Introduction to Chinese Cuisine

Chinese food has high request in the colour, aroma, and flavour, no matter in the north or in the south. For Chinese, food shall satisfy not only the tongue and the appetite but also the eyes, the nose, the imagination, the mind and the soul.

Normally, one entree will combine three to five colours. There are often one main ingredient and two to three secondary ingredients of contrasting colours. They are cooked appropriately, incorporating the proper seasonings and sauce to create an aesthetically attractive dish.

As an essential factor of a kickshaw, fragrant aroma will certainly stimulate one's appetite. The main ingredients that contribute to a mouth watering aroma are scallion, fresh ginger, garlic, and chilli pepper. Besides, wine, aniseed, stick cinnamon, pepper, and sesame oil also function. Soy sauce and sugar, vinegar and other seasonings can also be used to add richness to a course without covering up the natural flavour of the ingredients.

Taste is the most important essence of a perfect dish. A well-prepared Chinese dish should taste rich to those who like strong flavours, but not over-spiced to those who seek a milder taste.

Chinese people value their way of dining very much. There is an old but still-being-quoted saying "Food is the first necessity of the people." Delicious and nutritious food has been regarded the basics of ordinary life. In general, people in North China favour noodles, dumplings and other staple food made from flour while the majority in the South almost consume rice daily. Despite the difference, people throughout the country adopt the traditional way of cooking prevalent in their respective regions. All together, there are eight schools of cuisine which is also popularly known as the "ninth art". They are Beijing Food, Guangdong Food, Sichuan Food, Jiangsu Food, Zhejiang Food, Hunan Food, Anhui Food and Fujian Food.

Herbs and Spices

Star-Anise
The flavour is quite a bit stronger than the Anise seed and is used primarily for Chinese cooking. The Chinese use Star Anise in many pork and chicken dishes. The flavour of Anise also lends itself nicely to many fish dishes.

Garlic
Whole cloves, smashed garlic, chopped garlic, and garlic oil are used in almost every Chinese dish.

Cinnamon
Cinnamon is in fact dried bark which rolls up on drying to form "quills". It is mostly used in puddings, sweet sauces and ice cream, but is becoming more popular in fish and meat dishes.

Spring Onions
Also known as scallions, Spring onions have a white bulb that is not fully developed and long, straight, green leaves. Both the top and the white part are used in Chinese cooking.

Five Spice Powder
Made with equal parts of ground brown peppercorns, cinnamon, cloves, fennel and star anise, five-spice powder is most frequently used in Chinese cooking.

Ginger
Native to South-East Asia, ginger root grows on an underground stem and, when fresh, has a pale, shiny skin that should be peeled before use. The flavour is both sharp and fresh tasting. Ginger is now widely available look for large, smooth roots. Do not use powdered or dried ginger as substitute.