Andra Conway - Simple Chinese Food Cookbook: 550-Day Famous & Delicious Chinese Breakfast, Noodles, Rice, Poultry, Pork, Beef, Seafood, Soup, and Dessert Recipes for Beginners and Advanced Users

China has a rich history dating back more than four thousand years, and Chinese cuisine is an integral part of it. The rich and colourful Chinese culture plays an essential element in shaping Chinese cuisine. Chinese cuisines are primarily focused on rich taste, colour, and aroma in their food. Chinese chefs blend different colours to prepare food making a colourful meal with bright and rich colours. Furthermore, fragrance is an important aspect of Chinese cuisines. Chinese chefs use various herbs and ingredients to make the aroma of the food-rich. Taste also play an integral role in Chinese cuisine; different cooking methods are adopted to make Chinese food rich and delicious in flavour.

Ingredients

Chinese cuisine is comprised of a wide variety of ingredients, including veggies, grains, animal meat like dog, rabbit, cow, donkey, sheep, and many others. Poultry is also an important aspect of Chinese cuisine, i.e., eggs and meats of chicken, goose, duck, pigeon, pheasant, turkey, and much more. Seafood and freshwater fish like salmon, sea cucumber, black carp, grass carp, hairtail, squad, oyster, shrimp, crab, turtle, and carb is used in different Chinese foods. Dried veggies like beans, turnip, eggplant, pepper, and potato are also used in Chinese foods. Chinese cuisine also involves dried fish and dried pork. Vegetable drying is used for using them in winters and for having a distinct taste from fresh veggies. In the Northern Chinese region, veggies are preserved in salty water to make pickles.

Cooking Methods

Chinese cuisine involves more than forty distinct ways to cook foods, making them rich in taste and aroma. The following are the most prominent Chinese cooking methods.

1. c h o)

Stir-frying is one of the most common cooking methods. Raw ingredients are cut into small pieces, they are added to a heated oil pot. Furthermore, salt, spices, and MSG is added according to the recipe. Afterwards, starch is added to bind the stir-fried veggies to the sauce in the pot before serving.

1. qing)

Ingredients are sliced first and then put into boiling water for a relatively short time. Afterwards, spices are added after thoroughly draining the water.

1. (z h )

This method involves boiling food in a mixture of spices and water.

1. jin)

This method involves putting the ingredients in a pot with some oil and then heating it till the food becomes golden-brown.

1. zh)

It is considered one of the famous, amazing and convenient cooking methods involving a heating half pot of oil to higher temperatures and then cooking the food in the hot oil. Mostly, spices are added before frying the food.

1. (shun)

Initially, the food is sliced thoroughly, putting into boiling hot water, then dipping it in a sauce to eat. The famous hot pot dish is usually prepared with this cooking method.

Branches of Chinese Cuisine

There are different branches of Chinese cuisine, including Lu Cuisine, Su Cuisine, Zhe Cuisine, Xiang Cuisine, Hui Cuisine, Chuan Cuisine, Yue Cuisine, and Min Cuisine. All of these eight branches of Chinese cuisine primarily focuses on nutritious foods and giving an artistic touch to foods.

Breakfast Recipes

Chicken Congee

Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings:

Ingredients:

• 8 cups water
• 1 cup long-grain white rice, rinsed and drained
• 6 bone-in chicken thighs
• 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, sliced into large pieces
• Salt, to taste

Preparation:

1. In a large Dutch oven, add water, rice, chicken thighs and ginger over high heat and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, covered for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
3. With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken thighs into a bowl.
4. With 2 forks, shred the meat and discard the bones.
5. Add the shredded meat and salt into the rice mixture and stir to combine.
6. Serve hot.

Serving Suggestions: Serve with the topping of boiled eggs, ginger slices and scallion.

Variation Tip: The addition of goji berries will enhance the taste of congee.

Nutritional Information per Serving:

Calories: 329 | Fat: 8.6g| Sat Fat: 2.4g| Carbohydrates: 24.9g| Fiber: 0.4g| Sugar: 0.1g|
Protein: 35g

Meatballs Congee

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 40 minutes
Servings:

Ingredients:

• pound ground pork
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• Freshly ground white pepper, to taste
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup jasmine rice
• 1 lemongrass stalk, cut into 3-inch pieces and crushed
• 5 dried red chiles, stemmed
• cup vegetable oil
• 5 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
• cup distilled white vinegar
• 1 Serrano chile, seeded and minced
• teaspoon sugar

Preparation:

1. In a bowl, add the pork, fish sauce, soy sauce and a pinch of white pepper and mix until well combined.
2. Set aside for about 15-30 minutes.
3. In a cast-iron pan, add the broth, rice and lemongrass pieces over medium-high heat and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce the heat to low and simmer partially, covered for about 25 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, heat a small skillet over medium heat and toast the dried chiles for about 3 minutes, stirring continuously.
6. Transfer the dried chiles to a spice grinder and grind until roughly powdered.
7. With paper towels, wipe out the skillet.