吃遍大江南北

    中国南方有句俗话叫:"天上飞的除了飞机不吃，什么都吃；四条腿的除了桌子不吃，什么都吃"。许多中国菜着实能让你大吃一惊。

    蛇羹在中国是汤中极品。那里还有一种混入蛇胆和蛇血的酒，据说可以明目。一些西化的中国人觉得：如果亚当和夏娃是中国人，我们人类仍会留在伊甸园——因为他俩会把蛇吃掉。

    在中国，筷子是主要的餐具。中国小孩最初是使用汤匙，但在他们一岁的时候就可以适应使用筷子。作为一份礼物，筷子就如他们的外形一样象征着爽直。中国的筷子没有尖尖的顶端，不像日式的筷子加细用于挑出主食——鱼中的骨头。大部分中式筷子是用竹子制成的，尽管今天你可以看到越来越多的木筷子和塑料筷子。

    外国人并不能熟练地运用筷子，但是如果他们一旦学会了，便会印象深刻。因此，在你去中国之前，去一家当地的中餐厅，即便没有找到地道的中国菜，但至少你可以练习使用筷子。你在中国吃的第一餐，你不会使用筷子很正常。但如果在你的第十顿饭中，你仍然不能协调地用两根棍子来夹起一只大虾，就说明你在学习使用筷子这方面没天分，或者说你不愿意去学习。

    烹饪在中华文化中占据很重要的地位，并贯穿整个历史。中国伟大的哲学家老子曾经说过一句具有艺术性的话， “管理一个伟大的国家就像煮一条小鱼。 ”

    中国的食物可以大致地分成北方和南方两种烹饪风格。北方菜相对来说比较油腻，喜欢在菜式里使用的醋和大蒜。小麦加工成的面制品也是北方菜系的重要部分。面条，馄饨还有饺子、包子、炸肉饺子和馒头只是北方人喜欢吃的众多面食中的一部分。北方菜系中最有名的地域包括了北京，天津，山东等。

    南方烹饪风格的代表是川菜和湘菜，他们以大量地使用辣椒而闻名。

    在整个南方的烹饪体系中，江苏和浙江地区突出菜肴的鲜味和柔软，而粤菜则偏甜且种类繁多。稻米及其制品包括米粉、蛋糕、粥类构成了南方菜肴基础。

    沪系菜系（上海菜）以甜味和烹调大量的海鲜为特征。上海菜已经流行了好几年了。广东菜以吃山珍海味在饮食界享誉盛名。在广东，只有你想不到的没有你吃不到的，就像活生生的猴脑和老鼠的崽都可以用作食材。这就是广东菜（粤菜）的风格。然而，在广东还有很多很优秀的菜肴，他们并不可怕，海鲜也是很美味的。北方的菜系（东北菜）通常使用大量大块的肉类和口味比较重的酱料。土豆也是东北菜中的主角。在冬天吃土豆是很好的选择。此外其它著名的中国菜系还包括淮扬菜和山西菜，以及许多地区性少数民族的菜系。
 
    在中华料理中，每一道菜的色香味同等重要。通常情况下，任何一道主菜都包括三到五种颜色。从原料的颜色看，就分为浅绿色、深绿色、红色、黄色、白色、黑色或者焦糖色。通常一道肉类和素菜有一个主色和两至三个对比色。他们先煮到一定程度，再往里加入适当的调味料，这样就产生一道非常吸引人的菜肴了。

    一道香气四溢的菜肴绝对会刺激你的食欲。令人垂涎的香气成分主要来自于大葱、生姜、大蒜和辣椒，另外还包括葡萄酒、八角、桂皮、胡椒、香油和中国的冬菇干。烹饪任何菜式最重要的是保持其鲜味和自然的风味，同时去除一切难闻的腥味。在西方烹饪习惯中，柠檬经常被用来去除鱼腥味；而在中华料理中，大葱和生姜则起到类似的作用。此外，通过添加酱油、糖、醋和其他佐料来增加一道菜肴的风味而又不掩盖其自然风味。一道精心准备的中国菜对于口味重的人来说应该有丰富的口感，而对于口味淡的人来说又不至于太辛辣。一道真正成功的菜肴就应该满足所有食客的口味。

    色、香、味并非中华料理所应遵循的唯一的原则，食物中的营养价值也是值得关注的。

    有关追求食品的协调统一的原则要追溯到商朝的学者伊尹。他提到五味包括甜、酸、苦、辣和咸和身体五个重要器官系统（心、肝、脾/胰腺、肺、肾）及强调它们在维持良好的身体机能方面的作用。

    实际上，中国料理所用到的许多植物食材都有预防和减轻各种疾病的功效，例如大葱、生姜、大蒜、干百合和真菌等。

    中国在食品药用价值的传统观念认为食品和药品有着同样的起源。这种观点被认为是中国营养科学上的先驱。在这个理论中值得注意的是以下的观念：维持肉类和蔬菜的适当比例；肉类菜肴应该以蔬菜菜肴的三分之一为标准，同时。在煮汤的时候，加水的量应为容器的70%。简单地说，要坚持在烹调每道菜肴或者煮汤的时候使用正确的食材，以确保全面的营养价值。

    中国人在饮食方面有许多规矩和习惯。例如，当客人都上座之后就要开始上菜；男女老少谁先上座也有一套规定；品尝主菜必须使用筷子，喝汤必须使用汤匙。中国宴会以桌为单位来安排的，每桌通常坐十到十二人。

    一次典型的饭宴包括四个开胃菜，如冷拼盘或者热的餐前小菜；六到八道主菜；然后一碟美味的点心和甜品。各种菜式的制备方法包括搅拌油炸、炖、蒸、等等。一道菜可以是鲜美的、甜的、酸的或者咸的。菜肴的主要颜色包括红、黄、绿、白和焦糖色。还可以通过切花或雕刻西红柿、白萝卜和黄瓜等来增加菜肴在视觉上的吸引力。所有的这些措施都是为了使中国菜色香味俱全。

经过超过五千年的发展，中国的食品制造水平已经达到一个很高的水平。实际上，中华文化认为烹饪是一门艺术而其他哲学家认为烹饪仅仅是一种手艺。中国的饮食文化反映了两种重要的哲学思想：儒家思想和道家思想。从中国古代的周朝公元前1122-249年开始，至今它们已经发展并完善了许多个世纪。古代人通过探索世界的植物，根，香草，真菌和种子来寻与生俱来的物质以及药用价值。因此，与大多数东欧美食相比，中餐的热量和脂肪是最低的。在中国食物中，您可以找到现代饮食和健康问题的答案。

The food in the South and North (Chinese food)

In South China, they would say they'd eat everything that has four legs except the dinner table and everything that has two wings except a plane. Many of the dishes served in China may really surprise foreigners.

Snake soup is among the most treasured soups in China. Then, there is snake gall and blood mixed in liquor that supposedly will brighten your eyes. Some "westernized" Chinese would suggest that if Adam and Eve had been Chinese, we humans would still be in the Garden of Eden because they would have eaten the snake.

Chopsticks are the main table utensils in China. Chinese children start with a spoon but will adapt to chopsticks as early as when they turn one. As a gift, chopsticks symbolize straightforwardness because of their shape. Chinese chopsticks don't have pointed tips, unlike the Japanese style that is refined to pick out the bones of their main diet, fish. Most Chinese chopsticks are made of bamboo, though today, you see more and more wooden and plastic ones.

Foreigners are not expected to use chopsticks proficiently, but if they do, they will give a mighty impression. Therefore, before you go to China, go to a local Chinese restaurant, if not to find authentic Chinese food, at least you can practice using chopsticks. Its all right if, in your first meal in China, you can't use chopsticks. If you still can't handle the two sticks to pick up a big shrimp in your tenth meal, you show your incompetence in learning and the willingness to learn.

Cooking has occupied a lofty position in Chinese culture throughout history. The great Chinese philosopher Lao Zi once said of the art, "Governing a great nation is much like cooking a small fish."

Chinese food can be roughly divided into Northern and Southern styles of cooking. In general, Northern dishes are relatively oily and the use of vinegar and garlic tends to be quite popular. Wheat, processed into pasta, also plays an important role in Northern cooking; noodles, ravioli like dumplings, steamed, stuffed buns, fried meat dumplings, and steamed bread are just a few of the many flour based treats enjoyed in the North of China. The best known regional variations of Northern Chinese cuisine include those of Beijing, Tianjin, and Shandong.

Representative of Southern cooking styles are Szechwan and Hunan cuisine, famous for their liberal use of chili peppers.

Within the whole of Southern cooking, the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions emphasize freshness and tenderness, while Guangdong cuisine tends to be somewhat sweet and always full of variety. Rice and its byproducts, including noodles, cakes, and congee form the typical foundation for Southern dishes.

Shanghai style (Shanghai cai) tends to be sort of sweet and features lots of seafood. Shanghai restaurants have been quite popular for some years now. Guangdong eaters have a reputation for eating "everything with four or more legs except for the table, and everything that has wings except for airplanes." All of the really funky dishes you hear about like live monkey brains and raw rat babies are Guangdong (Cantonese) style dishes (yue cai). However, there are lots of excellent, non-scary Guangdong dishes, and the seafood is especially tasty. Northeastern dishes (dongbei cai) are usually composed of large quantities of meat in thick, fairly salty sauces. Potatoes also feature heavily in dongbei cai. This is a great style of food to have in winter. Other famous schools of Chinese food include Huaiyang and Shanxi styles. There are also a number of regional minority cuisine.

In Chinese cooking, color, aroma and flavor share equal importance in the preparation of every dish. Normally, any one entree will combine three to five colors, selected from ingredients that are light green, dark green, red, yellow, white, black, or caramel colored. Usually, a meat and vegetable dish is prepared from one main ingredient and two to three secondary ingredients of contrasting colors. They are then cooked appropriately, incorporating the proper seasonings and sauce to create an aesthetically attractive dish.

A dish with a fragrant aroma will most certainly whet the appetite. Ingredients that contribute to a mouthwatering aroma are scallions, fresh ginger root, garlic, and chili peppers. Other include wine, star anise, stick cinnamon, pepper, sesame oil, and dried Chinese black mushrooms. Of utmost importance in cooking any dish is preserving the fresh, natural flavor of its ingredients, and removing any undesirable fishy or gamey odors. In Western cooking, lemon is often used to remove fishy flavors; in Chinese cooking, scallions and ginger serve a similar function. Soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, and other seasonings add richness to a dish without covering up the natural flavor of the ingredients. A well prepared Chinese dish should taste rich to those who like strong flavors, but not over spiced to those who seek a milder taste. It should seem sweet to anyone who has a sweet tooth, and hot to those who like a piquant flavor. A dish that is all of these things to all of these people is a truly successful dish.

Color, aroma, and flavor are not the only principles to be followed in Chinese cooking; nutrition is also an important concern.

The principle of the harmonization of foods can be traced back to the Shang dynasty scholar Yi Yin. He relates the five flavors of sweet, sour bitter, piquant, and salty to the nutritional needs of the five major organ systems of the body (the heart, liver, spleen/pancreas, lungs, and kidneys), and stresses their role in maintaining good physical health.

In fact, many of the plants used in Chinese cooking, such as scallions, fresh ginger root, garlic, dried lily buds, tree fungus, etc. have properties of preventing and alleviating various illnesses.

The Chinese have a traditional belief in the medicinal value of food and that food and medicine share the same origin. This view could be considered a forerunner of nutritional science in China. Notable in this theory is the concept that correct proportion of meat to vegetable ingredients should be maintained; one third of meat based dishes should be vegetable ingredients and one third of vegetable dishes should be meat. In preparing soups, the quantity of water used should total seven-tenths the volume of the serving bowl. In short, the correct ingredient proportions must be adhered to in the preparation of each dish or soup in order to ensure full nutritional value.

The Chinese have a number of rules and customs associated with eating. For example, meals must be taken while seated; there is a set order of who may be seated first among men, women, old and young; and the main courses must be eaten with chopsticks, and soup with a spoon. Chinese banquets are arranged on a per table basis with each table usually seating ten to twelve persons.

A typical banquet consists of four appetizer dishes, such as cold cut platters or hot hors d'oeuvres; six to eight main courses; then one savory snack type dish and a dessert. The methods of preparation include stir frying, stewing, steaming, deep frying, flash frying, pan frying, and so forth. A dish may be savory, sweet, tart or piquant. The main colors of a dish may include red, yellow, green, white and caramel color. Food garnishes, such as cut or sculptured tomatoes, Chinese white radishes, cucumbers, and so forth, may be used to add to the visual appeal of a dish. All of these elements contribute to making Chinese food a true feast for the eyes and nose as well as the taste buds.

With over 5000 years' history, Chinese have developed a high level of food preparing skill. In fact, Chinese culture considers cooking an art while all other philosophies consider the preparation of food a craft. Chinese food culture reflects two dominant Chinese philosophies: Confucianism and Taoism and has been developed and refined over many centuries since the great classical age of China, the Zhou Dynasty 1122-249 B.C. Ancient Chinese people have explored the world of plants, roots, herbs, fungus and seeds to find life giving elements as well as medicinal value. Therefore, unlike the majority of eastern cuisine, most Chinese dishes are low calorie and low fat. You may find answers to today's diet and health problems within Chinese food.