Chinese cuisine comprises cuisines originating from China, that varies with the country's large population and geographic diversity, as well as from Chinese people from other parts of the world. Due to the Chinese diaspora and the historical power of the country, Chinese cuisine has profoundly influenced other cuisines in Asia and beyond, with modifications made to cater to local palates. Chinese food staples like rice, soy sauce, noodles, tea, chili oil, and tofu, and utensils such as chopsticks and the wok, can now be found worldwide.
The world's earliest eating establishments recognizable as restaurants in the modern sense first emerged in the Song dynasty China during the 11th and 12th centuries. Street food became an integral aspect of Chinese food culture in the 7th century during the Tang dynasty, and the street food culture of much of Southeast Asia was established by workers imported from China during the late 19th century.
The preferences for seasoning and cooking techniques in Chinese provinces depend on differences in social class, religion, historical background, and ethnic groups. Geographic features including mountains, rivers, forests, and deserts also have a strong effect on the locally available ingredients, considering that the climate of China varies from tropical in the south to subarctic in the northeast. Imperial royal and noble preferences also play a role in the change of Chinese cuisine. Because of imperial expansion, immigration, and trading, ingredients and cooking techniques from other cultures have been integrated into Chinese cuisines over time and Chinese culinary influences have spread worldwide.
There are numerous regional, religious, and ethnic styles of Chinese cuisine found within China and abroad. Chinese cuisine is highly diverse and most frequently categorised into provincial divisions, although these province-level classifications consist of many more styles within themselves. During the Qing dynasty, the most praised Four Great Traditions in Chinese cuisine were Chuan, Lu, Yue, and Huaiyang, representing cuisines of West, North, South, and East China, respectively.
For example, in Northern China, the dry, temperate climate makes it suitable for the cultivation of wheat, millet and other grains. As such, noodles, porridge and bread are dietary staples.
In 1980, a modern grouping from Chinese journalist Wang Shaoquan's article published in the People's Daily newspaper identified the Eight Cuisines of China as Anhui (), Guangdong (), Fujian (), Hunan (), Jiangsu (), Shandong (), Sichuan (), and Zhejiang ()."Fujian Cuisine. Beautyfujian.com . Accessed June 2011.
Chinese cuisine is deeply intertwined with traditional Chinese medicine, such as in the practise of Chinese food therapy. Color, scent and taste are the three traditional aspects used to describe Chinese food,This standard starts from Tang dynasty in the 6th century by Bai Juyi from the Preface of Lychee Diagram: After leaving branch...for four and five days, the color, smell, and taste (of lychee) will be gone. (） as well as the meaning, appearance, and nutrition of the food. Cooking should be appraised with respect to the ingredients used, knife work, cooking time, and seasoning.
History
Pre-Tang dynasty
Chinese society greatly valued gastronomy, and developed an extensive study of the subject based on its traditional medical beliefs. Chinese culture initially centered around the North China Plain. The first domesticated crops seem to have been the foxtail and broomcorn varieties of millet, while rice was cultivated in the south. By 2000 BC, wheat had arrived from western Asia. These grains were typically served as warm noodle soups instead of baked into bread as in Europe. Nobles hunted various wild game and consumed mutton, pork and dog as these animals were domesticated. Grain was stored against famine and flood and meat was preserved with salt, vinegar, curing, and fermenting. The flavor of the meat was enhanced by cooking it in animal fats though this practice was mostly restricted to the wealthy.
By the time of Confucius in the late Zhou, gastronomy had become a high art. Confucius discussed the principles of dining: The Lüshi chunqiu notes: "Only if one is chosen as the Son of Heaven will the tastiest delicacies be prepared [for him]."
The Zhaohun (4–3rd c. BC) gives some examples: turtle ragout, honey cakes and beer (chilled with ice).
During Shi Huangdi's Qin dynasty, the empire expanded into the south. By the time of the Han dynasty, the different regions and cuisines of China's people were linked by major canals and leading to greater complexity in the different regional cuisines. Not only is food seen as giving "qi", energy, but the food is also about maintaining yin and yang. The philosophy behind it was rooted in the I Ching and Chinese traditional medicine: food was judged for color, aroma, taste, and texture and a good meal was expected to balance the Four Natures ('hot', warm, cool, and 'cold') and the Five Tastes (pungent, sweet, sour, bitter, and salty). Salt was used as a preservative from early times, but in cooking was added in the form of soy sauce, and not at the table.
By the Later Han period (2nd century), writers frequently complained of lazy aristocrats who did nothing but sit around all day eating smoked meats and roasts.
During the Han dynasty, the Chinese developed methods of food preservation for military rations during campaigns such as drying meat into jerky and cooking, roasting, and drying grain. Chinese legends claim that the roasted, flat bread shaobing was brought back from the Xiyu (the Western Regions, a name for Central Asia) by the Han dynasty General Ban Chao, and that it was originally known as hubing (, lit. "barbarian bread"). The shaobing is believed to be descended from the hubing. Shaobing is believed to be related to the Persian nan and Central Asian nan, as well as the Middle Eastern pita. Foreign westerners made and sold sesame cakes in China during the Tang dynasty.
During the Southern and Northern dynasties non-Han people like the Xianbei of Northern Wei introduced their cuisine to northern China, and these influences continued up to the Tang dynasty, popularizing meat like mutton and dairy products like goat milk, yogurts, and Kumis among even Han people. It was during the Song dynasty that Han Chinese developed an aversion to dairy products and abandoned the dairy foods introduced earlier.
The Han Chinese rebel Wang Su who received asylum in the Xianbei Northern Wei after fleeing from Southern Qi, at first could not stand eating dairy products like goat's milk and meat like mutton and had to consume tea and fish instead, but after a few years he was able to eat yogurt and lamb, and the Xianbei Emperor asked him which of the foods of China (Zhongguo) he preferred, fish vs mutton and tea vs yogurt..
Post-Tang dynasty The great migration of Chinese people south during the invasions preceding and during the Song dynasty increased the relative importance of southern Chinese staples such as rice and congee. Su Dongpo has improved the red braised pork as Dongpo pork.《東坡續集》卷十：《豬肉頌》：“洗凈鐺，少著水，柴頭罨煙燄不起。待他自熟莫催他，火候足時他自美。黃州好豬肉，價賤如泥土。貴者不肯食，貧者不解煮。早晨起來打兩碗，飽得自家君莫管。” The dietary and culinary habits also changed greatly during this period, with many ingredients such as soy sauce and Central Asian influenced foods becoming widespread and the creation of important cookbooks such as the Shanjia Qinggong () and the Wushi Zhongkuilu () showing the respective esoteric foods and common household cuisine of the time.
The Yuan and Qing dynasties introduced Mongolian and Manchu cuisine, warm northern dishes that popularized hot pot cooking. During the Yuan dynasty many Muslim communities emerged in China, who practiced a porkless cuisine now preserved by Hui restaurants throughout the country. Yunnan cuisine is unique in China for its cheeses like Rubing and Rushan cheese made by the Bai people, and its yogurt, the yogurt may have been due to a combination of Mongolian influence during the Yuan dynasty, the Central Asian settlement in Yunnan, and the proximity and influence of India and Tibet on Yunnan.
As part of the last leg of the Columbian Exchange, Spanish and Portuguese traders began introducing foods from the New World to China through the port cities of Canton and Macau. Mexican chili peppers became essential ingredients in Sichuan cuisine and calorically dense potatoes and corn became staple foods across the northern plains.
During the Qing dynasty, Chinese gastronomes such as Yuan Mei focused upon the primary goal of extracting the maximum flavour of each ingredient. As noted in his culinary work the Suiyuan shidan, however, the fashions of cuisine at the time were quite varied and in some cases were flamboyantly ostentatious, especially when the display served also a formal ceremonial purpose, as in the case of the Manchu Han Imperial Feast.
As the pace of life increases in modern China, fast food like fried noodles, fried rice and gaifan (dish over rice) become more and more popular.
Regional cuisines
Chinese cuisine exhibits an immense amount of regional diversity. A number of different styles contribute to Chinese cuisine but perhaps the best known and most influential are Cantonese cuisine, Shandong cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine (specifically Huaiyang cuisine) and Sichuan cuisine."Regions of Chinese food-styles/flavors of cooking." University of Kansas, Kansas Asia Scholars. Accessed June 2011. These styles are distinctive from one another due to factors such as availability of resources, climate, geography, history, cooking techniques and lifestyle.
One style may favour the use of garlic and shallots over chili and spices, while another may favour preparing seafood over other meats and fowl. Jiangsu cuisine favours cooking techniques such as braising and stewing, while Sichuan cuisine employs baking. Zhejiang cuisine focuses more on serving fresh food, Fujian cuisine is famous for its seafood and soups and the use of spices, Hunan cuisine is famous for its hot and salty taste, Anhui cuisine incorporates wild ingredients for an unusual taste.
Based on the raw materials and ingredients used, the method of preparation and cultural differences, a variety of foods with different flavors and textures are prepared in different regions of the country. Many traditional regional cuisines rely on basic methods of preservation such as drying, salting, pickling and fermentation.
In addition, the "rice theory" attempts to describe cultural differences between north and south China; in the north, noodles are more consumed due to wheat being widely grown whereas in the south, rice is more preferred as it has historically been more cultivated there.
Staple foods
Chinese ancestors successfully planted millet, rice, and other grains about 8,000 to 9,000 years ago. Wheat, another staple, took another three or four thousand years. For the first time, grains provided people with a steady supply of food. Because of the lack of various foods, Chinese people had to adapt to new eating habits. Meat was scarce, and so people cooked with small amounts of meat and rice or noodles.
Rice Rice was domesticated in the Yangtze River basin in southern China approximately 9,000 years ago and is a primary staple food for people from rice farming areas in southern China. Steamed rice ( ), usually white rice, is the most commonly eaten form. People in South China also like to use rice to make congee as breakfast. Rice is also used to produce beer and vinegar. Glutinous rice ("sticky rice") is a variety of rice used in special dishes such as lotus leaf rice and glutinous rice balls.
Wheat