Chinese Cooking Archives

Hainanese Styles Of Cooking -
Chinese Cooking Archives

Hainanese Styles Of Cooking - Chinese Cooking Archives was created to share with those who are interested in learning more about Chinese Cooking.

Hainanese Styles Of Cooking - Chinese Cooking Archives

Cantonese cooking specialty is Dim Sum or 'little heart'. Dim sum is usually consumed during lunch or as a brunch, popular on weekends. Dim sum restaurants are usually large, noisy affairs - the dim sum served in little baskets or bowls and are whisked around the tables on individual trolleys or carts. As they come by, you simply ask for a plate of this or a bowl of that. At the end the meal you are billed according to the empty containers on your table. The dim sum has between 10 to 30 items and includes delights such as Steamed Pork & Shrimp Dumplings, Steamed Pork Riblets, Steamed Vegetable Dumplings, Steamed Soft Noodles with shrimp, Steamed Crabsticks stuffed with fish paste, Deep-fried Dumplings with salted eggs, Steamed Red Bean cakes and delicious desserts of Baked Egg Custard to name a few. Cantonese cuisine offers dishes from one end of the gastronomic spectrum - pricey delicacies like Braised Abalone, Shark's Fin Soup, Bird's Nest Soup to meals on the cheap like Mee [noodles] and Congee [ rice porridge ] - on the other end of the spectrum.

Far less familiar than the food from Canton are the cuisines from the North and the West of China - Szechuan, Shanghai and Peking. Szechuan food is the fiery food of China, where red pepper and chili really get into the act. While food from Canton is delicate and understated, Szechuan food flavors are strong and dramatic - garlic and chilies play their part in dishes like Szechuan Beef, Ma Po Tofu [ Chili Tofu ] and the ubiquitous Hot & Sour Soup.