Chinese cuisine reflects the vastness of China's geography and history. Its various characteristics can be distinguish into four types, the northern plains including Beijing, the fertile east watered by the Yangtze River, the south with popular Cantonese way of cooking and the west of excellent Szechwan and Hunan cuisine. Chinese foods can perhaps be available anywhere however the best place to try them will still be the place where they originated. Here’s the list of some famous Chinese cuisine and where is the best place to try them.
If you are looking for the best place to try the roast duck, you better go to Beijing. Although Beijing has accepted the Western cuisine due to the developments in China, most tourists who purchase airfare to Beijing prefer to consume Chinese foods during their stay. Roast duck is on top of the must-try list because it best represents the Chinese cuisine, with a centuries-old history. Its bronzed crispy and tender meat satisfies the hunger and expectations of each tourist who desires to taste an authentic Chinese food. Beijing Imperial Court Food, Beijing Snacks, Imperial Official Food, Medicinal Food and Hot Pot are also worth trying.
If roast duck is Beijing then roast suckling pig is Guangzhou. Cantonese cuisine is the popular cooking method in Guangzhou, having different flavors and styles and using diverse materials, exotic spices and various cooking skills. The popular saying “Except the plane and stool” probably originated in Guangzhou as people in this province eat everything in the sky and on earth. Some of other popular dishes includes Dragon Fighting against the Tiger, Taiye Chicken, Stewed Wild Dog Meat, Shuang Pi Nai, Jidi Zhou, Yuntun Mian, Chang Fenand Guiling Gao.
Goubuli Steamed Stuffed Bun is a traditional snack in Tianjin and an example of Tianjin Dinging cuisine. The charming municipality of Tianjin is well-known for cross-cultural Chinese dishes and traditional famed snacks. Aside from Goubuli Steamed Stuffed Bun, remember to try Ear-Hole Fried Cake, Fried Dough Twist, Chatang Goubacai and Tangdui to make the trip worthwhile.
Shanghai way of cooking is derived from mix cuisines of different neighbouring provinces such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang. It doesn’t have a cuisine of its own but a refined way of cooking reflects the Shanghai cuisine. Actually, Shanghai is not only considered as China’s economic and cultural center but it is also a “Grand View Garden” for dinner of all taste. Its dishes have the characteristics of lightness in flavor and beautiful in decoration, comprising of well-cut raw ingredients and harmoniously arranged colors evident in the famous Da Zha Xie. Other examples of the Dim Sum of Shanghai are the Sheng Jian Mantou, Xiao Long Bao, Four Heavenly Kings and Congshao Crucian Carp.
Chongqing cuisine is known for its richness in flavor with 40 different ways of cooking. It is largely a hybrid of Sichuan cuisine and local specialty dishes, noted for its distinctive spicy and pungent flavors. Chongqing is the birthplace of the Hot Pot in China, originally conceived to protect the food from low temperatures and frigid winds of the winter. Nowadays, this famed dish is widely enjoyed by locals and tourists regardless of seasons and regions.
Touring Foshan is a gastronomical treat, mainly because Chefs in Foshan can turn everything into a delicious dish, whether its meat, vegetable, fish or fruits. Foshan cuisine is influenced by diverse local flavors and specialties and has formed its own unique food culture through hundreds of years and innovation. This distinct taste makes Foshan a favorite destination for rich variety of dishes and snacks. Locals drinking tea in the morning and evening with dim sun is a common sight. This town is also well-known for its Shuangpi Milk, Foshan Manggong Cake, Nine Layers of Milk, Wonton Noodle, Jidi Porridge, Goose Palm with Orange Peel and Sliced Frogs.
A representative of Zhejiang cuisine, Hangzhou cuisine is one of China’s eight original methods of preparing food. It acquired the reputation of freshness, tenderness, softness, smoothness with a subtle fragrance. During the ancient times, a poet of Song Dynasty described the Hangzhou cuisine as something incomparable to other dishes for its excellent taste. Dongpo Pork is one amongst the popular dishes such as with West Lake Sour Fish, Longjing Shrimp Meat, Jiaohua Young Chickens, Steam Rice Flower and Port Wrapped by Lotus Leaves, Braised Bamboo Shoots and Lotus Root Powder.
Nanjing cuisine on the other hand became popular because of its fine cutting techniques and skilful timing resulting into thick flavor of dishes with tastiness of the four directions. It gained the praise of tourist who bought airfare to China specifically for its freshness, fragrance, crispness and tenderness. Nanjing Salty Duck is one of tourists favorite dishes with Baked Duck, Duck Blood and Sweet Potato Starch Noodle Soup, Fried Beer Dumplings, Steamed Dumplings, Soup Dumplings, Sour Vegetable Fish Soup, Crawfish, Return to Sauce Tofu and Stinky Tofu.
Representing one of the eight famous cuisines of China is the Hunan cuisine which is characterized for its delicate use of pepper, resulting to a pungent flavor. Its example is a Changsa cuisine which is well-known for having hot and sour taste, fresh aroma, greasiness, deep color and prominence of the main flavor in each dish. Dishes like Chou Dofu, Spicy Young Chicken, Zuyan’s Sharks Fin, Braised Eel, Chicken, Dove and Sparrow and Changsa Maren Crispy Duck are some of the dishes where one can taste the most authentic Hunan cuisine.
Have you heard the saying that goes “All good foods can be found in Chengdu”? Well, this phrase can be credited from the superb dishes that Sichuan cuisine had made popular not only in China but to various parts of the globe as well. As the priority of the Eight Great Cuisines in China, Sichuan cuisine is characterized by its spicy and pungent flavor accompanied by myriad of taste, highlighting the use of chilli, red hot peppers and garlic. In Chengdu, you can have a taste of different cuisines such as Sichuan, Cantonese, Chaozhou dishes, Northeastern cuisine and even Korean food as various types of restaurants assemble to operate on the same street.
Take note of the name of the Chinese dishes with its corresponding places and don’t forget to try these excellent dishes if you’ll be traveling in China.