Culinary, cooking, food and restaurant

When it comes to food, the Chinese have a common saying, “The masses regard food as their heaven,” which means that food is people’s primal want. It should clearly justify the importance that “eating” holds in Chinese people’s lives. Eating is not just meant to fill the stomach; having food at one’s disposal, being able to consume a good amount of food, and knowing what and how to eat are all viewed as a good “fortune.” Those who promote food culture often use the words of Chinese philosopher Confucius, “diet and love-making, all primal needs of every human being,” finding an aspiring and positive thought basis for such an epicurean lifestyle. There’s probably not another place in this world that has as great a variety of delicious fare as China. If judging by the art and techniques of cooking, aside from France and Italy, perhaps the skills of chefs of no other country can gain recognition from the Chinese.

Extremely developed culinary techniques can make seemingly inedible ingredients, to foreign eyes, into dish after dish of delicious treats by the hands of Chinese chefs. The Chinese cookbook also contains quite an extensive list of foods, including just about anything edible with very few taboos. The Chinese, who see eating as a fortune and life as an art, not only created various kinds of regional food styles in its own vast lands, but have also spread Chinese food culture to far across the seas. Today, in this world where even the farthest corners can seem as close as one’s backyard, Chinese food can be enjoyed in each and every metropolitan throughout the world.

Like many other countries with a vast territory, Chinese cuisines are differentiated largely by its northern and southern regional tastes. Although the best quality rice in China is grown in its northeastern regions, people in those regions, however, just as other northerners, prefer to eat pasta or pastry instead. In the north, classic dishes include Beijing’s lamb hotpot (fondue) and roast duck, and Shandong province’s Lu style cuisines. In the south, the principal foods (foods that are the main source of carbohydrates and dietary fibers, e.g. bread and cereal in the west) are rice-based. A relatively greater variety of dishes are found in the south. There you can find the hot and heavily spiced Sichuan food, Xiang (Hunan) food, sweet and delicate Huaiyang food and the Yue (Cantonese) style which are mosdy seafood and soups. Thus foreigners who have been to China are often pleasandy surprised by the great differences in taste and food types by region.

Having Chinese food not only indulges people’s sense of taste, the sense of sight is also entertained. The Chinese culinary arts rely on the canon of “color (aesthetic beauty), aroma, and taste,” missing any one element would not make a good dish. To make the food pleasing to the eye, usually the appropriate meat and non-meat ingredients are selected; it would include a single main ingredient and two or three secondary ingredients of different colors. Blue, green, red, yellow, white, black and brown sauce colors are to be mixed inthe right combination. Through proper cooking techniques, aestheticism in food is achieved. “Aroma” is achieved by using the right spices, such as scallion, ginger, garlic, cooking wine, aniseed, cassia bark, black pepper, sesame oil, shiitake mushrooms and so on, to stimulate the appetite with the aroma from the cooked food. When preparing food, techniques such as fry, stir-fry, roast, steam, deep-fry, quick-fry, simmer and others are put to use, with the goal of preserving the natural taste and juices of the food. One can also add the right amounts of soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, spices, spicy pepper and other seasoning, making the dishes taste salty, sweet, sour, hot and much more. With tomatoes, turnip, cucumber and other sculptural vegetables to create elegant and intricate decorations to the plate, and the use of exquisite fine china for dining ware, Chinese cuisines really become a true art form complete with aesthetic beauty, wonderful aroma, and great taste.

Americans rely on calculating calories and cholesterol content from food to maintain good health and a shapely figure.

The Japanese are into trying various health foods to preserve an everlasting youth. Different from both, the Chinese way of looking at health lies in its philosophy of “food and medicine sharing the same roots.” The firm belief that food has healing powers and therapeutic effects has led to the introduction of many edible plants and herbs. And with the benefits of disease prevention and health preservation, they have become regular dishes in Chinese homes. At the same time, there is the pursuit of refinement in cooking. The amount of food and mixing of ingredients is very essential, and it is recommended that meats and non-meats be used in combination. Whether making dishes or soups, foods with suited nutritional contents are put in combination so as to achieve the goal of balanced nutritional intake. And it is recommended to dine until the stomach is about 70% to 80% full, as this practice is passed down the generations as a secret to long life.

At the dinner table, the Chinese has their own set of manners and customs. When dining, the eater must be seated. When people of all ages and both sexes sit at the same table, the elderly must be seated with priority. One must eat food held with chopsticks; when having soup, a soupspoon must be used. There’s also to be no noise when eating and so on. These etiquettes have continued to this day, but the biggest change is none other than the fact that more and more Chinese have proactively given up the rule of “No talking when eating.” Indeed, when dining with the Chinese, one would frequendy encounter a dining environment full of chatting and noises. Many people who have their mouths full still intend to chat away. This phenomenon may be due to the reason that contemporary Chinese have come to consider dining as an important social opportunity. People need, at this time, to relax and talk about certain soothing and joyous topics to increase understanding between those sitting at the table.

In recent years, due to the accelerated development of industries and commerce, aside from traditional menu-ordered food services, Chinese fast foods have dawned onto the scene. And not only this, cuisines from every corner of the world have, one after another, made their grand appearances in all major cities in China; Italian pizza, French gourmet, Japanese sushi, American burgers, German beers, Brazilian barbeque, Indian curry, Swiss cheese and more. Anything one can think of can be found, a true all-inclusive list of dining choices. It justifies the saying “Eat in China” even more so.

The two great Chinese philosophies, Confucius and Taoism, not only contributed to philosophy but also to the way the Chinese food is prepared and served. Preparing Chinese food requires a lot of expertise and experience.

The Chinese culture has a special way of serving food that is cut into small bite pieces which is made almost mandatory. It is hard to find knives at the dinner table in Chinese food serving. Chinese food also stresses the importance of the right combination of ingredients like herbs and condiments. The food should also look good in color and texture and a well prepared food deserves to be eaten with harmony.

The Chinese food is cooked with the intention of increasing the health benefits like longevity and having healing powers and medicinal value. A good Chinese food is prepared with poly unsaturated oils and does not use milk based ingredients like cream, butter and cheese.

Although meat is used in Chinese food, it is used in moderation and hence avoids high levels of animal fat and cholesterol. Such a food is called authentic Chinese food which is in fact, an ideal Chinese food, good for the health. In a traditional Chinese food, emphasis is given to rice, noodles and vegetables.

The Chinese food can be chosen, to make a great difference by opting for various dishes with different nutritional value. Chicken or beef dishes and vegetables are a good choice. Fried dishes like sesame chicken can be substituted with cashew chicken or beef and broccoli. Such dishes offer nutritional value that is not contained in traditional plates like lo mein, which are noodles soaked with oil, fats and carbohydrates.

Fried rice contains a large amount of cholesterol and carbohydrates and hence brown rice can be taken instead. Chinese food largely makes use of soy sauce and other additives which are rich in sodium content. A Chinese food is better to be started with sauce but the down side is that it contains a lot of sodium- almost three to four times what is really needed. But the safest bet is vegetables and steamed dishes or stir fried with little or no oil.

To lower fat calories, vegetable based dishes with a variety of sauces and steamed rice complete a healthy Chinese food. To wind up the Chinese meal, fortune cookies which contain only 15 calories would be perfect.

To sum up, a Chinese food that contains more of vegetables, snow peas, low in salt can be considered to be a healthy food. The choice of a restaurant between an inexpensive one and high end restaurant also is influential in differing the health of the Chinese food that is being served. The server or the manager would also be eager to offer assistance on the type of dishes and their nutritional content.

Love eating Chinese food? Most of us do, but don’t get fooled into thinking that anything and everything on the Chinese food menu is good for you. In fact, most people look to Chinese cuisine as a healthy alternative to fast food, but the truth is that there are a bunch of pitfalls on the menu, including high sodium and fat contents across several different foods across the typical Chinese menu. Here are some of the key culprits and what to look out for:
-Rice: Almost everyone loves having rice as part of their Chinese menu. The problem is that many people confuse “fried rice” with the much healthier brown rice. “Fried rice” is really white rice that’s brown via soy sauce and oil. It’s also high in fat and sodium. Stay away from the fried rice! If you must order rice, order steamed rice instead.
-Noodles: Never, ever, ever a good choice! Did I mention that they’re not a good choice? The amounts of oil used to cook this stuff is almost enough for your next oil change!
-Sauces: Regardless of where or what you’re eating, you should ALWAYS order your sauce on the side. Restaurants almost always pour on much more than you typically would and ordering on the side lets you control your portions. These sauces are also typically high in fat and sodium. Soy sauce for example, a staple of Chinese cuisine, has up to FOUR times the recommended daily allowance of salt in just ONE tablespoon!!!
-Meat: If you can’t recognize what’s on your plate it probably means you should skip it. You’re always better off ordering steamed entrees. That way you not only could recognize what you’re eating, but you’ll be skipping the digestion of meat that’s covered in fat-soaked breading (think General Tso’s chicken!!!).
-Appetizers: Most appetizers on the Chinese food menu are high in fat (think fried wontons and egg rolls). Instead, consider trying steamed vegetable dumplings. Soups are also a good alternative. Most soups on a Chinese menu are very low in fat and are a great way to start a meal. A chicken or vegetable soup is ideal.
In general you should strive to order more vegetable dishes or dishes that have a high proportion of vegetables, such as Chicken with Broccoli. Additionally, when ordering main entrees, look for items that are steamed, braised, roasted, simmered, or stir fried (ask for foods to be stir fried with little or no oil).
Arm yourself with the appropriate knowledge when eating this delicious cuisine and you can be doing yourself, and your midsection, a huge favor.

Earlier today, my stomach was making this embarrassing gurgling noise (made sense as it was already way past lunchtime), so I decided to pacify the hunger inside my body.

Unfortunately, Miss Fussy (me) was being…well, fussy. There I was, weak from decreasing glucose and still being finicky over where I could grab a bite to eat.

I love carbs so I thought Chinese food would be yummy. Veggie rolls, Kung Pao chicken, and fried rice were enticing my belligerent stomach with a sweet promise of satiation. Then I remembered. My favorite Chinese place received a letter grade of B — yes, B!!!! — on its last health inspection visit. No way. Sigh. What should a starving brunette do?

Another carbs idea sprung to mind. Subway. I was thinking a tuna or cheesesteak sandwich. Gnawing hunger getting more hostile every second. I arrived at Subway….and the line was endless! Not only was I being fussy, the Diva in me decided to make an appearance as well. Forget Subway.

My time was running out and I was getting crabby from all the trips. Last chance. Carl’s Jr’s yellow star beckoned me as if I was one of the 3 Wise Men in search for the Messiah.

I went in and ordered the Famous Star without onions and no ketchup. I was debating about ordering a larger fries but the prudent side said no. Sigh. Okay. I attacked my french fries first. Mmmm. Freshly cut fries — that’s what it said on the carton.

Next on the agenda was the cheeseburger. I took off a part of the lettuce first. I took a bite. Blah. What the hell?! I did not like the taste, but I was still hungry so I took more bite. Chewed and swallowed just so I could eliminate the hunger pangs completely. Halfway through the burger, I concluded that I was done putting the partially burned and tasteless meat inside my mouth.

With the gurgling belly now satedly purring and the glucose level rising, my mind tuned in and I realized with shock…. I was starting to hate fastfoods more and more. Should I be depressed? Should I cry? Should I scream “Bloody murder!”?

Eventually, I decreed that it was for the best. I would live longer if I did not crave fastfoods every meal time. Maybe it was fate that I looked after my heart instead of being a selfish, ravenous, and fussy Diva. I finished the delicious fries and decided to eat the flat cheeseburger later (if I found the appetite for it).

Damned that letter B grade!!!

Art: Processing Cow by lexidh (Deviantart)

Chinese food is a great way to expand your personal recipe book, especially if you love to use simple, fresh ingredients with quick cooking time. These top ten dishes are famous all over the world, and are must-haves in your collection of Chinese food recipes.

Fried Rice – A must have dish in Chinese restaurants, fried rice is the ultimate Chinese food, and can be one of the most flexible in your cookbook because you can use leftover rice and ingredients to make it.  Of course, you can use fresh ingredients but it’s best to use rice that has been kept in the fridge overnight for best results. Ingredients usually involved in making fried rice are eggs, scallions, diced meat of either beef, chicken or pork, ham, shrimps and vegetables such as celery, peas, carrots, bean sprouts and corn. There are many varieties of fried rice but the more popular ones are the Yangchow and Fujian fried rice.

Kung Pao Chicken – Kung Pao chicken or Kung Po chicken is a Chinese dish from Szechuan cuisine and is considered to be a delicacy. The recipe for this mouth watering dish commonly calls for diced chicken that is pre-seasoned and quickly stir-fried with unsalted roasted peanuts, red bell peppers, rice wine or sherry, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, and chili peppers. Alternatively, you can use prawn, scallops, beef or pork in place of the chicken.

Moo Shu Pork – This is a dish of northern Chinese origin and a favorite of many. Ingredients in a Mu Xu pork recipe often include green cabbage, wood ear mushrooms, scrambled eggs, carrots, bean sprouts, day lily buds and scallions. Celery, onions, bell peppers, snow pea pods, bok choy and Shiitake mushrooms are occasionally used. The vegetables are cut into long and thin strips before cooking, with the exception for bean sprouts and day lily buds. Fried Mu Xu pork is then wrapped in moo shu pancakes that is brushed with hoisin sauce and eaten by hand. Moo shu pancakes are thin wrappers made of flour that is easily available in supermarkets and steamed just before eating.

General Tso’s Chicken – General Tso’s chicken is a Hunan dish that tastes spicy and sweet and very popular in Chinese restaurants in America and Canada where it’s often marked as a “chef’s specialty”. General Tso’s Chicken recipe commonly involves battered chicken deep-fried and marinated with hot chili peppers, scallions, sugar, Shaoxing wine, sesame oil, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic and ginger.

Egg Rolls – Egg rolls are one of the most popular Chinese foods, and for good reason. This savory roll is made by wrapping a combination of chopped cabbage and meats and sometimes noodles in a sheet of dough. It is then dipped in egg and deep fried to perfection. Egg rolls are generally bigger in size  than its cousin spring roll, its skin is thicker and crunchier; and have more filling.

Fortune Cookies – Chinese cooking would simply not be complete without the addition of a recipe for fortune cookies. The ingrediesnts you need to make these treats are some sugar, flour, eggs and vanilla extract, making them a simple way to add some fun to your home cooked Chinese food.

Orange Chicken – This appetizing  Chinese dish is made of chicken chopped into bite size pieces and battered, and then fried with thick sweet and spicy chili sauce flavored with orange. The traditionally Chinese recipe for orange peel chicken as it’s sometimes called, is to deep fry the chicken first and then stir fry it in a lightly sweet soy-based sauce flavored with dried orange peels. Vegetables like baby carrots and bok choy are used as the garnishing. However, cooks in Western restaurants do not use dried orange peel but rather orange juice or fresh orange peel and a substantial amount of sugar to make the sauce. Chili peppers and steamed broccoli are used as garnishing instead.

Sweet and Sour Pork – This savory-sweet famous Chinese dish is of Cantonese origin. It is a good dish to prepare when you are planning on having guests, who will be wildly impressed with your cooking skill. As with other Chinese food recipes, the key to making a great Sweet and Sour Pork dish is in the sauce made of sugar, ketchup, white vinegar, and soy sauce. Its ingredients include pork, onion, bell pepper and pineapple chopped into bite size pieces.

Mapo Dofu – Mapo doufu or Mapo tofu is a popular Chinese dish from the Szechuan province. Ingredients used for this recipe include tofu or beancurd, and minced beef or pork cooked in a bright red spicy sauce based on chili.

Chop Suey – Chop suey or “za sui” or “shap sui” literally means ‘mixed pieces’ is an American-Chinese dish usually employs leftover vegetables and meats stir fried quickly in a sauce thickened with starch. It is a great dish when you need to use up the last of yesterday’s chicken or pork roast and can incorporate meats of any kind such as pork, shrimp, beef, fish or chicken and various vegetables from bean sprouts to cabbage and celery. Chop Suey is often eaten with rice.