- Names: Zhejiang food, Zhe cuisine
- Location: East China, Zhejiang Province — Hangzhou
- Distinctives: mellow flavours, seafood, artistry, many cooking methods
Zhejiang cuisine, also called Zhe Cai for short, is one of the eight famous culinary schools in China. Comprising the specialties of Hangzhou, Ningbo and Shaoxing in Zhejiang province regarded as “land of fish and rice“, Zhejiang cuisine, not greasy, wins its reputation for freshness, tenderness, softness, and smoothness of its dishes with mellow fragrance. Hangzhou cuisine is the most famous one among the three.
Hangzhou cuisine is characterized by its elaborate preparation and varying techniques of cooking, such as sauteing, stewing, and stir- and deep-frying. Hangzhou food tastes fresh and crisp, varying with the change of season. Ningbo food is a bit salty but delicious. Specializing in steamed, roasted and braised seafood, Ningbo cuisine is particular in retaining the original freshness, tenderness and softness. Shaoxing cuisine offers fresh aquatic food and poultry that has a special rural flavour, sweet in smell, soft and glutinous in taste, thick in gravy and strong in season.
Each of the three sub-cuisine traditions is noted for its special flavour and taste, but they are all characterized by the careful selection of ingredients, emphasizing minute preparation, and unique, fresh and tender tastes.
Seasonings Used
To allow the dishes to have a better taste, some specific seasonings are used in Zhejiang cuisine recipes, such as shallots, ginger, garlic, vinegar, and Shaoxing yellow wine, all of which can achieve the effect of reducing unwanted smell and promoting flavour. In particular, Shaoxing yellow wine, the specialty in Shaoxing, is a unique condiment of Zhejiang food, making it have a style of its own. The famous Zhejiang Dongpo Pork is cooked with Shaoxing yellow wine instead of water.
Special Cooking Techniques
Zhejiang chefs have developed numerous ways to cook and prepare food. Perhaps this has something to do with their location next to Fujian, that also traditionally used diverse cooking methods, the influence of Shanghai’s cosmopolitan culture, and influences from abroad.
Soaking in brine: this style of “cooking” is unusual. But it is common in Ningbo where salty food is popular. It is similar to pickling. Meat is simply left to soak in brine and eaten. An example is the popular Ningbo salty crab dish prepared by soaking crabs in very salty brine for about 24 hours so that the brine impregnates the crab meat. They prefer female crabs with an orange roe (crab eggs), so when it is served, the roe on the meat looks like an orange sauce.
Zhejiang Cuisine: Staple Dishes
West Lake Fish in Vinegar Gravy. Sweet and sour with a bright brown colour, the fish is fresh and tender. As no oil are used to cook the fresh fish, the dish keeps the original flavour of fish.
Fried Shrimps with Longjing Tea. It is a typical Zhejiang food cooked with shrimps and fresh Longjing Tea leaves. Looking like white jades, it has a light enticing smell with tender and fresh taste.
Dongpo Pork. Dongpo Pork is braised with Shaoxing wine, soft and oily but not greasy. It was named after its inventor, the famous poet Su Shi.
Braised Bamboo Shoot. It is cooked with spring bamboo shoots sprouting around Qingming Festival in early April with large amount of oil and sugar, tasting tender, salty and sweet, with a red colour.
Deep-Fried Bean Curd Rolls Stuffed with Mince. This is crispy cooked with bean curd and pork fillet. It tastes better if eat with sweet sauce, pepper and scallion.
Sliced Lotus Root with Sweet Sauce. The dish takes lotus root and glutinous rice. The main cooking method is boiling.
