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Cantonese cuisine can be interpreted two ways. Either it is the cooking style of Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, which was formerly known in English as Canton – thus Cantonese. Or it is a catch all phrase for the many and varied cooking styles found across Guangdong Province. Since there are three other distinct …
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Many Chiu Chow restaurants can be found in the working class Sheung Wan district of Hong Kong Island. Photo Credit FotoosVanRobin via Wikimedia Commons. >Chiu Chow cuisine is one of the four major subcategories of Cantonese cuisine. which is considered to be one of the eight great provincial cuisines of China. Chiu Chow, known as …
The Hakka, known as Kejia (客家）or “guest people” in Mandarin, are scattered across southeastern China, mostly in Guangdong and Fujian provinces. They can also be found in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan. There are an estimated 30 to 45 million Hakkan descendants worldwide. Famous Hakkans include Sun Yat-sen, the Father of Modern China; China's …
Shun Tak, known in Mandarin as Shun De (顺德), is a district in the municipality of Foshan, half way between Guangzhou and Hong Kong. Known as a land of plenty, it is surrounded by banana trees, fish farms, fruit orchards, mulberry bushes, rice paddies, and sugarcane fields. There is also an extensive network of waterways. …
Located in Sichuan Province, the city of Chongqing became a provincial level municipality – one of only four in the country – in 19??. Its cuisine – which is highly spiced and strongly flavoured – would best be described as a subcategory of Sichuanese cuisine. Popular Chongqing dishes include twice-cooked pork, Aunt Ma's tofu, and …
Next to Cantonese cuisine, the two most widely known styles of Chinese cooking outside the mainland are Sichuanese, known in Putonghua as Chuan Cai (川菜), and Hunanese, known as Xiang Cai (湘菜). The name is derived from the Xiang River, which flows through the province. Shenzhen is awash with restaurants serving dishes from both provinces. …
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Jiangnan refers to the region just south of the lower reaches of China's legendary Yangtze River. It includes the northern parts of Jiangxi and Zhejiang provinces and the southern parts of Anhui and Jiangsu provinces. Important cities include Changzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Shanghai, Shaoxing, and Wuxi – as well as the legendary twin cities of Suzhou …
If Suzhou is known for classical gardens, canals, fine silks, and beautiful women, Hangzhou has a different set of attributes. With West Lake at its heart, it is surrounded by mountains on three sides, embodying the very essence of a traditional Chinese landscape painting. Pagodas and temples dot the landscape. Marco Polo was so enchanted …
Anhui cuisine, known as Hui Cai (徽菜) in Mandarin, is perhaps China’s best kept culinary secret. The flavours are rich and subtle thanks to the careful use to hams and sugared candies to enrich and deepen flavours. Wild herbs – from both the land and the sea – are frequently used. It is similar in …
My desire to eat my way around China, exploring its Eight Great Cuisines, began several years ago during a press trip to Shandong Province. Starting in the provincial capital of Jinan, we worked our ways to the coastal city of Qingdao, making several stops along the way. Every noon and evening, we would be hosted …