VOC's Travel BLOG

In terms of diet, flavor overwhelms anything else. Chinese never bind themselves into a stuffy food list. People persist to seek the inspiration of transformation through continuously trials. They seem to be born with the ability to utilize microorganisms like yeasts, fungus and bacteria. Wine should be the oldest sample of bringing ferment of microorganisms into full play. Rice Wine, a Chinese beverage that is made from grains like rice, millet or wheat with Jiuqu starter culture, is one of the oldest alcohols in China. It is also called Yellow Wine (Huangjiu) and has lower alcohol than that of White Spirit. Different type of Yellow Wine shows slightly different color such as ecru, tawny and reddish brown. Moreover, it is often used as a condiment in cooking to remove fishiness and promote flavor.

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By reason of the various physical geographies, the unique distribution of agriculture of China has taken shape some 1000 years ago that dry farming of millet and wheat is carried out in the Yellow River Valley in north China, while the wet farming of rice is implemented in Yangtze River Basin in south China, which in consequence results in a common phenomenon- northerners prefer wheaten food and southerners cannot live without rice. For thousands of years, to reward toil on the soil, Chinese people live in different regions find a way to make diversified food with the simplex basic material of grains.

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Staples are not only the main food on the table of Chinese people but also the main source of their energy. Divergent staples vary from regions to regions, ranging from wheat in the northern China to rice in the southern China. But whatever they are, staples always play a profound impact on people's understanding of the ever-changing seasons, and in the meanwhile make their life much bountiful, healthy and charmed.

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Chinese Noodles has a history of 4,000 years according to an archeological discovery in Qinghai Province where a 50-centimeter-long noodle made of millet was unearthed. Eating Noodles is a part of birthday celebrations in China. Long noodles stand for longevity in Chinese culture. Noodles are regarded as the staple food in North China and usually served as breakfast in South China. The reason lies in the two agricultural patterns in China: wheat and millet are mainly produced in North Chinawhile rice is mainly produced in South China. Chinese Noodles are generally made from wheat flour, rice flour, tapioca starch or any kind of starch, with eggs, peanuts, meat, shrimps, vegetables and so forth as ingredients. The most common noodles are wheat flour noodles and rice noodles.

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With its diversified geographic environment and corresponding climate conditions, China is endowed with kinds of food materials which results in rich eating habits with distinguished features in different areas and regions. In traditional Chinese dietary, there is a particularly dainty come from the bamboo grove- bamboo shoots, which are fully employed in almost each of the four major Chinese cuisines- Cantonese, Sichuan, Shandong and Huaiyang (combining Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang). Chinese chefs love bamboo shoots because of its simplicity of material quality which make it easy to match and assimilate other tastes, in especial to produce a splendid balance with greasy meat.

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China boasts vast territory with various geographic environments that are instrumental in forming and preserving sorts of species. No countries other than China possess such abundant raw materials of foods. And its people are collecting, digging, picking and catching these gifts of Mother Nature throughout the year. China is also a populous country with distinct tastes, but inviting Chinese foods never fail to appeal to people. Lotus roots are one of the gifts from part of nature - lakes, and delicate dishes made of them are always mouthwatering.

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In China, a widely known saying goes that Food is the first necessity of the people. It is true and it is not difficult for foreigners who have ever been to China to find the variety of Chinese food, especially dishes. For new comers, Chinese dishes which are usually seasoned with all kinds of condiments are probably far away from being easy to cook. But if you pay a little patience, you will find that is not an arduous challenge at all. So how about making your first step of becoming a chef of Chinese dishes with us?

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Fruit is an eternal topic for most people, no matter when and where. Spanning a wide latitude of nearly 50 degrees between the Torrid Zone and the North Temperate Zone, China is endowed with much advantage in fruit planting. Leave some common fruits such as apple and banana aside, some growing in South China are probably fresh to westerners:

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