For many of us, our first introduction to Chinese food came through dining at a restaurant featuring Cantonese cuisine. It's hardly surprising that Cantonese cooking was the first Chinese regional cuisine to take hold in the United States. After all, the original Chinese immigrants were mainly Cantonese coming to work on the railroads in the 1800's.
"Pseudo-Chinese" food
Unfortunately, Cantonese cooks had difficulty reproducing their native cuisine in a foreign land. As cookbook author Eileen Yin-Fei Lo points out in an recent interview, the first immigrants were men, coming from a society where women traditionally did all the cooking. Furthermore, faced with unfamiliar ingredients, they made adaptations that were less than successful. Dispensing with the step of blanching vegetables prior to stir-frying resulted in soggy vegetables, which they covered up by adding extra cornstarch. To hide the lack of natural flavor in the dish they overcompensated with seasonings such as sugar and soy sauce. American-style Cantonese cuisine was born.
Of course, the fact that westerners gradually developed a fondness for "Chinese junk food" didn't help matters. It's too bad, because authentic Cantonese cooking is considered superior to all other Chinese regional cuisines.
An emphasis on preserving the natural flavor of the food is the hallmark of Cantonese cuisine. A Cantonese chef would consider it a culinary sin of the highest order to produce a dish that was overcooked or too heavily seasoned. Not surprisingly, many dishes are stir-fried or steamed - both these cooking methods allow foods to retain their natural taste.
When it comes to ingredients, Cantonese cooks are fortunate in living in an area with abundant rainfall and a tropical climate. Seafood - including fish and shellfish, tropical fruit, rice and a wide array of vegetables are readily available. The Cantonese believe it is paramount that these be as fresh as possible. I was reminded of this recently while shopping at an Asian market. The vendor took great pride in demonstrating the freshness of the ling cod killed a mere three hours earlier - by pointing out that you could still see its heart beating. However, the Cantonese are also very inventive, and happy to incorporate non-native ingredients in their cooking. Artistic presentation and garnishing are also very important.
What type of dishes epitomize Cantonese cuisine? Beef with Oyster Sauce is a typical Chinese dish, as are Fried Rice and Steamed Chicken. Fish is eaten frequently; shellfish are also popular. Steamed sea bass, stir-fried garoupa, and Lobster Cantonese are all well-known Cantonese dishes. Shark's fin soup is another delicacy. Vegetable dishes reflect the wide variety and seasonality of what is available.
Foods featured in Cantonese cooking
Oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, shrimp paste and black beans. Fish, shellfish, beef, chicken and pork (while western versions often have little in common with the original, Sweet and Sour Pork is an authentic Cantonese dish).
Cooking Methods: Besides stir-frying and steaming, Cantonese cuisine is also famous for its roast meats such as pork and duck. Buns with barbecued pork filling is a well-known Cantonese dim sum treat.
