CHINESE CATERING CULTURE AND CLASSIFICATION

                                                     Chinese Catering Culture
 As is said that “food for humanity has, over the centuries, been an important determinant of the rise and endurance of nations” (Lowenberg et al, 1979: 2), catering culture is formed through centuries and reflects a nation’s concept of value. So far, there is still no standard definition of catering culture. Cultural Knowledge Dictionary of China and Foreign Countries (1989: 1) categorizes culture into material culture, social-relational culture, classic culture and psychological culture. The catering culture is considered to belong to material culture, which comprises physical objects and man's material lifestyle in the past and at present, and lays foundation for the existence and the development of the other forms of culture. Someone gives the definition that “catering culture refers to all the production fields that expand food sources and produce food, all kinds of social lives related to catering practice, and the ideology embedded within” (Lin, 1997: 2). Not only does Chinese catering culture pay attention to the craftsmanship in the food production, but also it emphasizes the entertainment during the dining process, which pursues enjoyments both materially and spiritually. In order to understand Chinese catering culture thoroughly, it is necessary to know its history, features and categories.

The History of Chinese Catering Culture
 The first stage of Chinese catering culture is in the Paleolithic Age. At that time, people do not know how to make a fire artificially, and they eat raw food. This period is excluded from the catering culture.
 In the period of Suiren, the technique to produce fire by rubbing one piece of wood against a stone until combustion is invented. People begin to cook by fire. The main cooking method then is:  roasting, which is to produce fire by the above-mentioned method and roast fruits with it;  cooking in something like a pot, which is to wrap the fruits with mud and then bake them;  using stone mortars for containing water and food, and heat the food with burned stones until the food is cooked;  baking over a slow fire, which is to heat the stone pieces first, and then stir vegetable seeds on them.
 From the period of Fuxi, fish and animal meat becomes food for people.
 The next stage is the period of Shennong. Shennong is the initiator of Chinese agriculture. He tastes a lot of herbs, sets up ancient medicine, invents farm tools and teaches people how to grow crops. The invention of pottery provides people with cooking utensils and containers, which make it possible to produce fermented foods such as wine, vinegar, junket, and sweet wine. The tripod, one of the earliest cooking utensils, also appears in this period for boiling wine.
 The period of the Yellow Emperor witnesses a great development of the Chinese catering. The Yellow Emperor invents the kitchen, and the Kitchen God comes into being. By using the kitchen, inflammable material is saved and food can be cooked in a shorter period of time. Cauldrons gradually take place of high-legged cooking utensils. Rice steamer is invented. Foods made of the same material are distinguished by different cooking methods. The appearance of salt symbolizes that people not only know how to cook but also begin to realize how to make foods taste better and people healthier.
 Then there comes the Zhou and Qin dynasties. In this forming period of the Chinese catering culture, the staple food is cereal crops and vegetables. Common self-produced cereal crops and vegetables exist in the Spring and Autumn, and the Warring States with the structure different from the present ones. Millet, broomcorn millet, barley, beans, hemp, glutinous rice and wild rice are all the main crops for people living at that time.
 In the Han Dynasty, the Chinese catering culture is enriched with the cultivation of the Silk Road. The communication between catering cultures of the Han dynasty and the Western Regions brings in foods like pomegranate, sesame, walnuts, watermelon, cucumber, spinach, carrot, fennel, celery, broad bean, hyacinth bean, alfalfa, asparagus lettuce, onion, garlic, and cooking methods like frying. Bean curd and vegetable oil come into existence.
 The Tang and Song period is the peak of the Chinese catering culture. The dishes are very exquisite. Not only is the flavor of the dishes required, but also the shape needs to be elegant. Some are even made according to a poem or famous scenery.
 Another peak of the Chinese catering culture is the Ming and Qing dynasties. It is the development of the Tang and Song dynasties and mixes elements of Manchu and Mongolia. The catering structure also changes a lot. Wild rice is no longer eaten, hemp is used for making oil, beans become vegetables, and flour is the staple food in the northern part from the Song Dynasty because of the increasing planting area of wheat in the Yellow River basin. Many other plants such as potatoes and sweet potatoes are brought in, and vegetables are grown in large areas. Poultry becomes the main source of meat. “All Famous Dishes from the Han and the Manchu Nationalities” is the highest level of the Qing Dynasty’s catering culture.

Features of Chinese Catering Culture
 Each country’s catering culture differs from others’ because of the history, the territory, the power, the population, the nationalities, the religions, the politics and the economic structure of the nation. Chinese catering culture can be analyzed both macroscopically and microscopically.

From a macroscopic perspective
 The Chinese catering culture is extensive and profound under the influence of the traditional education including the philosophy of yin and yang, and the Five Elements, the ethics of Confucianism, and Chinese medicine, as well as achievements in arts, aesthetic craze for catering and the features of the nation.
 From the view of its development, the Chinese catering culture lasts for more than 1.7 million years, and can be divided into four stages: raw food, cooked food, natural cooking and scientific cooking. There are over 60,000 traditional dishes, 20,000 artificial foods, many banquets of different compositions of dishes and a lot of schools of cuisine, which wins the title of “Kingdom of Cuisine” for China.
 From the view of its intensions, the Chinese catering culture is related to a large number of subjects including the cultivation and exploitation of food resources, the application and creation of cooking utensils, the production and consumption of foods, the service and reception of catering, the operation and administration of catering, and the relationships between catering and the stability of the country, literature and arts, and ideology.
 From the view of its extensions, the Chinese catering culture represents different cultures and values in the times and skills, the areas and economy, the nationalities and religions, foods and utensils, consumption and levels, folk customs and functions.
 From the view of its characteristics, the Chinese catering culture lays stress on vegetarian diet, medicinal dishes and nourishing food with the “color, aroma, and taste” all perfect, a distinctive flavor with the honorary title of “dish of the tongue”, specific cooking methods with flexibility, and elegance with implied meanings.
 From the view of its influence, the Chinese catering culture is the center of the Oriental catering cultures which affects Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore directly. Moreover, it also has indirect influence on Europe, America, Africa and Oceania. The Chinese catering culture like vegetarianism, tea, vinegar and soya sauce, noodles, medicinal dishes, pottery utensils and beans benefits billions of people all over the world.
 The Chinese catering culture, as a regional culture with a long history, is of broad vision, deep level, high quality and multiple perspectives. Its achievements in the cultivation of resources, the invention of utensils, the match of ingredients and the aesthetic value of the dishes from over-1-million-year practice are material and spiritual wealth for the whole world.

From a microscopic perspective
 The macroscopic perspective of the Chinese catering culture is a generalization of itself and its related fields. The following five points concentrate on the content of the Chinese catering culture.
  Firstly, there is a diversity of flavors. China has a large territory with abundant resources. The climate, products and folk customs vary from region to region. Many different flavors are formed through history. It is said that “in Southern China, people mainly eat rice while in Northern China, flour”, and “sweetness in the south, saltiness in the north, sourness in the east, and spiciness in the west”. Sichuan cuisine, Shandong cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine and Cantonese cuisine are the four major schools.
 Secondly, it is almost a custom in China that foods are made of different ingredients and with different methods according to the change of the four seasons. For example, there tend to be more seasonings and mostly are hot dishes in the winter, but in the summer are cold dishes with fewer seasonings; cooking methods like braising, stewing and simmering are commonly used in the winter, but cooling and freezing are adopted in the summer.
 Thirdly, the pursuit of aesthetic enjoyment is emphasized. The Chinese cooking not only has its exquisite techniques, but also is of high aesthetic value. The coordination of the color, aroma, taste, shape and the container of the dishes is attached great importance to. The aesthetic feeling of the dishes is represented in various aspects. For instance, even a carrot or a heart of a cabbage can be engraved into many unique shapes for the harmony between the five aspects in order to bring an enjoyment both materially and spiritually to people.
 Fourthly, the dining process is usually of great interests. The Chinese have requirements in the naming of the dishes, the dining style, the dining speed and amusement during the dining process, e.g., music and dance. The Chinese dish names are full of imagination and suit both refined and popular tastes. The dishes are named after the ingredients, the seasonings and the cooking methods, as well as historical stories, legends, famous persons or the shape of the dish such as “獅子頭”, “鴻門宴”, “東坡肉”, “炒西施舌”, “酒醉彩云猴頭黃瓜香”, “蟲草雪雞”.
 Fifthly, foods are closely related to medicine. Herbs used in Chinese dishes can be precautions and treatment for diseases. There are sayings that “medicine and foods have the same resources” and “herbs and dishes have the same functions.”

Categories of Chinese Cuisine
 The division of schools of the Chinese cuisine can be diversified with regard to different standards. Li (2001: 185) gives six standards, which are:
  From different regions: Since the 1950’s, it is said that there are “Four Major Chinese Cuisines” (Sichuan cuisine, Shandong cuisine, Jiangsu cuisine and Cantonese cuisine), “Eight Major Chinese Cuisines” (the Four Major Chinese Cuisines plus Zhejiang cuisine, Anhui cuisine, Hunan cuisine and Fujian cuisine), “Ten Major Chinese Cuisines” (the Eight Major Chinese Cuisines plus Beijing cuisine and Shanghai cuisine), or “Twelve Major Chinese Cuisines” (the Ten Major Chinese Cuisines plus Henan cuisine and Shaanxi cuisine).
  From different nationalities: The fifty-six nationalities in China contribute their own delicacies to the Chinese cuisine.
  From different ingredients: Vegetable dishes and meat dishes are the two schools. The vegetable dishes originate from the Liang Dynasty in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and till the Qing Dynasty, they are divided into the court style, the temple style and the folk style.
  From different functions: There are ordinary dishes and medicinal dishes.
  From different producers: It consists of the restaurant style, the canteen style and the home style.
  From different periods: Classic cuisine and modern cuisine are the two categories. Classic cuisine can also be divided into the court style, the official style, the Tang style, the “Red-Mansion” style and so on.
 Among all these divisions, it is commonly accepted that the Chinese cuisine is categorized by different regions. In order to have a thorough understanding of the Chinese dish names, the Four Major Chinese Cuisines should be introduced in aspects of their features, ingredients, cooking methods, flavor, aroma and representatives.

Sichuan cuisine
 Sichuan cuisine is famous for its spiciness. As a matter of fact, dishes with garlic and special-flavored dishes are also its specialties. This cuisine is made of any ingredient by means of stir-frying, pan-frying, braising, stewing, sautéing and braising with soy sauce. It influences Yunnan, Guizhou and the neighboring provinces and regions. The representatives are: 麻婆豆腐, 魚香肉絲, 宮保雞丁, 怪味雞塊, 干煸牛肉絲, 干燒巖鯉.

Shandong cuisine
 Shandong people like to have salty and fresh dishes with Chinese green onion as the main seasoning. They are good at making soup and using soup for seasoning. The dishes are usually made of the local specialties. Cooking methods such as quick-frying, stir-frying, broiling and sautéing are the main ones. Its influence covers the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, the east part of northern China and northeastern China. It also contributes to the forming of the court style and Beijing cuisine. The representatives are: 蔥爆海參, 糖醋鯉魚, 九轉(zhuǎn)大腸.

Jiangsu cuisine
 Light-flavored dishes are dominant in Jiangsu Province. The ingredients are fresh and made full use of. The intensity of force in using the knife, the duration and amount of heat and the shape of the dishes are stressed. The main cooking methods include stewing, simmering, braising and roasting. The representatives are: 清燉獅子頭, 叫化雞, 三套鴨, 大煮干絲.

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