Welcome to Mysterious China Blog. This blog main purpose is to let the world know the ancient, civilized and mysterious China. Mysterious China blog introduce all about China, include Chinese History, Chinese Culture, Chinese Scenery, China Travel Tour, Chinese Food, China Today, Chinese Kung Fu, Chinese Legend and Beijing Olympics.
I have summarized some differences between Chinese food and Western-style food. If have incorrect point of view, you can leave your comments and give an advice below.
First of all, the making method of Chinese food is different from Western-style food.
Western-style food is simple; but Chinese food is complicated. In Western-style food cookbook, various ingredients such as the flour, sugar, butter etc. have been indicated several grams, several spoons or several cups, even the size of the egg will all be explained. There are balance, measuring cup and measuring spoon in Occidental kitchen. I think it is like a testing laboratory. So, Making Western-style food is easy, so long as you according to cookbook manual.
But it is not the easy thing that you want to make fine Chinese food. Even if you have bought the cookbook, it is not so easy. Because the Chinese cookbook will not tell you several grams of ingredient, for example salt, Chinese cookbook just tell you appropriate amount of salt, don’t tell you several gram, several spoon or several cup. Why? The taste of people who live in different places is different in China. There is a folk adage in China “south sweet, north salty, east hot and west sour”. I explain it: The Chinese southerner likes eating the sweet food; The Chinese northerner likes eating the salty food; The Chinese eastern people likes eating the hot food; The Chinese western people likes eating the sour food. If the cookbook hard and fast rule several grams of salt, perhaps Shanghai people feel it is too salty, but the northerner feel it is not salty enough. So, a good cook rely on experience and skill when cooks in China. Just because the skill of Chinese food is complicated, the high-level cook’s salary is very high in China.
Secondly, the kitchen of Chinese food is violence than Western-style food kitchen
It seems that the kitchen of Western-style food is more peaceful; what you bought is only the fish lump which can’t distinguish the kind, even crab may have been already boiled, what you can do is to put them into the oven or the pan. But the kitchen of Chinese food seems violence. The chicken, duck and fish is cut in the kitchen. The kitchen is full of glint of kitchen knife. Ha-ha! I feel it is like the battle field.
The tableware of Western-style food is knife and fork, the tableware of Chinese food is only two simple small bamboo sticks — Chopsticks. So, I think the tableware of Western-style food is violence than the tableware of Chinese food.
Third, the atmosphere of Chinese food is different from Western-style food while having a meal
The atmosphere of Western-style food is particular about scenery and ware. The good restaurant is generally built in the beautiful mountaintop, park or the revolving dining-room of the city center high building. So Western-style food is “Eat the scenery” but not “Eat taste”.
The atmosphere of Chinese food is particular about taste and participation. Chinese food conquers the world with taste. There is a folk adage in China “If want to conquer your heart, I will conquer your stomach first”. Everybody sits around table while eating Chinese food, everybody is eating the dish in the same plate, the hospitable host will also nip the dish into your bowl, it is so friendly. The friendship between person and person is deeper after a meal.
Fourth, the way that Chinese and occidental praise food is different
Chinese praise food, will generally say: “Your dish is cooked very excellently, has caught up with the level of the restaurant”; but occidental praise food, will say just like what the home make.
In fact Chinese food and Western-style food have a lot of similar things, especially Italian food and Chinese food. Because Marco Polo took Chinese pie and noodles to Italy, the Pasta and Pizza appeared in Italy.
Even if there are some differences between Chinese food and Western-style food, but I think Chinese food and Western-style food can get along harmoniously. For example Chinese food of U.S.A. is suitable for Americans’ taste, because through Americans’ improvement; similarly, the Western-style food of China is more suitable for Chinese’ taste, because through the Chinese’ improvement. Certainly, if you want to eat the traditional Western-style food, you should go to U.S.A.; if you want to eat traditional Chinese food, welcome to China.
You can subscribe by email to receive newsletter updates:
Subscribe through a RSS feed reader
| Partner Sites |
| Victoria Cruises | Tibet Tour |
| Guilin Li River | Chinese Festivals |
| Chinese New Year 2010 | Chinese New Year Food |
| Beijing Travel | China Group Tours |
Want to put your ad banner here, contact me
to vote for me! Thanks everyone!!! Tip: The same IP address can only vote once in 24 hours.
nice,fantastic, awesome, i love it
I enjoyed reading your article very much, but I feel the need to make a point about the comment you made about western cooking using cook books and Chinese cooking varying depending on different taste. If, for example, you look up the recipe to make a ‘lancashire hotpot’ in two different cookbooks, they will be different because they are written according to one persons personal taste. All western recipes in all cookbooks vary according to personal taste, to say this is only true for Chinese cooking is misleading. But I did think you had interesting points and enjoyed reading it alot.
i really need a descriptive essay about western food… would u write it for
me.. because i know you do know best about food.. then plssss.. forward to see the essay…
Maybe I will write it in the future…
I prefer the European food styles to American. I hope American food is not representative of Western cuisine!
I think this would be an error.
I am a great fan of Chinese food and have eaten in many places around China.
I don’t believe Western food is easier. There are more kinds of techniques besides frying on a gas plate. Our kitchens make use of ovens which you don’t see in Chinese kitchens. Baking is much more of a science and is not always easy. Making cheese, for instance, requires very precise timing and temperatures otherwise there will be failure. This technique has been perfected by skilled cheese-makers. The ingredients in a Chinese dish are often more simple. For instance there will only be one vegetable on one dish. We may make a casserole or medley of many vegetables while the Chinese palate prefers one or two vegetables per plate. Many dishes also have a similar soya sauce and msg flavout too. If you always depend on a cookbooks to make dishes you risk losing spontaneity and flexibilty. Western chefs frequently don’t use measurements, like the great Chinese chefs.
I think that both the food and atmosphere is important, I think most western diners agree. It is not just about “eating scenery”. The atmosphere and scenery are important because having a dinner is not only about filling ones stomach, it is also about socializing and enjoying oneself in pleasant surroundings with friends and family. Eating is social. I think both taste and scenery are thus important to westerners.
Food in China is more culturally representative/ symbolic of friendship than is western cultures. Perhaps we have different ways of establishing rapport and heart connection. Occidentals often like to express personal views, preferences and idiosyncrasies because they are the innermost of our beings- therefore promoting intimacy and feelings of familiarity and friendship. It expresses trust. We are also a culture of debate and we feel it is interesting to take opposing views and have vigorous discussion. In the Chinese context this is often seen as a source of conflict and threat to the social harmony. So Chinese will change the subject or pick topic where people can be in agreement. Chinese and westerners will thus have different socializing styles. So, on the one hand, the Chinese will want to keep the conversation light which may feel like social distance to some western cultures. On the other hand, when the occidental airs his views, the Chinese may feel he is disturbing the peace and is opinionated.
I think all cultures will miss the food from their home country, not just westerners. In my country my Chinese friends miss Chinese food, in China many westerners may miss western food. I don’t think only homemade cooking is especially praised in the West. America maybe? I have never been there. Not all homes can produce gourmet dishes.
The Italian pasta is prepared differently from China although it may have come from China. Pizza had it’s origin in Italy. When women had leftover bread dough they would place it is the oven and put leftover toppings on top of it. This was the beginning of the concept of pizza.
Sometimes I think Westerners have an incorrect idea of Chinese cuisine (in China). I have also noticed that some Chinese misunderstand Western food. They think that all Westerners eat is hamburgers, steak, pizza and desert. I am often disappointed that American cuisine is representative of all Western cuisine. While I love some American dishes, I am a great fan of Mediterranean and French cuisine, which is very sophisticated and healthy. The tastes are so delicate and well balanced. I also see the cooking skills as an art.
There are many great cuisines in the world. Taste and enjoyment is very personal so I don’t think any one cuisine stand up above the rest. Lets enjoy each others cuisines! We can learn so much from each other.
(correction: I didn’t mean to suggest cheese was made in an oven :?)
Chinese do make use of an oven… Beijing Duck for example. Or before Marco Polo brought “chinese pizza” to italy, where do you think did they bake it?
PK I lived in China 5 years: there are no ovens in Chinese kitchens- only stove tops! I have lived in 5 different apartments and visited over 30 other apartments.
Of course restaurants have ovens- that is natural. But the community does not use it.
Pizza comes from Italy not China. Duh- cheese does not come from China.
http://inventors.about.com/od/foodrelatedinventions/a/pizza.htm
I agree with your very much ， Chinese food is complicated, and also attaches great importance to the taste of food, therefore, there is no doubt that China’s food is delicious. After the long and the meticulous cooking by the chef ,the food is the best I think .It is not only meet the customer’s stomach, but also make people happy.
________________________________________________________
http://world-culture-research.org/c.asp?d=13886 Beijing Duck–My favorite one of the Chinese food.Do you like it？
:mrgreen:
I love Chinese food, but I think Western chefs (especially French) outdo the Chinese tremendously when it comes to pastry, baking and deserts. Sorry, Italian ice cream is so much better than sweet red-bean-paste. And the chinese don’t know jack about bread and cheese (which is something of the best you can eat!) Cooking in a western pastry kitchen can be very demanding. Makeing soufflés, different kinds of meringue, jellies, sabayon and perfect Ice cream, it means precision and knownledge about cooking temperatures and how your decision ulitmatley gets the texture you want. Plus great technique skills (there’s even much skill to whipping cream!) Also making complicated pastries like mille-feuille, choux, macaron pastry etc can be very complicated, and you have to be exact.