英语第二单元

Culinary Delights In China

1.

Chinese

cuisine

is

a

brilliant

facet

of

Chinese

culture,

which

is

proven

by

the

fact

that

Chinese

restaurants

are

found

scattered

everywhere

throughout

the

world.

Today,

the

culinary

industry is developing even more rapidly than before. A decade ago, Beijing had a

few thousand restaurants, while today there are over 100000 restaurants of different sizes in

the city.

2.

Regional Chinese Cuisines

It

is

widely

acknowledged

that

from

the

Ming

(1368-1644)

dynasties

onwards,

there

are

eight

major

schools

of

cuisine

based

on

regional

cooking.

They

came

from

Shandong,

Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Anhui provinces. In addition to

these

traditional

cuisines,

the

culinary

industry

in

China

has

undergone

great

changes,

as

almost every place has its own local

specialties

, and as the different cuisines gather together

in big cities, such as Beijing.

3.

Sichuan, known as Nature

’

s Storehouse, is also a storehouse of cuisine. Here, each and every

restaurant

provides

delicious

yet

economical

culinary

fare

.

The

ingredients

for

Sichuan

cuisine

are

simple

bur

the

spices

used

are

quite

different.

Sichuan

cuisine

is

famous

for

its

spicy and hot food, yet just being hot and spicy does not necessarily distinguish it from other

hot

and

spicy

cuisines

such

as

Hunan

or

Guizhou

cuisines.

What

is

really

special

about

Sichuan cuisine is the use of Chinese prickly ash seeds, the taste of which leaves a feeling of

numbness

on

one

’

s

tongue

and

mouth.

Besides

this

unique

spice,

Sichuan

dishes

are

also

usually prepared with other spices such as

chili pepper

. Using

fermented

bean sauce and a

set of unique cooking methods, Sichuan cuisine is now famous and popular across the world.

On

recent

years,

there

have

appeared

many

more

renowned

restaurants

specializing

in

Sichuan cuisine, such as the Tan Family Fish Head restaurant.

4.

Guangdong

Province

is

located

in

southern

China,

with

a

moderate

climate

and

abundant

produce all

year round. As one of the earliest ports open to foreign trade, the province has

developed

a

culinary

culture

with

its

own

characteristics

that

has

exerted

a

far-reaching

influence

on

other

parts

of

China

as

well

as

throughout

the

world

where

it

is

the

most

commonly available Chinese cuisine. Guangdong cuisine is famous for its seafood as well as

for its originality and refined cooking processes. Various soups in this cuisine are loved by

people all over the country.

5.

Zhejiang cuisine is

light

and

exquisite

, and is typical of food from along the lower Yangtze

River. One famous dish is West Lake Vinegar Fish, which looks pretty and has the delicate

refreshing flavors of nature. Many Chinese restaurants in China, as well as in other parts of

the

world,

serve

this

dish,

but

often

the

flavor

is

less

authentic

compared

to

that

found

in

Hangzhou,

capital

of

Zhejiang

Province,

which

has

unique

access

to

the

fish

and

water

of

West Lake.

6.

Every Dish Has a Story

The

names

of

Chinese

dishes

are

diverse,

but

behind

each

of

the

famous

dishes

is

an

interesting

story

explaining

why

it

is

popular.

A

good

name

can

make

the

dish

more

interesting;

however,

some

names

are

so

eccentric

that

they

may

confuse

people,

both

Chinese

and

foreigners.

If

you

only

translate

the

names

literally

with

no

explanation,

you

could

make a fool of yourself

.