Though one country, China‘s vastness has allowed for many different types of Chinese cuisine to develop. We check out the dishes and delicacies you should try at least once.
Though one country, China‘s vastness has allowed for many different types of Chinese cuisine to develop. We check out the dishes and delicacies you should try at least once.
Jianbing (Chinese Crepes)
Image: Serious Eats
Known as the Chinese crepes, jianbing is one of the most common street foods eaten for breakfast in China. It is easily accessible around street corners, outside of subway stations and tourist attractions. Though the types of Jianbing vary by city, the main ingredients are generally the same. The dough is made of wheat and grain flour and fried on a griddle with egg as the base. Meanwhile, the center is filled with scallions, lettuce, cilantro, and rich chili sauce.
Jiaozi (Chinese Dumplings)
Image: Lost Laowai
Filled with vegetables and/or meat, jiaozi – or Chinese dumplings – are common street foods. They are shaped like ancient gold ingots, which were believed to bring you good luck. They are often shallow fried or deep-fried and eaten with a dip of soy-vinegar sauce for flavor. One bite releases a mouthful of hot, juicy broth that reaches every sense on the tongue, creating an explosive mixture of flavors. Jiaozis are eaten all throughout the year, but more so on Chinese New Years.
Pai gu nian gao (Pork Chop with Rice Cakes)
Image: JFL Magazine
Pai gu nian gao is essentially a Chinese dish with pork chops and fried rice cakes. Pork chop is marinated and boiled with oil, sugar, sauce and ginger, while glutinous rice flour is ground into a paste, sliced into thin, small segments, wrapped around the pork chop and then fried. The cooking process results in a hot, slightly sticky, compact meal that conceals the juicy flavors of the pork chops as well as the sauce.
Cifantuan or Ci Faan (Glutinous rice balls)
Image: Alchetron
Cifantuan or ci faan are rice balls filled with various flavorful local ingredients. The most common types are the savory kinds. These include aha cai (pickled vegetable), rousing(pork floss) and youtiao (long golden-brown strips of deep-fried dough). There are also the sweet variations, which consist of the same ingredients as the savory one but with added sugar as well as sesame. Cifantuan are one of the most popular breakfast dishes along the streets of Nanyang Lu and Xikang Lu in Shanghai.
Baozi (Chinese Bread Buns)
Image: Travel Gluttons
Baozi are dough buns often filled with juicy meat such as barbecued pork and/or vegetables, and steamed in steaming trays made of bamboo. They are prepared similarly to the way jiaozi dumplings are prepared – the only difference is that baozi consists of thicker dough, as well as a larger amount of filling. They often appear in two sizes: Dabao(‘big buns’), which are the most common forms of baozi sold by street vendors, and Xiaobao (‘small buns’).
Huo guo (Hotpot)
Image: Yelp
Huo guo, more commonly known as hotpot, is a Sichuan specialty that has spread its influence throughout the country. Over time, many variations have developed in each region of China, using different meat as well as soup bases, sauces and condiments. The most famous of all huo guo is the Chongqing ma la hotpot, which adds Sichuan pepper to the boiling meat broth. It is known to leave a burning and spicy sensation on the tongue.
Rou Jia Mo (Chinese Hamburger)
Image: The Woks of Life
Rou Jia Mo is a Chinese version of the American hamburger, except the buns are thinner and flavored with meat gravy and chili paste – rather than ketchup and mustard. The meat is shredded rather than a large, circular patty. Each vendor sells rou jia mo with his or her own special filling of spiced mix. The two most common types are Shaanxi Province’s lazhirous jiamo, which is made with pork in gravy, and Ningxia Hui Automonous Region’s yangrou roujiamo, which is made with lamb.
Donkey Meat Sandwich
Image: Burpple
According to historical records, donkey meat has been a Chinese delicacy since the Ming Dynasty. Back then, it was eaten for military men’s survival. Today it is an easily accessible, popular, common street food that is simple to carry on the go, particularly in Baoding. The donkey meat is first shredded and then stewed with a mix of various spices and sauces. This results in a juicy, savory batch of meat that is placed in between two sandwich buns.
Chuan’r (Chinese Kebabs)
Image: CNN
Chuan’r, also known as kebabs, are pieces of meat skewered onto thinly cut bamboo sticks. Any kinds of meat or even vegetables are used. The way street vendors prepare them is to coat the meat with salt, dried chili flakes, as well as ground cumin spice, and then mix all three ingredients together before barbecuing the marinated meat over charcoal fires until they are well cooked. Chuan’r are common throughout China, but they are mostly eaten at outdoor night stalls called dapaidang during the summer.
Bing Tanghulu (Candied Hawthorns)
Image: Confucius Mag
Bing Tanghulus are Chinese hawthorns covered with a hardened coat of sugar syrup and skewered onto long thin sticks. They taste both sour and sweet – similarly to mini candy apples, but more sour, astringent and granular. Though tanghula come with other fruits such as strawberries or apples, the most common and popular version, which is found in central Beijing, is stuffed with haws. The exterior is crunchy and sweet while the interior is soft, sweet and sour due to the fruit.
Banmian (Chinese Noodle Soup)
Image: Miss Tam Chiak
Banmian is a popular Chinese noodle dish that commonly uses fish stock, particularly anchovy stock, as the base for the soup. In most cases, the ingredients include egg noodles that are made of egg, flour, water and salt, mushrooms, and anchovies. However, variations of noodle soups can use substitute or additional ingredients such as sausages, chicken drum sticks, chili or Sichuan peppers. Depending on the vendor, banmian, especially the soup, leaves a flavorful aftertaste that lingers on the tongue for hours.
Cong You Bing (Fried Scallion Pancakes)
Image: The Cultural Dish
Cong you bing, more well known as scallion pancakes, are thin flatbreads layered with spiced scallion and deep-fried with oil. They are essentially the Chinese version of Western pancakes, but made with dough rather than batter. Just as pancakes are an essential part of breakfast in America or European countries, cong you bing is a regular breakfast item found as a common meal along China’s streets. Though greasy, they are known for their flavorful and juicy initial taste as well as aftertaste.
Source: Culture Trip