| Tastes of Chinese food are traditionally categorized into five flavors: salty, spicy, sour, sweet, and bitter. Over China's vast territory the flavors of cuisine vary from one region to another, and usually one or two of the five flavors dominate. Flavor preferences can reflect features of geography, climate, agriculture, culture, and history. Here we introduce the five flavors of Chinese food, including their functions and regions where they are popular.  Spicy — Central China, especially Sichuan and Hunan Spiciness is popular in central and south China, including Sichuan, Hunan, Yunnan, and Guangxi provinces. That is said to be because climates in these regions are humid, making it difficult for perspiration to evaporate. Chilies are liberally used in their cuisines, and are believed to move internal dampness and cold, increasing health and comfort. The two most famous cuisines featuring the spicy flavor are Sichuan cuisine and Hunan cuisine. Sichuan cuisine has a numbing spiciness due to its use of Sichuan pepper, while Hunan cuisine has a raw spiciness, even spicier than Sichuan cuisine. Two representative Chinese spicy dishes are Sichuan hotpot and Hunan steamed fish head with diced hot red peppers. Salty — Coastal Areas and Northern China Most salt in China is produced by the evaporation of sea water in coastal areas, so people in these areas tend to liberally use of salt when cooking, as it's cheaper. People in the northern China prefer to eat salty food, especially brine-pickled vegetables. Due to Northern China coldness, there were no fresh local vegetables available in winter, so in autumn northerners preserve vegetables by pickling with lots of salt to ensure they have edible vegetables in winter. Nowadays, although fresh vegetables are readily transported north (or from greenhouses) for consumption in winter, pickled vegetables are still favored by northern people at breakfast to be eaten with congee. Sweet — Eastern China The sweet flavor is popular in Eastern regions including Fujian, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, and Guangdong provinces. People in these provinces pay attention to "tone the body" by eating food with a sweeter, lighter, and more tender flavor. The most representative sweet Chinese dish is sweet and sour fish from Jiangsu. Sour — Southern Minorities and Shanxi Province Sourness is a popular flavor in the south, especially with the minorities of Guangxi, Guizhou, and Yunnan provinces. The minorities are generally poor, so they prefer to preserved almost everything by pickling in vinegarto prevent wastage, so most foods in these regions taste sour. The most People from Shanxi Province are famous for their love of vinegar. They eat almost everything with vinegar, and think a meal is not complete without it. Since the water in Shanxi is hard and highly alkaline, vinegar has the practical benefit of dissolving calcium carbonate in the water and balancing pH. Shanxi is a classic vinegar producer, and famous for its mature vinegar.presentative sour Chinese dish is Guizhou sour soup fish. Bitter — the Taste of Chinese Medicinal Food The bitter flavor is said to clear "heat", strengthen the stomach, and promote salivation. Bitterness is used in Chinese cooking, but rarely alone. Slight bitterness can make dishes fresher and more delicious, greatly whetting the appetite. The bitter flavor is generally the taste of Chinese medicinal food, which is made by adding bitter medicinal herbs. # Our teachers # More than 10 years teaching experience Master Degree Certificate for teaching chinese as a foreign language   # About us # Founded in 2007 Chinese test and training center 200+ Chinese teachers 5000+ students  # Contact us# Name:fiona Phone number:021-52287809,13918358891 E-mail:info@mandarinmorning.com www.mandarinmorning.com If you are interested to join Mandarin Morning school or want more details about our services, scan the following QR code. ☟   Mandarin Morning Chinese test center attached to Confucius institute headquarters Authorized Test Center and Training Center for International Chinese Language Teacher Certificater 10 years+ ，200 teachers ，more 10000 students，200+companies  |
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