History of Chinese cuisine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 This article is part of the series: |
|---|
|
|
|
|
| [edit] |
The History of Chinese cuisine in China can be traced back to the Peking Man and his use of fire and the invention of "cuisine" some 400,000 years ago. Some other accounts of the history of Chinese cuisine takes the beginning to the Chinese stone age, where the cultivation of rice and the production of noodles, both typical representations of Chinese cuisine as we know it today, are known from archeological findings.
Contents |
[edit] Practices
Over the centuries, as new food sources and techniques were invented, the Chinese cuisine as we know it gradually evolved, with the use of chopsticks made from all sorts of materials as eating utensils, another one of the hallmarks of Chinese cuisine, going back at least to the Zhou Dynasty; stir-fried dishes became popular during the Tang Dynasty. The stir-fry method of cooking was invented as a necessity to conserve expensive and scarce fuel.
[edit] Chinese cuisine classifications
Not long after the expansion of the Chinese Empire during the Qin Dynasty and Han Dynasty, Chinese writers noted the great differences in culinary practices between people from different parts of the realm. These differences, following to a great extent the varying climate and availability of food sources in China, and different ethnic groups could be very local in nature but were early on systematized in lists of Chinese cuisines, they are:
[edit] North and South
The North and South cuisines, the earliest distinction, and one that is still much used today even as the food culture of North and South China of course have developed much since the distinction was first made. das
[edit] Traditional Four schools classifications
Chinese cuisines belong to one of the Four Schools. The School of Lu (Shandong), is the largest due to its history, which is also the longest among all. The Four Schools, being Lu, Jiang (named after Jiangsu's major style, Huaiyang cuisine), Chuan and Yue. Often translated as the cuisines of Shandong, Sichuan, Jiangsu and Guangdong.
| Lu (Shandong) | Jiang (Su) | Yue (Guangdong/Cantonese) | Chuan (Sichuan) |
|---|---|---|---|
[edit] Eight schools classification
The Eight Schools include the four major branch of the "Four schools" and add the following to the above Hunan, Fujian, Anhui and Zhejiang.
[edit] Ten schools classification
The Ten Schools, adding to the eight above the cuisines of Beijing and Shanghai.
[edit] History
[edit] Paleolithic
The Peking man was the first hominid and of the homo genus to discover fire at Zhoukoudian. He used it too cook animals he captured in traps near the cave. These are a list of sites where charred animals bones and tools have been found at Zhoukoudian
[edit] East Slope
Part of Peking Man Site this slope was excavated 1930-58 and again in 1978-79 by a multi-disciplinary research mission. Excavation have dug to a depth of 7m through Layers 3-6 and have unearthed stone tools, burned bones and ashes, and fossils of bird, reptile and mammal species.[1] | valign="top" |
[edit] Pigeon Hall
Pigeon Hall was named in honour of its frequent visitors and was connected with Peking Man Site by workmen in 1928. Excavations from 1930-31 unearthed numerous Peking Man bones (including mandible, clavicle and parietal bone), signs of fire use (including a scorched redbud stick), and stone tools of quartz and green sandstone.[2] |}
[edit] Locality 4
Discovered in 1927 this north-south running fissure is filled with yellow sandy clay and dates to the late Middle Pleistocene era. Excavations from 1937-38 unearthed stoneware, burned bones and seeds (indicating fire use in early man) and fossils of jackal and deer. A second excavation in 1973 unearthed a human premolar and the fossilised remains of 40 mammalian species including macaque, pig, bear and horse.[3]
[edit] Locality 13
This fissure in a limestone mound 1km south of Peking Man Site dates to the early Middle Pleistocene era and is the earliest site of cultural remains excavated so far at Zhoukoudian. Excavations of the thin-bedded sandy clay about 50m above the river bed have unearthed stone artefacts, ash and charred bones and 36 species of deeply fossilised mammalian fossils including thick-jawed giant deer and sabre-toothed tiger.[4]
[edit] Locality 15
Discovered in 1932 this relatively young site dates to around 100,000 to 200,000 years ago. Excavations from 1934-35 revealed three layers; an upper layer of loess and limestone debris; a middle layer containing ash, stoneware, burned bones and hackberry seeds; and a lower layer of red clay containing stoneware and bird and mammalian fossils including woolly rhino, giant deer and gazelle. The site has yet to be fully excavated.[5] |}
[edit] Neolithic
[edit] Upper Cave
Situated on the upper part of Dragon Bone Hill this cave was discovered in 1930 and excavated from 1933-34 during which time the roof and north facing opening were removed. Excavations found evidence of human habitation in the cave dating back to 10,000 to 20,000 years ago. The cave was divided into an upper level living quarters and a lower level burial ground, while a small recess on the lower level acted as a natural animal trap.[6] Finds unearthed included three human skulls and other remains from at least eight individuals indentified as Archaic Homo sapiens, tools and ornaments made from stone and bone, and numerous animal bones including complete skeletons of large mammals caught in the lower level trap.
Lajia (Chinese: 喇家; Pinyin: Lǎjiā) is an archaeological site located in Minhe County, Haidong Prefecture in Northwest China's Qinghai province. Lajia is associated with the Qijia culture and was discovered by archaeologists in 2000. The site covers an area of around 200,000 square meters. Archaeologists believe the site was abandoned after being devastated by an earthquake and subsequent flood. In 2005, the oldest intact noodles yet discovered were located at Lajia, estimated at over 4,000 years old. The noodles were made from millet.[7] In October 2005, the oldest noodles yet discovered were found at the Lajia site (Qijia culture) along the Yellow River in Qinghai, China. The 4,000-year-old noodles appear to have been made from foxtail millet and broomcorn millet.[8]
[edit] Early dynastic times
There has always been a major class difference between the royalties and the regular citizens living outside the imperial quarters. It should be noted that Beijing was not always the capital of China. In fact the geography of the far northeastern corner of China with its long, harsh winters with limited agricultural possibilities, has always posed serious water and food supply problems.[9]
[edit] Song dynasty
Many of the ingredients and technique that are common in modern Chinese cuisine became widely establish prior to the Song dynasty. Su Shi (蘇軾) a famous poet and statesmen at the time also wrote extensively on the food and wine of the period. The legacy of his appreciation of food and gastronomy, as well as his popularity with the people can be seen in Dongpo rou (東坡肉), a pork recipe said to be created and named after him.
An influential work which recorded the cuisine of this period is Shanjia Qinggong (山家清供) by Lin Hong (林洪). This recipe book accounts the preparation of numerous dishes of common and fine cuisines.
[edit] Qing dynasty
The records of the Imperial Banqueting Court (光祿寺, Kuang-lu ssu) published in the late Qing period showed there were 6 levels of Manchu banquets (滿席) and 5 of Chinese banquets (漢席).[10] The royal Manchu Han Imperial Feast is one that combined both traditions.
[edit] 1950s - 1980s
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the nation have suffered from a series of major food supply problems under the Communist Party of China. Countryside poor provinces like Henan and Gansu experienced the worst. By January 1959 the food supply for residents in Beijing was reduced to 1 cabbage per household per day. Many peasants suffered from malnutrition, and at the same time increasing the amount they handed over to the state.[11] Beginning in 1960, the Great Chinese Famine contributed to more problems due to bad government policies. During this time there was little to no advancement in the culinary tradition. Many fled to neighbouring Hong Kong and Taiwan to avoid starvation.
| Year | Percent of grain handed over to the Communist party[11] |
|---|---|
| 1957 | 24.6% |
| 1959 | 39.6% |
| 1960 | 35.7% |
[edit] 1990s
Beijing in particular has tried its own Communist style cuisine titled Cultural Revolution cuisine or CR cuisine. Other designs include the Retro-Maoist cuisine, which cashed in on the 100th anniversary of Mao Zedong's birthday, whether it was officially endorsed or not. The peasant menu includes items such as cornmeal cakes and rice gruel.[12] In February 1994 the Wall street journal wrote an article about Retro-Maoist cuisine being a hit in China. Owners of a CR-style restaurants said "We're not nostalgic for Mao, per se. We're nostalgic for our youth."[12] The cuisine is denied by the Chinese government as an actual cuisine.
One of the cuisine to benefit in the 1990s was the Chinese Islamic cuisine. During the Great Leap Forward and Cultural revolution of the 70s, the government used strong-arm techniques to make non-Han races conform to Han Chinese. Groups like the Hui people would become a minority group. To help re-promote their rare cuisine, the huis began labeling their food as "Traditional Hui cuisine". Examples such as the "Yan's family eatery" earned 15,000 yuan net income per month in 1994 for their family.[13] This is well above the national salary average at the time.
[edit] Famous quotes
[edit] Chinese cuisine quote - original version
A common saying in Chinese cuisine has been around in Chinese culture for some time. Its exact origin is unknown, though it attempts to summarize the entire cuisine in one sentence. The order of the directions can vary within local culture. For example, East may not necessarily come first.
| Language | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 東甜, 南鹹, 西酸, 北辣 [14][15] |
| Simplified Chinese | 东甜, 南咸, 西酸, 北辣 |
| English | East is sweet, South is salty, West is sour, North is spicy |
| Pinyin | dong1 tian2, nan2 xian2, xi1 suan1, bei3 la4 |
| Jyutping | dung1 tim4, naam4 haam4, sai1 syun1, bak1 laat6*2 |
[edit] Chinese cuisine quote - popular online version
It should be noted Chinese cuisine have gone through numerous transformations through the different dynasties all the way up to modern times. Many different versions of the quote exist on the internet today. One of the most common version under google's search result suggest an overwhelmingly different version in mainland Simplified Chinese.[16]
| Language | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 南甜, 北鹹, 東辣, 西酸 |
| Simplified Chinese | 南甜, 北咸, 东辣, 西酸 [17][18] |
| English | South is sweet, North is salty, East is spicy, West is sour |
One can compare the original and pseudo version. For example, the original phrase suggest South is salty. This fits Cantonese cuisine and Hakka cuisine since both southern styles are largely dominated by salty tastes. But the more popular internet quote suggests south is sweet instead. This may be true because sweet tong sui is the major export from the southern region as seen from the mainland perspective. Also, in modern times the western styles of Sichuan and Hunan cuisines are widely renowned for their spicy dishes, more so then that of northern China. Both quotes can be debated literally down to the individual dish. Likely neither will ever emerge as the definitive quote.
[edit] Lifestyle quote
| Language | Phrase |
|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 食在廣州，死在柳州，玩在蘇州，住在杭州[19][20] |
| Simplified Chinese | 食在广州，死在柳州，玩在苏州，住在杭州 |
| English | Eat in Guangzhou, Die in Liuzhou, Play in Suzhou, Live in Hangzhou |
This popular phrase summarises Cantonese cuisine from Guangzhou as the standout in Chinese cuisine. The best wood is in Liuzhou, which is suitable for death and coffins. The most beautiful women is in Suzhou, and the most comfortable scenery for living is in Hangzhou. There are different variations of the quote available online. Cantonese cuisine is widely regarded as the one to eat within the ideal life.[19]
[edit] References
- ^ "The excavated area of The east slope", Peking Man Site Museum. "The East Slope is one part of Peking Man site, and it once was excavated during 1930-1958. The most recent excavation was conducted during the mission (1978-1979) of the multi-disciplinary synthetic researches at the site. The excavate area is 20 meters long, 16 meters wide from north to south, and 7 meters deep; approximately 320 square meters of surface. In stratigraphy, the excavated part can be correlated with the layers 3-6, among which the 4th layer is the ash-layer and the other layers are composed of well cemented breccias. The animal fossils recovered include mammals, reptiles and birds. Some stone tools, burned bones and ashes left by humans were also unearthed."
- ^ "Pigeon Hall", Peking Man Site Museum. "Pigeon Hall was named for its frequent visit by pigeons. The northern wall is made of limestone. Two holes were made on the east side of the wall for the purpose of collecting stones and burnt limes. The cave roof and southern wall contain petrous breccia with fossils. In 1928, when the Locality 1 was being excavated, workers connected the west end of the cave with Locality 1. It was excavate in 1930 and 1931 respectively. The most important finding here include fossils of clavicles, parietal bones, mandibles of ape-men, and lots of primary stone tools made of quartz and green sandstones. The four culture layers include the signs of ape-men’s utilization of fire and large cinder layers, Particularly, a scorched stick of redbud tree was discovered in the Hall, whose geological age dates back to Middle Pleistocene, the same to that of Locality 1."
- ^ "Locality 4", Peking Man Site Museum. "Discovered in 1927, this locality was excavated during 1937-1938. The fissure deposit extends in a north-south direction, and contains mainly yellow sandy clay with abundant limestone fragments. This excavation yielded lithic tools, evidence of fire used by early man (burned bones and burned seeds of hackberry trees) as well as mammalian fossils such as jackal (Cuon) and deer (Cervus). In 1973, a upper premolar of human’s and other 40 additional mammalian species were discovered, including macaque (Macaca), mole-rat (Myospalax), bear (Ursus), horse (Equus cf. sanmeniensis), pig (Sus cf. lydekkeri), red deer (Cervus elaphus), and sika deer (Cervus grayi). The geological age is late Middle Pleistocene similar to that of the upper part of Locality 1."
- ^ "Locality 13", Peking Man Site Museum. "Locality 13 lies on a limestone mound about 1km to the south of the Peking Man Site. This fissure or cave was filled with deposits about 50 meters above the local river bed. Some stone artefacts and traces of using fire (ash layer and a few charred bones) were found as well. This is the earliest site of cultural remains so far excavated in Zhoukoudian area. Many deeply fossilised fossils were found from the thin-bedded sandy clay. There are 36 species of mammalian fossils, including thick-jawed giant deer (Megaloceros pachyosteus), sabretooth (Homotherium). Locality 13 is roughly equivalent to the lower part of the deposits of Peking Man Site in geological age, i.e. it’s early Middle Pleistocene."
- ^ "Locality 15", Peking Man Site Museum. "Discovered in 1932, Locality 15 was excavated during 1934-1935. The excavated part measures 16 meters long, 13 meters wide, and 10 meters thick, while other parts of the deposit have not been excavated. The deposit can be divided into three layers. The upper layer contains yellowish sandy clay with occasional limestone debris; the middle layer contains ash, big limestone blocks, seeds of hackberry trees, burned bones as well as lithic tools; the lower layer contains breccia with limestone blocks, bone fragments, lithic tools and red clay. This locality yielded bird fossils and 33 mammalian species, including mole-rat (Myospalax), woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis), thick-jawed giant deer (Megaloceros pachyosteus), sika deer (Cervus grayi) and gazelle (Gazella). The geological age is younger than that of Locality 1, ranging from 200,000 to 100,000 years before present."
- ^ "Upper Cave", Peking Man Site Museum. "This site was discovered in 1930, and excavated in 1933 and 1934. From 20,000 to 10,000 years before present the Upper Cave Man lived in the cave. The cave originally had a complete roof and a north facing opening, but these were removed during the excavation. The site consists of four parts, the entrance (collapsed), the upper chamber, the lower chamber and the lower recess. The upper chamber is a living floor, the lower chamber is a graveyard and the lower recess is a natural trap from which many complete skeletons of large mammals have been unearthed."
- ^ Ancient sites in China
- ^ "Oldest noodles unearthed in China", BBC News, 12 October 2005.
- ^ Haw, Stephen G. [2007] (2007). Beijing a Concise History. Routledge. ISBN 978041539906-7.
- ^ Spence, Jonathan D. [1993]. Chinese Roundabout: Essays in History and Culture. W. W. Norton & Company. ISBN 0393309940.
- ^ a b Jin, Qiu. Perry, Elizabeth J. The Culture of Power: The Lin Biao Incident in the Cultural Revolution. [1999] (1999). Stanford University Press. ISBN 0804735298
- ^ a b Tang, Xiaobing. Chinese Modern: The Heroic and the Quotidian. [2000] (2000). Duke University Press. ISBN 0822324474.
- ^ Gillette, Maris Boyd. [2000] (2000). Between Mecca and Beijing: Modernization and Consumption Among Urban Chinese. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0804746850.
- ^ Yhnkzq.com. "Yhnkzq.com verification of phrase existence from ancient China times." "Yangjing." Retrieved on 2007-09-30.
- ^ [This phrase has been consulted with a HK culinary experts in Sept-2007. Despite the many versions floating around on the internet, this is believed to be the original since it fits the best.]
- ^ Simple Google search suggests this is the most popular mainland version with an overwhelming number of hits returned in Simplified Chinese
- ^ Singtaonet.com
- ^ University of Kansas, East Asian studies
- ^ a b buddhistdoor.com Chinese lifestyle quote
- ^ Chinaonline.gov.cn quote
