Chinese Food & Cuisine...

[ahojunk]

We will use this thread to share information on Chinese food and cuisine.


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These food are just too good to eat!
Some selected pictures of pretty food from the Chinese Cuisine championship.
This is the first time I have heard of it.

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World Championship of Chinese Cuisine held in Rotterdam
(Xinhua) 13:02, September 22, 2016

The World Championship of Chinese Cuisine was held from Sept. 19 to Sept. 21 in Rotterdam.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. (Xinhua/Gong Bing)

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

 

[ahojunk]

More pictures of beautiful food. Enjoy!

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Chinese cooking competition lands in Europe
2016-09-21 09:01 CRIENGLISH.com Editor:Li Yan

Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland.

Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday.

Sept. 19, 2016. Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland. Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday. (Photo/Xinhua)

Sept. 19, 2016. Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland. Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday. (Photo/Xinhua)

Sept. 19, 2016. Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland. Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday. (Photo/Xinhua)

Sept. 19, 2016. Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland. Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday. (Photo/Xinhua)

Sept. 19, 2016. Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland. Chefs of Chinese cuisine gathered here to show their cooking skills at the three-day championship, opened on Monday. (Photo/Xinhua)

Sept. 19, 2016 shows chefs at work at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland.

A chef makes Chinese dishes at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland, Sept. 19, 2016.

Sept. 19, 2016 shows chefs at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, Holland.

 

[ahojunk]

Highlights of World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands
(Xinhua) 20:00, September 21, 2016

The World Championship of Chinese Cuisine was held from Sept. 19 to Sept. 21 in Rotterdam. This event attracted more than 200 outstanding cooks from 23 countries and regions.

Sept. 20, 2016 A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. (Xinhua/Gong Bing)

Sept. 19, 2016. Dessert displayed at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 19, 2016 A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 20, 2016 A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 20, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 20, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam.

 

[ahojunk]

Continued from previous post:-

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 20, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Sept. 19, 2016. A Chinese dish at the World Championship of Chinese Cuisine in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

 

[ahojunk]

I have stumbled on a video too.

Chinese cooking competition held in Netherlands
CCTV English
Published on Sep 21, 2016

 

[Three_Kingdoms]

One of our National Dishes - Beijing Duck at @2:10

I think half of the above dishes were presented in cold cut formats - so artsy and not losing their tastes and flavours. Well done to all the Chefs!

How about these? (presented in different occasions)

 

[ahojunk]

These containers are used in America only. It is not used in Australia or Asia.

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Chinese Food Delivery Containers, Explained

The story behind those iconic white cardboard containers

by Dana Hatic @DanaHatic Oct 1, 2016, 12:13p

Folded white cardboard boxes are a universally recognized symbol of Chinese food across America. Seemingly employed by every neighborhood Chinese restaurant across the country, they’re used to package orders for delivery or takeout (or sometimes to package up leftovers), and can typically found stuffed full of Americanized fare like General Tso’s chicken and lo mein.

These boxes are so ubiquitous that they frequently appear in pop culture, spotted in movies like Rush Hour and Dude, Where’s My Car; TV shows like Friends, The West Wing, and Gilmore Girls; and even in modern art. A history of the paper pails was also included in an exhibit at New York’s Museum of Food and Drink.

But where did these containers come from, and how did they come to be used so widely? Here’s a look into the history of these iconic vessels, at least a few of which have probably haunted your refrigerator in recent months.


Who invented the Chinese food takeout container?

Much like General Tso’s chicken, these takeout containers are an American invention. In 1894, Chicago inventor named Frederick Weeks Wilcox patented what he called a “paper pail.” Taking inspiration in part from Japanese origami, the paper pail consisted of a single piece of folded material intended to prevent leakage, with a small wire handle attached to the top for carrying.

Where does the unique shape of the container come from?

The container was modeled after wooden receptacles used to carry raw oysters in the 19th century. (You’re probably not going to find anyone carrying Blue Points or Malteques on the half shell around in them these days, however.)


What prompted the container’s meteoric rise in the takeout world?

Chinese food delivery took off during the post-World War II as America experienced a suburban migration. The U.S. had seen an influx of Chinese immigrants to California in the early 1900s, and a corresponding growth in popularity of Chinese cuisine. Now, the containers are an integral part of American Chinese food.


What’s so special about the design of this box?

The advantage of having a container constructed using just one piece of cardboard is that it can fold out into a makeshift plate for easy access to tangled noodles and simplified post-dinner cleanup. The containers also fit easily inside one another, so can be easily stored in tall stacks before they’re filled with sesame chicken and delivered to customers’ doors.


Who makes these containers?

Several companies produce the boxes here in the United States, but the most dominant is Fold-Pak, which has as much as 70 percent of the market share.


What innovations have been made since the box was first introduced?

Sometimes the takeout boxes aren’t just plain white: many come stamped with a red pagoda and a “thank you” on top. In the 1970s, a designer working for Fold-Pak added the graphic in an attempt to give the containers a stronger association with Asian culture. A poly coating has also been added to the inside to make the boxes more impermeable to grease and moisture. There are also microwave-safe versions free of the wire handles, and eco-friendly versions made with unbleached paper.


Are these better than styrofoam or plastic containers?

They’re definitely more environmentally friendly than the styrofoam clamshell-type takeout boxes used by some restaurants. (Unlike paper, styrofoam isn’t biodegradable.) But the wax or plastic coating on the takeout boxes, as with paper to-go cups, can cause some issues with recycling. The plastic containers with separate, snug-fitting lids used by many restaurants to hold things like egg drop soup have their own advantages, though, in that they can be washed and reused many times.

 

[TaiShang]

Top 10 restaurants in Beijing 2016
China.org.cn, October 3, 2016
By Lu Na

Bai Jing Xuan Chinese Restaurant

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Bai Jing Xuan Chinese Restaurant [tylfullhotel.com]

Located on the 2nd floor of the Tylfull Hotel, the restaurant offers eight elegant compartments named after the Eight Great Sights of Yanjing. The chef has extremely high standard for food quality. The perfect combination of taste and character leaves a strong impression on customers.

Add: Building 1, No.1 Yard, Xitucheng Road, Haidian District

Jia

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Jia [nuohotel.com]

Jia’s chefs from Hong Kong and Huai'an use their magic hands to cook the most exquisite and freshest Cantonese cuisine for family get-togethers, business gatherings and other special occasions. Ten private rooms guarantee a private and elegant environment for customers.

Address: 2A Jiangtai Road, Chaoyang District

Ming Court

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Ming Court [langhamhotels.com]

Featuring creative and exquisite Cantonese cuisine, the restaurant has a great reputation among business travelers. Located in Langham Place hotel near Beijing International Airport, it offers passengers a wide selection of innovative and business set menus with high quality service and fresh ingredients.

Address: No.1 Er Jing Road Terminal 3, Capital International Airport

Lu Yu

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Lu Yu [conrad.com.cn]

Lu Yu, respected as the Sage of Tea for his contribution to Chinese tea culture, is best known for his monumental book “The Classic of Tea” -- the first definitive work on cultivating, making and drinking tea. The restaurant offers an elegant dining environment for every guest.

Address: 1st floor of Conrad Beijing, No.29 Dongsanhuan Beilu

Wanli Restaurant



Wanli Restaurant [marriott.com.cn]

Located on the second floor of the five-star Renaissance Beijing Wangfujing Hotel, Wanli offers guests the best Cantonese food in a cozy environment. Even though the chef is young, his excellent skills will give you an unforgettable dinning experience.

Address: 2nd floor, No.57 of Wangfujing Avennue, Dongcheng District

 

[TaiShang]

Continued from above..

Jianyi Residence Beijing



Jianyi Residence Beijing [hotel.yuding8.cn]

In an exquisite Chinese-style courtyard, this restaurant offers customers a cozy environment and excellent dining experience. It boasts 19 nicely furnished rooms with amazing guest services. Moreover, chef Zhao Guangyou is famous for cooking palace dishes, which will give guests an elegant dining experience.

Address: 16A Avenue Homeland Community, Chaoyang District

Country Kitchen

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Country Kitchen [rosewoodhotels.com]

People who love Northern Chinese specialties can’t miss Country Kitchen, an exquisite restaurant in Rosewood Beijing hotel. With an open show kitchen and a wood-roasting oven, chefs demonstrate their culinary art with dishes such as hand-pulled Chinese noodles, Beijing duck and a variety of dumplings.

Address: Level three of Rosewood Beijing, Jing Guang Centre, Hujialou, Chaoyang District

Baye's Mansion

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Baye's Mansion [File photo]

Baye's Mansion specializes in fine Beijing cuisine in a beautiful courtyard setting. Peking roast duck is restaurant's signature dish. The traditional courtyard and the elegant Chinese style decoration make the restaurant an amazing place for wedding ceremony and parties.

Address: No.55, Beixinqiao Toutiao, Dongcheng District

Club 49

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Club 49 [1949beijing.com]

Specializing in authentic and delicate Cantonese cuisine, the restaurant is one of the best choices for high-end business dining. Decorated in a traditional Chinese style, the restaurant combines a gallery, restaurant and bar perfectly, offering a cozy environment and spacious space for customers.

Address: 98 Jinbao Street, Dongcheng District

 

[ahojunk]

Taken from this website. Not sure how accurate it is. People from other parts of China may disagree.
http://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-food/eight-cuisine.htm


The 8 Great Regional Cuisines of China

There are many styles of cooking in China, but Chinese chefs have identified eight culinary traditions as the best. These have set the course of how Chinese cook food, and are looked to as models. Each of these schools has a distinct style and different strengths.

Summary of the Eight Cuisines

• Sichuan and Hunan cuisines: hot spice.
• Anhui and Fujian cuisines: inclusion of wild foods from their mountains.
• Guangdong (Cantonese), Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu: great seafood, and generally sweet and light flavors.
• Shandong Cuisine: fresh and salty with a lot of seafood dishes.

1. Guangdong/Cantonese Cuisine 粤菜 Yuècài

• Sweeter, favoring braising and stewing, adding various mild sauces

Cantonese food is the most popular style internationally. Guangdong Province and Hong Kong are noted for fine seafood dishes and rice dishes. They eat a very wide variety of foods. The dishes they serve don't have strong flavors since it is lightly seasoned, and they often tend to be a little sweet. More on Yue cuisine...

2. Sichuan Cuisine 川菜 Chuāncài

• Spicy and bold, often mouth-numbing, using lots of chili, garlic, ginger, and peanuts

Sichuan Province produced the most widely served cuisine in China. Their dishes are famous for their hot-spicy taste and the numbing flavor of Sichuan peppercorn that is rare in other regional cuisines. It is the food of Chengdu and Chongqing (which used to be part of Sichuan). More on Chuan cuisine...

3. Jiangsu Cuisine 苏菜 Sūcài

• Fresh, moderately salty and sweet, precise cooking techniques, favoring seafood, soups and artistic, colorful presentation

Jiangsu Province and China's biggest city, Shanghai, have a very refined gourmet cuisine that is often served at government banquets. What makes it special is the exquisite cooking techniques that produce richly aromatic and visually artistic dishes. Their chefs also focus on serving meals that promote health. More on Su cuisine...

4. Zhejiang Cuisine 浙菜 Zhècài

• Mellow, using fresh seafood, freshwater fish, and bamboo shoots, and a wide variety of cooking methods.

Zhejiang Province is the province south of Jiangsu, and it borders on Shanghai too, so their style is similar to theirs, but it is less elaborately prepared. They focus more on serving fresh food. The food is often served raw or almost raw and is fresh and crispy and seasonal. It is more like Japanese food. Ningbo cuisine is very salty. More on Zhe cuisine...

5. Fujian/Min Cuisine 闽菜 Mǐncài

• Lighter, with a mild sweet and sour taste, using ingredients from the sea and the mountains

Fujian Province is known for great seafood and soups and the precise use of scintillating but not tongue numbing spices. Adding much wild exotic delicacies from the sea and mountains makes their dishes have unusual flavors. It is like a culinary wild adventure. More on Min cuisine...

6. Hunan Cuisine 湘菜 Xiāngcài

• Quite spicy, with a hot and sour taste, favoring sautéing, stir-frying, steaming and smoking

If you like Sichuan food, you'll probably like Hunan food too since it is even hotter. It is tastier and more delicious because they don't use peppercorn that numbs the mouth. It is a rich agricultural area that produces a broad range of vegetables and herbs, and these are served up. More on Xiang cuisine...

7. Anhui Cuisine 徽菜 Huīcài

• Uses many wild plants and animals as ingredients, favoring stewing and more oil

Anhui cuisine is even wilder than Fujian cuisine. It is inland, and big mountains such as the Yellow Mountains are the source of lots of different wild foods and herbs. It is basically a hearty mountain peasant food. Some of the best dishes incorporate wild food for an unusual taste. Some dishes are sweet from added sugar. More on Hui cuisine...

8. Shandong Cuisine 鲁菜 Lǔcài

• Salty and crispy, favoring braising and seafood

Shandong was one of the first civilized areas, and it set the pattern for northern styles of cooking. With a long coast, seafood is its forte. They preserve the original taste of the seafood by using simple ingredients and braising, and they like vinegar and salt. Unlike southern cuisines, they serve much more wheat food, including their noodles. More on Lu cuisine...

 

[Cossack25A1]

I am more familiar with Fujian and Cantonese food as most of the Tsinoys' ancestors came from Fujian area, and that the said foods are more common in Chinese restaurants here in the Philippines.

 

[ahojunk]

This is the first time I have heard of the the slow food movement.

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Feature: Chinese food producers joining Slow Food movement
Source: XINHUA | Oct 05,2016

ROME, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- Small food producers, restaurant owners, chefs, and professors from China are joining the Slow Food movement worldwide in order to create a greener and more sustainable lifestyle in the future, according to the head of the Slow Food organization for China.

"For the first time in its history, Slow Food China took part in the Terra Madre Salone del Gusto gathering in Italy," president of Slow Food China Qiao Ling told Xinhua in a recent interview in Turin, referring to the annual exhibition of food, agricultural products in Italy.

"The association aims to preserve the tradition of food processes and to preserve the variety of food,"she said.

Slow Food China was inaugurated in January 2015 at the Italian Embassy in Beijing. Slow Food China has set up an alliance with the China Association for the Promotion of International Agricultural Cooperation, and is currently registered as a non-profit organization.

Terra Madre Salone del Gusto is an international event dedicated to food and gastronomy that takes place every year in Turin. The 2016 gathering wound down last week.

The meeting is organized by Slow Food, an association founded in Italy by Carlo Petrini in 1986 to defend regional traditions, good food, gastronomic pleasure, and a slow pace of life.

The Slow Food movement "aims to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions, counteract the rise of fast life and combat people's dwindling interest in the food they eat," according to Qiao. It now promotes a comprehensive approach to food and involves people in over 160 countries "working to ensure everyone has access to good, clean and fair food," she said.

Slow Food China, as a Chinese association linked to the Slow Food International network, always follows international values, criterion, process and structure, Qiao added.

This time,"our delegation brought to Turin around 70 products that belong to the project Ark of Taste," Qiao recalled. It is a catalogue of endangered Chinese traditional food, the goal being to protect culinary heritage, she stressed.

Products exhibited in Turin included Hanyuan Pepper, a perennial and spiny plant.

"Its berries are collected and harvested just like common pepper,"Qiao explained. It has been collected for more than 1,000 years in the Sichuan province in southwest China.

Other products brought by the Chinese delegation to the international show were the Leishan Red Bean, Ordos Yellow Millet Wine, wheat sauce, hand made oat bread, and Qingyi River Yayufish.

They also displayed the fancy buns of Huanghua, a type of sweet and soft buns native to the town of Yang Erzhuang in the northern part of the county of Huanghua. Since they require a lot of manual work, they are an artisan production, said Piero Ling, co-founder of Slow Food China.

"Our aim is to promote the message of Slow Food in China and what they are doing,"said Vittorio Sun, the other co-founder of Slow Food China. "Last year we organized an event in Beijing, the so-called Slow Food Beijing Festival."

The Chinese association wants to promote the development of the Slow Food movement, and share its vision, objectives and basic ideas, Sun said.

Among their goals is "to set up a communication platform in order to exchange different cultural experiences and information relating to the extraordinary Chinese food heritage," he added.

 

[Götterdämmerung]

The foods are certainly delicious but I don't like the arrangements and decorations , it's too figurative and conservative. Many of them are just too garish. Less would be more.

I like these designs:

 

[ahojunk]

China's culinary variety on full display in trendy part of Mexico City
2016-10-14 11:01 | Xinhua | Editor: Mo Hong'e

For executive chef Luis A. Chiu, whose family started in the food business in Mexico City's Chinatown back in 1946, he is the only person in Mexico to take advantage of his culinary heritage to recreate Chinese tradition with an extensive variety of dishes from four of the Asian giant's gastronomic regions.

In 2011, Chiu set about figuring out how to present traditional Chinese cuisine and decided to open his own restaurant. Today, Asian Bay is located in the heart of the La Condesa neighborhood, a high point of Mexican cuisine and fashion.

Asian Bay, according to Chiu, offers food from all corners of China, northern cuisine from Beijing, southern style from Guangdong, eastern flavors from Shanghai and western recipes from Sichuan.

Chiu, who owns Asian Bay with his father, has a degree in gastronomy and a diploma in Chinese cuisine from Hong Kong. He first made his mark in Marriott hotels in Shanghai, with this wide experience allowing him to learn traditional Chinese cuisine and international food.

In an interview with Xinhua, Chiu says that what many around the world associate with Chinese food is only Cantonese cuisine when, in reality, "there are thousands of dishes from different provinces."

"La Condesa has always been a hot spot for good flavors. Therefore, we decided to set up here and open the restaurant where we started from scratch. It was still very difficult. People couldn't differentiate one style of cuisine from another. We had to make two menus, one with traditional food and another that was more commercial," Chiu told Xinhua.

At first, the traditional menu catered to people born in China who might enjoy a taste of home. These customers formed much of the restaurant's early base, as they invited their local friends or business partners.

"What was surprising was that our countrymen invited their guests. Then, Mexican people and the same people returned the week after with their own families after having tried. They even recommended some of our Chinese dishes. It is incredible how word of mouth spreads," acknowledged Chiu.

Beijing duck, Sichuan-style spicy pig's ears, and century eggs with tofu, spicy soy sauce and garlic are some of those included among the wide variety of dishes offered at Asian Bay. The last dish mentioned is particularly difficult to replicate abroad, according to the young chef.

Chiu admits, however, that the restaurant has some of his own creations, such as Asian Bay Chicken, with a sweet salsa and jalapeno chile. The jalapeno was added to give a Mexican dish to a range of dishes.

"I believe that Mexico and China have many things in common which can unite us. The love of gastronomy and the love of eating well, wherever you may be," said Chiu.

The restaurant is also a reference point for showcasing age-old dishes from some Chinese cities and provinces, such as Nanjing.

"This came from the idea that we wanted to go a step beyond, making the best of China's food, tradition and culture," explained the chef. He added that China's culture is present across Asian Bay, from its decoration to its food.

In 2017, he hopes to hold a culinary demonstration in Mexico City with experts and products from Beijing and other Chinese cities to Mexico City.


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When I was in the US, most Chinese/Asian restaurants have 2 menus; a traditional/authentic menu and a local menu. I traveled extensively in US and this is true in most parts of US. Didn't expect it in Mexico.

In Australia, I think the ratio is about half-half. It's is slowly being eliminated as locals are getting familiar with "traditional or authentic" Chinese food.

 

[ahojunk]

UN urges food wastage crackdown in China
2016-10-17 09:10 | chinadaily.com.cn | Editor: Xu Shanshan

China should put in place concrete policies to encourage the public to stop wasting food, as its agricultural sector faces mounting challenges amid climate change, a UN food agency official says.

Vincent Martin, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations representative in China, said the country should encourage individuals and families to take part in reducing food wastage, with authorities estimating between 40 and 50 billion kilograms of food are wasted in the consumption process each year.

"If you reduce food waste, you can also reduce the impact of climate change. But not everybody understands that. So you need to educate people. This will take many different campaigns," he said at an event to mark World Food Day in Nanjing on Sunday.

Martin noted that more than one-third of food produced worldwide was lost or wasted, and that global food wastage emissions were almost equal to global road transport emission.

"If food waste were a country, it would be the 3rd largest emitting one in the world. Food loss and waste is running a warning bell for food and nutrition security," he said.

He added that addressing climate change impacts was at the heart of FAO's work in China, and that it was committed to promoting climate-smart and sustainable agriculture by 2030.

However, Martin also noted that there could also be positive impacts of the climate change on the country's crop structure, as the temperatures in the Northwestern province, a major commodity grain base in China, is set to rise, allowing the area to cultivate more crops like rice.

However, as country with such a large size and diversity of climate, it is important for China to take specific measures to ensure the impacts of the climate change is monitored and countered, he said.

In a 2013 interview, Ren Zhengxiao, head of the State Administration of Grain, said 35 million tons of grain are lost every year during transportation, storage and processing.

Poor storage facilities, which resulted in deterioration and loss from scavengers, resulted in the loss of 20 million tons of food, while poor transportation methods - such as horse drawn carriages and tricycles - and the inadequate packaging used by many farmers resulted in the loss of about 7.5 million tons of grain.


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Food wastage occurs in every country, including Australia.
We all have a responsibility to reduce the wastage.
.
.