Comparison Between Chinese and American Food Culture

Lee Hiu founding Instructor Wynn ESLG 1001 29 November 2012 Comparison of Chinese and Western Food ending Food is closely related to spates lives and it is considered the nearly important element in Chinese culture. Chinese feed is famous all over the world too. Ameri crapper Chinese culinary art differs signifi tooshietly from the tralatitious Chinese cuisine and even though the variation in taste can be so it is still attractive to umteen citizenry. When it comes to fare, Chinese people endlessly c atomic number 18 about the color, taste, smell and shape of Chinese mete outes.In 1784, a conclave of passengers on the ship Empress of chinawargon became the first Americans to land in China and they were also the first group of people to eat Chinese food it was the first time the American palate encountered eastern cuisine(Coe 45). There ar many differences in food culture between China and the coupled States. Strong differences exist regarding grooming methods, ingre dients, desserts and cutlery. There atomic number 18 many homework methods in Chinese food and it may be confusing by terms such as saute, marinade, stir-fry and deep-fry especially for someone tender to Chinese food (Travel China Guide).Boiling is the most customaryalty form of Chinese cooking Chinese boiling means cooking food in boiling water. It wastes fuel. It does not cook the food any faster and it tends to gather in the food break up and so spoils the appearance. Frying is divided into deep-frying, slippery-frying, quick-frying, and several(prenominal) types of stir-frying this method primarily deals with vegetables. One cooking method that American dishes seldom mapping is steaming. It is a kind of slow process and time consuming.Chinese cooking debatelings two methods of steaming, which argon basic steaming(zheng) and placing one tightly-closed pot inside a larger pot(steaming dun) (Lee 3). The product is usually very soft because the pot is half-immersed in boili ng water for two to trinity hours. One of the famous traditional Chinese foods is Chinese strain dumplings and it is made of glutinous r grump stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves. On the early(a) hand, the cooking methods in American cuisine were affected by the European countries (Cuban Cuisine, 1).Grilling meats and spit roast over a pit fire are both common even today. Americans use barbecue smokers to cook chicken, pork and corn. Frying is the most common in Western countries because almost every famous dish is related to frying. Examples include deep-fried chicken, French fries, burgers and fries, etc. Local families in America like to do baking, which is generally applied to breads, lasagna, manicotti, pastries and some other perfumed confections. There is a big difference between Chinese and American cooking methods. One is mainly concentrated on the color, smell and shape.The other is always speedy, convenient and cheap. Secondly, the ingredient s in Chinese and American food are different. Chinese cuisine involves rice, flour, beans, and vegetables. American cuisine is relatively simple and mainly includes meat, bread and vegetables. For the Chinese one, most dishes include rice, because it is the main crop of many Asian countries and is used in almost every capacity. Not merely steamed rice, barely rice paper and noodles can be include in a meal. Second, tofu is often used in vegetarian meals, because it is mellowed in protein.It is used heavily in regions with a tradition of Buddhism. Third, sauces are important to flavor rice and stir-fry. Soy sauce, oyster sauce, black bean sauce, and fish sauces are easy to keep on hand (Yang 3). sift is a major(ip) staple food for people from rice husbandry areas in southern China and Chinese people always use rice to produce by-products like vinegars and wines (Mashpedia, 3). Noodles are important to Chinese people too and they usually come dry or fresh in a variety of sizes, shapes and textures and are often served in soups or fried as toppings.Some varieties such asShou Mian are literally noodles of longevity, are emblematical of long life and good health according to Chinese tradition. Noodles can be served hot or cerstwhile(a) with different toppings and broth. On the other hand, a part of the American food is based on traditional German dishes such as hot dogs and hamburgers (Wynn 3). Pre-packaged American meals tend to be high in carbohydrates, fat, sodium, and various preservatives. However, they also tend to be vitamin fortified.Examples of pre-packed American meals include variouscasseroletype dishes such asHamburger Helper, as well as bakeable and microwaveable foods such asHot Pockets, set pizzas, frozen burritos, and various types ofTV dinnermeals (Cuisine of the United States Research Materials, 3). About the desserts in these two countries, Chinese desserts are lovable foods and dishes that are served withtea, along with meals or at the end of meals in Chinese cuisine. Chinese candies and sweets, calledtangare usually made with cane sugar, malt sugar, honey, nuts and fruit.Gao or Guoare rice based snacks that are typically steamedand may be made from glutinous or normal rice. Ice creamis usually available throughout China. Another cold dessert is calledbaobing, which isshaved icewith sweet syrup. Chinese jellies are known collectively in the address asices. Many jelly desserts are traditionally set with agar-agar and are flavored with fruits, thoughgelatinbased jellies are also common in contemporary desserts (Zickler 5). Chinese dessert soups typically consist of sweet and usually hot soupsand custards.For the American desserts, there are a wide-cut variety of choices like cakes, cookies, biscuits, gelatins and pastries and most of them are considered as sweet and greasy. known ones like apple pies, cupcakes, caramels and chocolate brownies are customary desserts for Americans compared with Chinese as they vi ewed it as a part of the meal. Lastly, the cutleries that are used in Chinese and American food are different also. Chinese people use chopsticks to eat food. Americans use knives and forks to do dining.Chopsticks convey the archetype of harmony in Chinese culture (The Cross- cultural Rhetoric Blog). In superannuated written Chinese, the character for chopsticks was ?. Although ? may have been widely used in ancient spoken Chinese, its use was eventually replaced by the pronunciation for the character ? content quick. The original character, though still commonly used in writing, is rarely used in modern spoken Chinese languages, which maintains the old usage. Knives and forks are kind of promoting the independence, freedom and violence.Due to its role as humankinds first tool, authentic cultures have attached spiritual and religious significance to the knife. It has impact of the concept of peoples lives knife and fork will necessarily bring about alimentation apart and chopst icks share dinner with the family members gather around a table. The major items of cutlery in theWestern worldare theknife,forkandspoon. In recent times, utensils have been made combining the functionality of pairs of cutlery, including thespork(spoon / fork),spife(spoon / knife), andknork(knife / fork) or thesporfwhich is all three (Attards, 2).Actually, chopsticks are commonly used in Chinese, Japanese and Korean dishes but it is generally believed to have originated in ancient China. To conclude, there are a number of differences between Chinese and American food culture and they are a part of human civilization. It is great for everyone to know the food that people would like to eat, cooking method and also ingredients between two countries. yet if there are some differences between Chinese food and Western-style food, they can still get along harmoniously. For example Chinese food of U. S. A. s worthy for Americans taste, because through Americans improvement similarly, the Western-style food of China is more suitable for Chinese taste, because through the Chinese improvement. There is a folk truism in China If want to curtail your heart, I will conquer your stomach first. It can clearly show the importance of food in Chinese culture. Works Cited Helen Wang. Cooking Methods in Chinese Cuisine. Chinese Cooking Tips. Chinese Food DIY Fall 2009. Web. Nov. 17 2012 Giblin, James Cross. From hand to mouth How we invented knives, forks, spoons and chopsticks, & the manners to go with them.New York Crowell, 1987. gull Knoblauch, Mark. Chop Suey A Cultural History Of Chinese Food In The United States. Booklist 106. 1 22, 2009. Print Lv, Nan, and J Lynne Brown. Chinese American Family Food Systems Impact Of Western Influences. daybook Of Nutrition Education And Behavior 42. 2 106-114, 2010. Print Richard Pillsbury. No strange Food The American Diet in Time and Place, Westview Press, 1998. Print prick Zickler. Askives. What is common Chinese desserts Web, N ov. 16, 2012