Table of Contents Cooking the Chinese Way 4 Eating the Chinese Way 6 Regional Foods 8 Tea and Treats 10 Getting Ready to Cook 12 Jiaozi 14 Chá Yè Dàn 16 Pai Huang Gua 18 Yi Mein 20 Glossary 22 To Learn More 23 Index 24
Cooking the Chinese Way Like many Asian cultures the Chinese people value balance They use the concept of yin and yang to create this harmony in their lives This involves pairing opposite things that complement each other At mealtime this means hot and cold sweet and sour and soft and crunchy foods are combined 4
Like yin and yang the number five represents balance for the Chinese people This is why their cuisine features five main flavors sweet spicy salty sour and bitter The first two flavors are considered yin and the other three are yang Chinese cooks are careful to mix ingredients in the best way to create balanced dishes Yin means dark side of a hill and yang means sunny side of a hill Yin Versus Yang 5
