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The China Chronicles Part 13: The Food
Topics: China, Chronicles, Food, Part 13, Margie, Custer
Posted by margiecuster Wed Oct 25, 2006 14:07:31 PDT
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0 responses 0 comments No series on China would be complete without a segment devoted to the culinary aspects of the trip. It was never more apparent than at mealtime that we were clearly not in Kansas anymore.

Breakfast was fairly consistent throughout the trip whether we were eating in a restaurant or onboard the cruise ship. Fried eggs were served almost everywhere, and often omelets or scrambled eggs were also available.  Lightly fried potatoes were made from an unfamiliar variety of spud, but they were quite tasty. 

The chefs used large quantities of oil in preparing our meals, much more than most of us were used to consuming. But the food at least looked familiar, and so, even for those of us who were not big breakfast fans, our first meal became the most important.

There was sausage, though not as seasoned as most of our American varieties, and big slabs of limp bacon which were tasty but again had too much grease.  The breakfast pastries and baked goods looked wonderful but were dry for the most part and lacked the flavor of their western counterparts.

Some places included Chinese noodles and dumplings, which all of the guides readily ate. Good coffee was available for breakfast everywhere we went, but the juices were weaker and more watery than what I was used to.

One morning we had to get up and be in the dining room at 5:30 a.m. We had a big day ahead of us and the guides told us to eat heartily. In addition to all the normal breakfast fare, there were meats, cheeses and entrees. At that hour, I had no intention of eating brunch foods –– I could barely stomach breakfast.

After we had finished our plates, our guide came by and asked if we had tried any of the cat salami. Cat salami?! Being the proud owner of three cats, I was thankful that my stomach was picky about its first ingestions.  But some of my fellow travelers regretted their selections that morning.

I tried a variety of dishes and never bothered to inquire what I was eating.  Sometimes ignorance is bliss. If it tasted good, I ate it. I am sure I ate a few things that were not part of my normal diet, but all the food served on this tour was deemed safe for our “delicate stomachs.”

Lunch and dinner were almost identical. With only a few exceptions, we ate the same meal twice a day for two and a half weeks. Needless to say, we were overjoyed when on our last day in China when we ventured to an American hotel, the St. Regis, and had hamburgers, fries and shakes. They were like heaven.

As strange as this might sound, don’t go to China for Chinese food –– at least not the kind that we’re used to in the United States. In fact, a lot of the familiar items we associate with Chinese cuisine are really American inventions. The fortune and almond cookies of which we Americans are so fond, as well as the egg roll, are among the missing items from the menus in China.

Our mid-day and evening meals were served banquet style. We were seated in groups of eight at round tables. At the center of each table was a large lazy Susan which eliminated the need to pass around the food.

Appetizers usually consisted of a variety of pickled vegetables but occasionally included freshly deep-fried peanuts –– yummy! Often, soup was included with the meal; ox-tail and egg flower were most commonly served.

The entrees followed. A chopped meat with or without vegetables was served in a sauce or gravy. Much to our chagrin, no noodles were served and the steamed rice came late in the meal, if at all. Apparently, unless one is eating “home style,” the meat dishes are to be eaten by themselves.  

One night, we were served a dish of what looked like green peppers and beef.  Relieved to see a familiar sight, I dished myself a decent portion and plopped a piece of pepper into my mouth. My lips were instantly numb. They were not bell peppers but rather some sort of chili pepper! What I would have given to have had my plain steamed rice then.

Because the meat is prepared by chopping through the bones and gristle, eating is a tedious affair. Those expecting to gobble their way through a meal had best not eat in China –– it could be hazardous to one’s health.

It was difficult to maintain western manners and eat the foods we were served. Without a knife to cut away the part of the food that was inedible, fingers became an inevitable part of the dining experience. At least all of our dinner companions were faced with the same difficulties.

Although we were served a few dishes with what looked like sweet and sour sauce, the similarity stopped with the appearance. Because the Chinese do not use refined sugar, their version of the sauce lacked the zip to which American palettes are so accustomed.

The most popular dish served with this red sauce was the large deep-fried fish laid on its side. The fish was very good but had millions of bones!   Fish filets are obviously a foreign concept to their chefs.

No meal was complete without the platter of steamed bok choi. Some of our meal companions developed a taste for it, most did not. The bok choi leaves resembled cooked spinach in appearance but the taste was unique to the Asiatic vegetable.

Dessert is not part of the Chinese meal, but fruit –– primarily watermelon, pineapple, apple or pear –– was served as one of the courses toward the end of the meal.

During the day, we drank only bottled water, as the tap water even in the hotels is only for washing. (We even brushed our teeth with the bottled water despite comments that we were being overly cautious.)

In China, there are American bottling companies that market sodas, but they do not taste the same as they do here in the U.S. The carbonation is different, resulting in a more gaseous nature to the drink and thereby being less thirst quenching.

We chose to drink beer at our meals. Ordering “bing pi ju” will fetch patrons a cool beer. Although “bing” means cold, we never found the refrigeration to produce a truly cold drink. Tasting similar to a typical American beer, the Chinese version is a bargain at approximately $2 a bottle, which yields about three glasses.

Our last meal as a group was the Peking Duck Dinner. Slow-roasted ducks are carved and placed on platters. Small stacks of crepe –– like pancakes –– are given to each diner, as are dishes of plum sauce and toothpick-sized slices of bamboo. 

Wrapping up the duck, bamboo and plum sauce like an enchilada in the crepe, we enjoyed the Chinese delicacy.

Most restaurants were very clean, but I would suggest taking hand sanitizer as hot water and soap in bathrooms is not always available. In one place we ate, the silverware was covered with a greasy film; even the replacements were dirty. I used the sanitizer to “wash” our forks before we used them.

Asian toilets consisted of a porcelain fixture, little more than a small trough installed into the floor –– no seat!  he larger hotels and restaurants had both Asian “squatty potties” as well as western style commodes. But with so many tourists, there were always lines for the latter.  Not all bathrooms had toilet paper and none had seat liners. A baggy with supplies stashed in my handbag or husband’s jacket pocket proved invaluable.  (We bought seat covers at a drug store before we left.)

With a little preparation and knowing what to expect, most travel issues can be overcome. Treating the whole experience as a great adventure helps, too. 

As for our friends who ate the cat salami, they only hissed a couple of times on the trip.

E-mail Margie at: custer@ix.netcom.com         

Look for more of “The China Chronicles” in following issues of The Voice.  Margie Custer is a Southwest resident and writer.

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