Chinese Cuisine

Chinese Cuisine is famous in the world for its various styles and distinct flavours. The diversity of the country's climate, products and customs results in the widely different food styles and tastes in local regions. Chinese cuisine enjoys worldwide recognition due to its sheer abundance. Each part of the country has developed its own unique manner of cooking, but generally Chinese food can be divided into eight regional cuisines. Cantonese Cuisine, is the type of Chinese cooking most familiar to Westerners, it is noted for its clean, light and crisp tastes, and its use of fowl and other meats to produce it's signature dishes.

Due to China's vast size and ethnic diversity, a wide variety of styles of cooking have developed, with distinct and mouthwatering flavours. Sichuan Cuisine is characterized by its spicy flavours and rich aroma. Chef's specializing in Anhui Cuisine focus much more attention on the use and affect of temperature in cooking and are noted for their skill at braising and stewing. Jiangsu Cuisine, also known as Huaiyang Cuisine, is popular in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Zhejiang Cuisine is a blend of the local cuisines of Hanzhou, Ningbo, and Shaoxing, and is noted for not being greasy.

Hunan cuisine consists of the local cuisines of the Xiangjiang Region, Dongting Lake and the Xiangxi coteau area. Fujian Cuisine is a combination of Fuzhou, Quanzhou and Xiamen Cuisine.  It is renowned for it's use of seafood, the dishes beautiful colour and the subtle and delicious combinations of sweet, sour, salt and savory tastes. In modern times, Beijing cuisine and Shanghai cuisine on occasion are also cited along with the classical eight regional styles as the Ten Great Traditions. There are also featured Chinese Buddhist cuisine and Muslim sub-cuisines within the greater Chinese cuisine.