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Chinese Food Cultural Profile

Chinese Food Cultural Profile
The phrase is a testament to the popularity of Chinese food around the world. Food is an important part of daily life for Chinese people. Chinese not only enjoy eating but believe eating good food can bring harmony and closeness to the family and relationships.

Shopping daily for fresh food is essential for all Chinese cooking. Unlike the fast food society of the U.S., the Chinese select live seafood, fresh meats and seasonal fruits and vegetables from the local market to ensure freshness. This means swimming fish, snappy crabs, and squawking chickens. Even prepared foods such as dim sum or BBQ duck for to go orders must gleam, glisten, and steam as if just taken out of the oven.

Chinese people in general are not as concerned about nutrition as Western culture. They are more concerned with the food's texture, flavor, color, and aroma. These are the crucial points for good Chinese cooking. Chinese daily meals consist of four food groups: grains, vegetables, fruit, and meat. Because of lactose intolerance, Chinese do not consume large amounts of dairy products. Instead, Chinese substitute these with soymilk and tofu, which also contain large amounts of protein and calcium. Vegetables, fruits, and meats are usually fresh. Some exceptions include preserved vegetables such as snow cabbage or mustard greens, preserved eggs, aka "thousand year old eggs" or salted and dried fish. Other exceptions include snack items such as beef jerky, cuttlefish jerky, sweet and sour preserved plums, or dehydrated mango slices. Canned or frozen foods are seldom eaten. Western desserts such as cookies, cakes, pies, and ice cream are eaten only on special occasions such as birthdays and weddings. After dinner, families usually eat seasonal fruit as dessert. Chinese desserts such as red bean soup, sweet white lotus's seed soup, or steam papaya soup are served every so often as a special treat on a hot summer's night.

Ethnic Chinese cooking does not involve a lot of deep fried cooking. The reason most of the Chinese restaurants in America have deep-fried dishes such as sweet and sour pork, almond fried Chicken, and deep-fried shrimp is to promote business and to please western tastes. This clearly reflects why there are more overweight and high blood pressure concerns in Western culture than there are in Chinese culture.

"Yi xing bu xing"

Chinese hardly waste any section of the animal and have found ways to cook nearly every part. Chinese culture believes that "yi xing bu xing," which means by using any shape or part of the animal the same part of the human body can be replenished and strengthened. For example, shark fin soup and bird nest soup (bird's saliva) is served to replenish strength and increase appetite, crocodile meat strengthens the bronchia, dehydrated tiger testicle increases stamina for men, while monkey brains add wisdom. These foods are considered to be delicacies and tonics. Shark fin soup or bird nest soup is often served at special occasions such as at a Chinese banquet dinner. Other items are rarely prepared.

The Chinese banquet

The Chinese banquet dinner usually occurs on special occasions like holidays, weddings, graduations, birthdays, or having a special visitor in town. It's an event for family and friends to get together for fellowship and laughter. There are usually 10 guests that sit around each table. The banquet dinner involves 10 to 12 dishes including appetizers like jellyfish salad or vinegar pork shank and soups like shark fin, bird's nest, or fish lining. Main courses served at the banquet include lobster, crab, steamed fish, shrimp, abalone, sea cucumbers, quail, crocodile meat, duck, lamb, beef, chicken, and seasonal vegetable dishes and fresh fruit or sweet soup for dessert.

Regional Cuisine

There are many different cuisines in China. Each province has its own special style of cooking. There is Beijing cuisine, Hunan or Hubai cuisine, Shanghai cuisine, Szechwan cuisine, Cantonese cuisine, Hakka cuisine1, etc. The most well known cuisines are Szechwan and Cantonese. The Szechwan cuisine has the spiciest dishes. They use a lot of chili paste, red pepper, and hot oil in their food. The most famous Szechwan dishes are hot chili eggplant, twice-cooked pork, Szechwan beef, Ma Po Tofu, and Kung Pau Chicken. These dishes are all very spicy and delicious.

The Cantonese cuisine is the most well known cuisine in the Chinese community2. In fact, in China, they say, "Eating is in Canton." Cantonese people are known to be quite particular and have high expectations about their food. All the vegetables, poultry, and ingredients have to be fresh. The timing on the cooking is very crucial. Dishes must not be overcooked, and the texture of the food has to be just right with the freshness and tenderness still remaining. For this reason, Cantonese food is very popular. Soup is also essential in Cantonese cuisine. It consists of different ingredients and herbs and is boiled to a rich and tasty soup before it is served. There are many kinds of soup and each soup has it's own function or purpose. Cantonese women believe that "to win a man's heart, she must first learn how to cook a good pot of soup."

Yin Yang foods

As mentioned before, due to geographical and climate differences in China, each area has its own way of cooking and different eating habits. Northern China has cold and damp weather, and therefore people there eat more hot and spicy foods such as chilies, onions, and garlic. They believe these foods will increase blood circulation and help get rid of the coldness and dampness. Generally people from the south like to eat more mild and cooling foods because of the warmer climate. These foods reduce the hotness and dryness. This theory is called balancing "Yin and yang".

Chinese culture believes there is a positive energy and a negative energy in the universe. "Yin" represents negative energy and "yang" represents positive energy.3 They have to be equally balanced to create a harmonious and healthy state, otherwise, conflict and disease will be created. There are elements that belong to both "yin" and " yang," meaning some elements of yin fall within yang and some elements of yang fall within yin. This importance of balancing forces has been a part of Chinese thought for thousands of years. It has become a basic guideline for social, political, medical, and dietary usage.

Foods belonging to the yin (also known as "cold" food) are bitter melon, winter melon, Chinese green, mustard green, water crest, Napa cabbage, bean sprout, soybean, mung bean, tulip, water chestnut, cilantro, oranges, watermelon, bananas, coconut, cucumber, beer, pop, ice cream, ice chips, grass jelly, clams, and oysters. These foods cannot be eaten excessively and are thought to cause stomachaches, diarrhea, dizziness, weakness, and coldness in the body if done so.

Foods that belong to the yang (also known as "hot" food) are chili pepper, garlic, onion, curry, cabbage, eggplant, toro, pineapple, mango, cherry, peanuts, beef, turkey, shrimp, crab, French fries, fried chicken, and pizza. Excessive intake of these foods are thought to cause skin rashes, hives, pimples, nose bleeds, gas, indigestion, constipation, redness in the eyes, and sore throat. Both food groups need to be balanced evenly, not taken excessively or deficiently in order to create a harmonious and healthy state.

Because Illness is thought to be related to an unbalance that can be influenced with dietary intake. Often, a Chinese patient may ask the provider questions such as "is there any thing that I should not eat'? Typically, Western provider will only limit food for certain illness, such as sugar intake for diabetes, or salt and fat consumption for hypertension or heart problems. However, because of the conceptual framework around health and balance of the yin and yang, the patient may expect advice on how to avoid aggravating the illness. The patient is really asking" Doctor, because of my illness, should I watch out for certain foods? Which foods will throw off my balance even more?" For example, certain foods in the Chinese culture are asserted to be toxic or poisonous to individuals with weakened health. These foods include crab, shrimp, clams, fish (the kind that is scales less), beef, and eggs. Post-operative patients or patients with skin problems like dermatitis, acne or eczema is often told to avoid the above items as eating these foods are thought to worsen the problems.

The usual response from the Western provider is " No, there are no special restrictions, go ahead and eat anything you want." However, providers who are more knowledgeable about cultural believes might better respond with," Well, we can either refer you to consult our Chinese medical doctor or an acupuncturist in the clinic, or recommend that you ear foods that you are most comfortable or accustomed to".

Food groups

As mentioned earlier, Chinese are not too concerned about eating within the five food group guidelines. There is more emphasis on how to eat to balance yin and yang. High importance is placed on freshness and flavor of produce or food. A typical Chinese's meal usually consists of rice, soup and three to four side dishes. Dishes are made of seasonal vegetables, fresh seafood or bite-size portion of meat or poultry. Because

Chinese expect to have fresh fruit and vegetable in their daily meals, it is not difficult to comply with a provider's suggestion to increase intake of these items. However, it might be more of a drastic change to ask an anemic Chinese patient to add more meat to her diet to help control her anemia. Again, in Chinese food, meat portions are usually small, and often used for the purpose of flavoring the dish or soup. It might be helpful if the provider recognizes the challenge of increasing meat intake and suggests culturally appropriate ways to do so. For example, the patient could add meat to dishes that were originally purely vegetable (e.g., adding chicken to boy choy, minced pork to green beans, or beef to Chinese broccoli, aka "gai lan").

Grains and carbohydrates - Rice, Noodles, Buns

Rice and noodles are a very important part in the Chinese diet. Rice and noodles are equivalent to potato and pasta in the western diet. Handfuls of bite-sized meat and vegetables accompany the rice and noodles. Almost every meal uses rice. The different types of rice are sweet rice, long grain rice, short grain rice, jasmine rice, and brown rice. The different ways to prepare rice are steamed rice, rice soup, fried rice, and pot rice. People living in south China especially consume large amounts of rice. On the north side of China, people consume more noodles or steam buns (bread). Polished rice (white rice) contains 25% carbohydrates and small amounts of iodine, iron, magnesium, and phosphate.4 For brown rice, the bran part has not been removed from the rice. In the old days, only the poor Chinese people ate brown rice, but now studies show that brown rice actually contains more vitamin B than the polished rice. There are many processes involved before the white rice is ready for the market. Rice is treated most respectfully in China. Every grain of rice represents a hardship of labor. Parents always tell their children to finish every grain of rice in the bowl; otherwise, they will marry someone with a pimple-scarred face.

Noodles

Chinese noodles come in different sizes and shapes. They can be cooked in the soup or stir-fried, which is known as "chow mien." Noodles are usually served for breakfast, lunch, or late snacks. During birthday celebrations, noodles are served to symbolize long life. The longer the noodle, the longer the life will be for the birthday person. Accompanying meat and vegetables are chopped up into small pieces and stir-fried or steamed. A dinner meal usually has soup in the middle, surrounded by 3 to 5 main dishes of vegetables, seafood, and poultry dishes.

Buns and breads

Chinese bakeries carry pastries and sweet buns filled with delights such as red bean paste, egg custard, BBQ pork, or coconut cream. Families eat them on the run for breakfast, or to curb a midday snack attack. Hong Kong bakeries are known for their wide variety of baked and steamed buns, which may have been influenced by English high tea culture during British rule of the colony. Northern Chinese are known for their fluffy white buns, which may be served in place of rice during meals. In the US, we often see these white buns served with Peking Duck.

Foods to improve weak health

Sometimes when the Chinese feel a deficiency in their health or strength, they usually seek a traditional method first, which is to use herbs and special ingredient soups to replenish the energy level and to stay healthy. Northern Chinese call it "gin bou," and the southern Chinese call it "bo sheng." They usually go to herbalists for herb tea or to seek out advice from an elder or a wise person to learn how to cook the special soup.

The herbal tea and the special ingredient soups usually require hours of slow cooking in an ancient style clay pot, before they reach maximum benefits.5 These soups are often used for postpartum, illness, old age, and weak energy. They have special soup recipe books available to explain how to use different soups for different situations. It requires great knowledge and patience to make the appropriate soup. Often, traditional Chinese will use herbs and special soups for all illnesses before he or she seeks out an alternative treatment from Western medicine. Western medicine is often reserved for more severe health problems, as many Chinese believe that Western medicine is "too strong" for them.culture,moroccan food,morocco food,moroccan cuisine,morocco beaches,moroccan meal,beaches in morocco,moroccan culture,hercules cave,hercules cave morocco

Free Kids Birthday Meals

A birthday is a really special occasion. OutToEatWithKids.com can help you to make the day even more exceptional for your child by guiding you to restaurants that offer free kids birthday meals.

You definitely will love the fact that our website features a comprehensive search tool through which you can find well reputed restaurants where you can take your child to enjoy a wonderful birthday meal. Just supply the search tool with your zip code, state or city, your kid's birthday date, and how far/radius (miles) the restaurant should be within your location. From the 15,000 restaurants that our database holds you will definitely find several restaurants that match your criteria.

You can also make your searches via our mobile applications for iPhone and Android. This will be great especially if you are on the go. The application will give you locations, maps, and all the contact info you may need to find restaurants that offer no-cost birthday meals for kids within or near your vicinity.

You will certainly find several Charleston restaurants that offer birthday clubs where your kid/s will not only get free food but also cards and free gifts. The options that these restaurants offer can help you to save a good amount especially in these trying economic times. It is generally hard to find such birthday specials in mainstream media and therefore it is our job at OutToEatWithKids.com to consolidate this info so that the task can be easier for you the parent. This has been a fruitful initiative as there is a marked increase in the number of restaurants not only here in Charleston but also nationally that are now offering free kids birthday meals. You thus can be sure that you will find such restaurants wherever you are on American soil.

We also strive to have family-friendly restaurants on our database where children will feel loved and appreciated. This is considering that some restaurants have an outright policy against children patronage.

If you are concerned about the nutritional value of the food your kid will eat then Out To Eat With Kids has already taken care of matters thanks to our long list of restaurants that are affiliated to the Kids LiveWell Program which was created by the National Restaurants Association. This means that you will find birthday meals that have the nutritionally recommended amounts of fat, sodium, calories and sugar. Expect finger-licking meals replete with whole grains, lean proteins, vegetables, low-fat dairy products, and accompanied by fruits. It is has become a major part of our functions to ensure that majority of the restaurants in our database abide by this program.

Special Occasion Restaurants

In society today, eating out is the norm. In fact, the average American eats out five times during the week. If you're dining out regularly it can become difficult to find a good restaurant when a special occations, such as Valentines Day, Anniveraries, birthdays, etc, come up. This is a list of my top 10 special occation restaurants that can be found in various cities across the US. I've eaten at almost all of them and the ones that I haven't are on the top of my to-do eating list for sure!

Sea food Trulucks

If you love seafood, I'd recommend Trulucks for a special occasion. One of their specialties is the Florida stone crab.

At Trulucks they serve fresh stone crab caught daily from their fisheries in Florida. It comes from the traps to your table in less than 24 hours.

I took my husband here for his birthday a few years ago. When I reserved our table I mentioned that it was his birthday. To both of our surprise (of course I played it off like I planned it) our waiter brought over a birthday card signed by the staff and some delicious chocolate truffles at the end of the meal. The service was excellent.

My husband had the stone crab claws and loved them.

I am not a seafood person however. Another great aspect about this restaurant is their steaks! I had steak fillet with a delicious mushroom sauce and parmesan mashed potatoes. It was one of the best steaks I've had! Trulucks has locations in TX, FL, and CAMcCormick and Schmicks.

This is a restaurant that I've never been to personally, but I've heard nothing but good things about it.

This seafood restaurant actually prints their menu twice daily in order to provide the freshest catch. McCormick and Schmicks offers their guests dozens of seafood varieties at the peak of their seasons, including Alaska Halibut, Northwest Salmon, Hawaiian Mahi Mahi, Oregon Petrale Sole and a large selection of oysters from the U.S. and Canada, just to name a few.

Their staff also takes orders from memory. That's pretty impressive! They also serve aged steaks, pasta, and poultry. There are more than 80 of these restaurants across the country.

SteakRuth's Chris Steak House-

This restaurant was founded by Ruth Fertel in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1965. You can read her inspiring story on their website. The steaks are aged for tenderness and are topped with a little butter. This makes them sizzle all the way to your table. This is yet another restaurant that I have always wanted to go to but haven't yet. Steak is my absolute favorite, I am a Texan after all. Everyone I've talked to that has been there raves about how awesome the steak is.

There are locations just about everywhere in the US as well as several international locations in Puerto Rico, Aruba, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, and Untied Arab Emirates.Flemming's Prime Steakhouse - Fleming's serves the finest USDA Prime beef: corn-fed, aged up to four weeks. They broil their steaks at 1600 degrees to seal in all the juices and flavor. All the steaks are seasoned with kosher salt and black pepper. They finish each one with a touch of butter and freshly chopped parsley.

Mmmmmm... I'm really wanting some steak y'all. While Ruth's Chris is a franchise, Flemming's is a chain. Their menu is over seen by Corporate Executive Chef Russell Skall. They also serve burgers and seafood. Locations for this restaurant are also all across the US.ChurrascariasFogo De Chao - If you haven't been to a Churrascaria you are missing out my friends.

Churrascarias were brought to the US from Brazil. Traditional gauchos serve 15 cuts of fire roated meats at your table. They also have a huge, yummy gourmet salad and sides bar. There are over 30 items including fresh cut vegetables, imported cheeses, cured meats and Brazilian side dishes. The side dishes are traditional Brazilian dishes, including: pão de queijo (my fav! It's warm cheese bread!), crispy hot polenta, garlic mashed potatoes and caramelized bananas. They have locations in AZ, CA, TX, MN, CO, MO, IL, IN, GA, PA, MD, D.C., and FL.Texas de Brazil - This is another Churrascaria.

My husband and I tried to eat here when we were younger and not very bright. We didn't make a reservation and when we found out the wait was over two hours, we decided the little Mexican food restaurant across the street looked pretty good. The slight difference between these two restaurants is that Texas de Brazil boasts a salad and side bar of 50 - 60 items. Hmmmm... maybe I should have waited! They have locations in TX, NV, CO, LA, IL, LA, TN, VA, and FL.

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HibachiBenihana -If you haven't been to a Hibachi the first thing you need to know about is the teppanyaki table. Guests gather around and watch the meal expertly prepared and cooked on a steel grill, right before their eyes. The chefs are incredibly entertaining as they throw knifes, throw food, and light things on fire! The meal begins with a Japanese onion soup. This is one of my favorite soups ever! The soup is then followed by a salad with really good ginger dressing. The chef prepares your chicken, beef, or seafood, along with vegetables, hibachi-style on the sizzling grill surface. The entrée is served with a couple homemade dipping sauces and steamed rice or, for a small upgrade, Hibachi chicken rice. So good! They also offer tempura, sushi and specialty rolls. This is one of my favorite restaurant styles. They have several locations across the US, Latin America and the Caribbean.

you can also find many other hibachi style restaurants locally.

ItalianBuca di Beppo -Buca di Beppo is an authentic Italian restaurant chain that also has restaurants across the map. In the spirit of Italian culture,their dishes are served family style and are meant to be shared. They continue to create new recipes beyond the traditional style and often addnew menu items inspired by Northern and Southern Italian cuisine.

They serve delicios appetizers, salads, pastas, pizzas, entrees, and desserts. For special occasions like Valentine's Day you need to make your reservations for this restaurant. Yet another hard lesson learned.Carraba's Italian Grill - From the fresh mussels grown off the coast of Prince Edward Island, to the Borges extra virgin olive oil imported from Catelonia, Spain, to Garafolo pasta imported from a small town outside Pompeii.

This place makes everything by hand daily. Even the roasted cinnamon rum pecans on top of the John Cole dessert are made from scratch. This Italian restaurant was opened by "two big Sicilian boys from Texas who love to cook and eat." Johnny and Damian Carraba base their restaurant on their rich Italian heritage.

Now they have expanded across the US. The menu varies by location.Fondue The Melting Pot - For a really unique dining experience you have to try fondue.

The Melting Pot is a franchise that started in Florida and now has locations in 37 states, with more opening soon. The appetizer includes a selection of cheese fondues that are served with a bowl of three different bread cubes and veggies to dip into the cheesy goodness.

The main course features cuts of steak, shrimp, lobster and much more. You also get to choose from a variety of flavors to cook them in. The entree also includes fresh vegetables to cook in the fondue pot as well. My favorite part is the dessert! White, dark, or milk chocolate fondues are served with options for add ins such as crushed cookies, Amaretto, caramel, and more.

A platter of fruits, cheese cake, brownies, pound cake, and marshmallows accompany the chocolate. I've been to The Melting Pot a few times.

My brother-in-law actually manages one of the Texas locations. The service has always been excellent and the food always fantastic!

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