The idea that there is a “real” or “authentic” Chinese cuisine is about as absurd as saying that there is a “real European cuisine”. Cooking styles vary according to wealth, taste, history, trade routes, religion and availability of certain foodstuffs.

French “haute cuisine” originated in Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Central France and made extensive use of the various superb products available there, such as beef from Charolais, fowl from the Bresse, salt-water fish from the Mediterranean which is easily reachable via the Rhone river, fresh-water fish, crayfish and frogs legs from the Alpine streams, fruit, vegetables, mushrooms and cheeses galore, and the fabulous wines from Burgundy and the Beaujolais right next door.

Or think of the glorious variety of cooking styles in Italy, from Piemonte and Lombardy in the north which was always richer and more developed than other parts of Italy and where people could afford more meat – especially beef and veal – as opposed to the poorer south, where chicken dishes and lamb are more predominant. Like Lyon in France, the triangle of industrial cities between Bologna, Parma and Modena in the Emilia Romagna region of Central Italy gave birth to what now is considered “classical” Italian cuisine all over the world but is in reality just another regional cuisine. Think Spaghetti Bolognese, Parma ham, Parmesan cheese, or Aceto Balsamico di Modena. Toscana right next door was much poorer, and it gave the world simpler dishes lovingly prepared by generations of “nonnas” and strong on regional vegetables and spices such as rosemary, thyme and oregano. “I want to be able to cook better than my grandmother”, a friend of mine, a famous Italian chef, once complained to me, “but I can’t – it’s impossible.”

Now think about China which is the fourth largest country in the world and stretches 4.500 kilometers from the dry plains of Manchuria and Mongolia to the lush tropical island of Hainan, and 5.500 kilometers from east to west from the lofty Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (also known as the “roof of the world”) and the mighty Taklamakan Desert, second only to the Sahara, to the shores of the Yellow Sea rich in fish and shellfish.

No wonder experts distinguish between at least eight major regional cuisines in China, not to mention the special cooking styles developed by Chinese emigrants in places like Indonesia, Singapore, Malaya and, yes, the United States and Canada, even! Weiterlesen →