| The variety of Chinese food is a natural result of the country’s 56 ethnic groups contributing recipes over centuries. The most well-known traditional Chinese food types are Cantonese, Shangdong and Sichuan.
Differences in regional food:
- Cantonese dishes have a great variety of ingredients and the major condiments are oyster sauce, fermented soya bean sauce, fish sauce, sugar and vinegar.
- Shangdong cuisine is popular for its wide selection of materials and use of different cooking methods. Soups and dishes prepared with scallions are especially well known.
- Sichuan dishes are one of the four major Chinese cuisines. The main ingredients include fish, the five-spices (prickly ash, star aniseed, cinnamon, clove and fennel), prickly ash-hot pepper, and vinegar-pepper.
You may be surprised to learn that vegetarian cuisine has a long history and a high place in Chinese cuisine. Main ingredients in chinese food recipes include green-leaved vegetables, fruit, mushrooms, bean curd and vegetable oil.
Chinese cooking at home:
Chinese cooking at home may seem complicated, but the truth is all you need to start are the proper tools, fresh ingredients and the will. What you need:
- A seasoned wok. Martin Yan from the PBS show “Yan Can Cook” recommends 14" woks made of spun carbon steel because it conducts heat evenly and retains high heat necessary for Asian cooking. The classic and most efficient shape is round-bottomed with a perforated, ring-shaped metal stand that sits over a gas burner. Scour the wok with hot, soapy water and then dry completely, then rub it evenly with a coating of vegetable oil. Heat until the inner surface turns brown to get the first layer of a seasoned surface that will prevent food from sticking. After each use, wash with hot water using little or no soap, dry well and lightly coat with fresh oil.
- A rice steamer. Steaming is a popular Asian cooking method. Traditional bamboo steamers are preferred in Chinese food recipes because the woven tops let excess steam escape, preventing the rice from getting soggy.
- A proper knife. Make sure you have a high -quality chef's knife for all the chopping and dicing you have to do.
Tips for Chinese stir fry:
- Cut and marinate all the ingredients before you start the wok
- Cut ingredients into uniform, bite-size pieces to cook quickly and evenly.
- Heat the wok first before adding ingredients.
- Keep the food moving constantly by stirring to prevent burning.
- Don’t cook too much food at once. If you are cooking a large amount, such as for Chinese chicken recipes, cook the chicken first, then the vegetables. Add the meat back in to warm it at the end.
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