Dubai: When it comes to food, the Chinese say waste not, want not. Everything in Chinese cuisine is planned precisely.
Many different styles contribute to Chinese cuisine but the best known and most influential is Cantonese cuisine.
Chinese cuisine has a lot of interesting facts. Northerners eat dumplings, wheat noodles, steamed buns and stuffed buns, as they grow more wheat in that part of China. The Chinese introduced the world to noodles, which are now enjoyed in every part of the world.
People in the south of China eat rice in every meal compared to people in northern China.
China is also known for its fresh fruits and vegetables. It is said that the Chinese eat twice more fiber than in the west.
This makes Chinese cookery distinct from other cuisine, which only plays on the taste buds. The basic ingredients in Chinese cooking is the manipulation of these ingredients. It is about balancing the starch, meat and vegetable in the dish, which the Chinese place together instead of mix together.
The Chinese cooking system is at best described as simple. The aim is to make raw food edible without missing so much time. Spices, herbs and seasonings like chillies, garlic, ginger, green onion, a variety of peppers or soya paste make it more easier as they release instant flavour when in the pot.
This is why the favourite Chinese take-outs are comparable to fast food when it comes to the speed with which they are prepared.
Popular cooking methods to mention are stir-frying, a quick way of cooking small quantities of thinly sliced vegetable and meat often with rice. It involves a wok tossing on a high heat.
Steaming is the method for making dim sum, buns, fish and meat. Braising is browning food and then simmering it in a small amount of liquid seasoning.
Hong-shao creates the richest, reddish-brown color in meat dishes. Hong-shao literally means red-cooked.
Roasting is a universal cooking method that creates a favourite dish: the roasted Peking duck.
Aatir Dhadalla is a sous chef at Melia Dubai.
