【Learn Chinese】Interesting Facts about Chinese Food (Part 2)

Do you really know Chinese food? Do you want to learn more interesting facts? Here are more engaging Chinese food facts that you may not know.

7. Crazy Chili Peppers Lovers – Sichuan, Hunan and Guizhou People
People in Sichuan, Hunan and Guizhou are crazy enthusiasts of chili peppers which can be seen on their table almost every day. If you are going to visit these places, be prepared to challenge your mouth!

8. Chopsticks - The Magic Eating Tool for Chinese
Traditionally, Chinese eat with chopsticks. For this reason, most dishes are served at bite-size, which are easy to be picked by chopsticks.

9. Eating around the Table
In China, people, usually 10 sit around a round table to share the food together instead of eating their own like in the west. There is usually a rotatable glass on the table and people rotate it to get what they want directly with their chopsticks. If someone refills your bowl with his/her chopsticks, they are try to show friendliness and enthusiasm. If you don’t feel very well about this dinning custom in China, ask for public chopsticks or spoons.

10. The Habit of Chatting Loudly while Eating
Chinese prefer to chat while eating. They use the dining time to communicate with each other about their life, work, study, etc. In the west, people may make an appointment for a cup of coffee to talk about something, while in China, it is always a meal. And at the dining table, they are not used to control their voices and just chat as usual or even more loudly.

11. Delicate Decoration
In addition to fragrance and taste, Chinese emphasizes the appearance of the dishes. They believe beautiful appearances can promote the appetite. After being cooked, the dishes are usually set on various plates, shaped finely and decorated creatively.

12. Confusing Dishes Names
The names of some dishes may have nothing to do with their ingredients or cooking methods, which is a strange Chinese food fact for foreigners. They are for auspicious purposes or named after a moving story or based on their appearance. For example, the Chilli Fish Head is also called “hong yun dang tou” which means good luck; Vermicelli with Spicy Minced Pork is known as “ants climbing the tree” in China for it just looks like that; Sliced Beef and Ox Organs in Chili Sauce is named so because it is invented by a couple.

13. Overseas Chinese Food - Localized
One of the most important Chinese food facts you need to know is that Chinese food in the foreign countries has been adapted to local flavors. General Tso's Chicken and Stewed Chicken with Orange Sauce, very popular in America, are not traditional Chinese dishes. Even many Chinese may not know about that. The authentic representative Chinese dishes include Peking Roast Duck, Kung Pao Chicken, Squirrel-Shaped Mandarin Fish, and fried rice.

14. Great Qualities of Snacks
Snacks in China may be made of seeds, meat, fruits and vegetables, etc. They are also cooked in various ways and have various flavors. Almost every city has a snack street, where is the great place to enjoy them, like Huguosi snack street in Beijing, Old City Temple snack street in Shanghai and Muslim Quarter in Xi’an.

15. Liking Eating Meat with Bones and Shells
There are several reasons to explain this Chinese food fact. Chinese people think that meat with bones, such as meat near spareribs, are more delicious than other parts. And, Chinese believe that contents of the bones are more nutritious, sometimes they cut the bones apart so that the marrow inside can be eaten. Eating meat with bones is a delicious process for Chinese people. In addition, Chinese people don't like wasting the ingredients, so many times, they cook the fish, shrimp and crab wholly; this is also for the purpose of good looking when served.