which culinary specialists have strictly observed for many centuries. One of them is crushing the ingredients with a knife. Tearing or breaking components is also acceptable.

The method of proper cutting and frying of food is one of the important principles of Chinese cuisine. The crushed elements must be fried over high heat with the addition of oil for about 2-3 minutes. Shortly before this, you should lightly fry the chopped ginger root and allspice, which will emit an unforgettable aroma that gives the delicacy a special flavor.

Often, the Chinese fry meat or fish, as well as other components, in batter, which allows the dish to remain juicy. Sometimes fish seafood is fried whole, retaining its shape, but removing the bones. A fish cooked in this way (with a tail and head) symbolizes unity with the outside world and the end of the work begun.

Remember that every country is a small world that has its own customs, traditional and non-standard ways of preparing this or that delicacy. China is also no exception.

There are many dishes in the country, both fatty and low-calorie. But absolutely all dishes are united by their extraordinary taste, as well as exquisite notes of aftertaste. Feel free to create unique and classic culinary masterpieces at home, based on our suggestions. step by step recipes with a photo to give your family a small piece of this great and amazing country through ready-made dishes.