Chiuchow cuisine
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Chiuchow cuisine, Teochew cuisine or Chaozhou cuisine or Chaoshan cuisine (Chinese: 潮州菜; pinyin: Cháozhou cài) originates from Chaoshan, a region of China in the easternmost area of the Guangdong Province. However, Chaozhou cuisine is closer to Fujian cuisine and even shares many of the same dishes. This is likely due to its neighboring location and also the closely related culture. Chaoshan emcompasses the prefecture-level cities of Chaozhou, Shantou and Jieyang. The region's cuisine is often mistakenly labelled as "Cantonese cuisine".
Chaozhou cuisine is particularly well known for its seafood and vegetarian dishes and is often regarded as being very healthy. Its use of flavouring is much less heavy-handed than most other Chinese cuisines and depends much on the freshness and quality of the ingredients for taste and flavor. Chaozhou cuisine is also known for serving rice soup (潮州糜 or mue) in addition to steamed rice with meals. The Chaozhou mue is rather different from Cantonese porridge or congee. The former is very watery with the rice sitting loosely at the bottom of the bowl.
Authentic Chaozhou restaurants serve very strong Oolong tea called Tieguanyin in very tiny cups before and after the meal. This is Gongfu cha and is a very strong tea which has a bittersweet taste, called gan gan (甘甘).
A condiment that is commonly used in Chaozhou cuisine is Shacha sauce. This popular paste is also used in Fujian and Taiwanese cuisine. It is made from soybean oil, garlic, shallots, chilis, brill fish, and dried shrimp. The paste has a savory and slightly spicy taste. As an ingredient, it has multiple uses:
- as a base for soups
- as a rub for barbecued meats
- as a seasoning for stir fry dishes
- as a component for dipping sauces, for example as used in hot pot meals
Chaozhou chefs often use a special stock called shang tang (上湯). This stock remains on the stove and is continuously replenished. One Hong Kong chef allegedly has used the same shang tang for over fifty years. You will see this stock on Chaozhou TV in their cooking programmes, even today.
There is a famous feast in Chaozhou cuisine / banquet called "jiat dot" (食桌) which roughly means "eat table". A myriad dishes are often served, which include shark fins soup, bird's nest soup, lobster, steam fish and braised goose.
Chaozhou chefs pride themselves on their skill in vegetable carving, and carved vegetables are used as garnishes on cold dishes and on the banquet table.
Chaozhou is also known for a late night dinner called "Da Leng" (打冷). Chaozhou people like to eat out in restaurants or at roadside food stalls close to midnight before they go to bed. Some restaurants stay open till dawn.
Unlike the typical menu selections of many other Chinese cuisines, Chaozhou restaurant menus often have a dessert section.
Many people of Chaozhou, also known as Teochiu or Teochew, heritage have settled in Southeast Asia, especially Singapore; influences can be noted in the cuisine of Singapore. This review article illustrates a Teochew Noodles House in Singapore. A large number of Teochew people have also settled in Taiwan, evident in Taiwanese cuisine.
[edit] Famous dishes
Some famous Chaozhou dishes include, among others:
- Chai tao kway (菜头粿), a fried 'cake', made of white radish and rice flour. It is a popular dim sum commonly stir fried with soy sauce, eggs, garlic, spring onion and occasionally dried shrimp.
- Braised Goose, (滷鵝) or Lou Gho in the Chaozhou dialect.
- Steamed goose (炊鵝)
- Teochew-style duck (潮州鹵水鴨)
- Teochew-style steamed fish, which normally makes use of pomfret and has a distinctive clear broth, seasoned with preserved plums and tomatoes.
- Popiah (薄饼), a fresh (non-fried) spring roll. It is essentially a thin paper-like crepe made from wheat flour (rice flour is sometimes used) and is typically filled with finely grated and steamed or stir-fried turnip, jicama, carrots, lettuce leaves, shredded omelette, Chinese sausage, thinly sliced fried tofu, chopped peanut or peanut powder and sweet bean sauce. However, there are many variations of popiah, with some including pork, shrimp, crab meat, fried shallots, hoisin sauce or sweetened soy sauce.
- A steamed dumpling called hung gue (粉餜) in the Chiuchow language filled with a tuber, dried radish, and peanuts. In Cantonese, these are called Chiuchow fun guo (潮州粉果), and used the wrong character for dumpling and use the fruit character guo (果).
- Steamed chives dumplings called gucai gue 韭菜餜. Sometimes, they are sauteed to give it a crispy texture.
- Prawn roll (fried) called heh geng in Chaozhou language (蝦捲[虾卷])
- Oyster pancake (蠔烙) which is called O Luah (蠔烙) in Chaozhou language
- Yusheng (鱼生), a raw fish salad. Typical ingredients include: fresh salmon, daikon (white radish), carrot, red pepper (capsicum), ginger, kaffir lime leaves, Chinese parsley, chopped peanuts, toasted sesame seeds, Chinese shrimp crackers (or fried dried shrimp), five spice powder. The dressing is made primarily from plum sauce. It was a delicacy invented 1,500 years ago during the Song Dynasty.
- Mee pok (面薄), a popular noodle dish served with minced pork, braised mushrooms, fish balls, dumplings, sauce and other garnishings.
- Kway chap (粿汁), a dish of flat, broad rice sheets in a soup made with dark soy sauce, served with pig offal, braised duck meat, various kinds of beancurd, preserved salted vegetables, and braised hard-boiled eggs.
- Chaozhou Chicken, a dish of sliced, crisp-skinned marinated chicken served with fried spinach leaves. The leaves are fused with a five-spice and Shaoxing wine fragrance.
- Fish balls (鱼蛋) and Beef balls (牛丸), which can be cooked in many ways but are often served in Chiuchow-style noodle soups.
- Fishball Noodle Soup (鱼丸面 yú wán miàn). Any of several kinds of egg and rice noodles may be served either in a light fish-flavoured broth or "dry" with the soup on the side, with fishmeat balls, fishcake, beansprouts and lettuce.
- Cold crab (潮州凍蟹). The whole crab is first steamed and served chilled. The species of crab most commonly used is Charybdis cruciata of the genus Charybdis (genus).
- Chaozhou-style Congee (粥[糜]), a rice soup that has a more watery consistency than its Cantonese cousin.
- Ou ni (芋泥) which is a yam dessert and is called Ou ni in Chaozhou language.
- Crystal balls which is a steamed dessert with a variety of fillings such custard as [ni ung] 奶黃, yam paste [ou ni 芋泥], bean paste [daosua 荳沙] made from mung beans, unusual crèmes, fruity gels. The crystal balls are called Zuizian bao 水晶包. They are similar to the Japanese mochi.
- Tieguanyin (鐵觀音 a premium grade Oolong Tea). However, Chaozhou people prefer their own Oolong tea which is Feng Huang Dancong cha (鳳凰單丛茶).
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