Cantonese cuisine

Cantonese cuisine
Chefs cook with a wok
Traditional Chinese	廣東菜
Simplified Chinese	广东菜
Hanyu Pinyin	Guǎngdōngcài
Jyutping	Gwong2 dung1 coi3
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Guǎngdōngcài IPA [kwàŋtʊ́ŋtsʰâɪ] Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Gwóng dūng choi Jyutping Gwong2 dung1 coi3
Yuet cuisine
Traditional Chinese	粵菜
Simplified Chinese	粤菜
Hanyu Pinyin	Yuècài
Jyutping	Jyut6 coi3
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yuècài IPA [ɥêtsʰâɪ] Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Yuht choi Jyutping Jyut6 coi3

Cantonese cuisine (simplified Chinese: 广东菜; traditional Chinese: 廣東菜; pinyin: Guǎngdōngcài) comes from Guangdong province and is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine. Its prominence outside China is due to the large number of emigrants from Guangdong. Chefs trained in Cantonese cuisine are highly sought after throughout China. When Westerners speak of Chinese food, they usually refer to Cantonese cuisine.

Background

Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, has long been a trading port and many imported foods and ingredients are used in Cantonese cuisine. Besides pork, beef and chicken, Cantonese cuisine incorporates almost all edible meats, including offal, chicken feet, duck's tongue, snakes, and snails. However, lamb and goat are rarely eaten, unlike in the cuisines of northern or western China. Many cooking methods are used, with steaming and stir frying being the most favoured due to their convenience and rapidity. Other techniques include shallow frying, double steaming, braising, and deep frying.

For many traditional Cantonese cooks, the flavours of a finished dish should be well balanced and not greasy. Apart from that, spices should be used in modest amounts to avoid overwhelming the flavours of the primary ingredients, and these ingredients in turn should be at the peak of their freshness and quality. There is no widespread use of fresh herbs in Cantonese cooking, in contrast with their liberal use in other cuisines such as Sichuan, European, Thai or Vietnamese. Garlic chives and coriander leaves are notable exceptions, although the latter are usually used as mere garnish in most dishes.

Foods

Sauces and condiments

In Cantonese cuisine, a number of ingredients such as spring onion, sugar, salt, soy sauce, rice wine, cornstarch, vinegar, scallion oil, and sesame oil, suffice to enhance flavour, although garlic is heavily used in some dishes, especially those in which internal organs, such as entrails, may emit unpleasant odours. Ginger, chili peppers, five-spice powder, powdered black pepper, star anise and a few other spices are also used, but often sparingly.

Sauces and condiments

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Hoisin sauce	海鮮醬	海鲜酱	hǎixiānjiàng	hoi2 sin1 zoeng3
Oyster sauce	蠔油	蚝油	háoyóu	hou4 jau4
Plum sauce	蘇梅醬	苏梅酱	sūméijiàng	syun1 mui4 zoeng3
Sweet and sour sauce	糖醋醬	糖醋酱	tángcùjiàng	tong4 cou3 zoeng3
Black bean sauce	蒜蓉豆豉醬	蒜蓉豆豉酱	suànróng dòuchǐjiàng	syun3 jung4 dau6 si6 zoeng3
Shrimp paste	鹹蝦醬	咸虾酱	xiánxiājiàng	haam4 haa1 zoeng3
Red vinegar	浙醋	浙醋	zhècù	zit3 cou3
Master stock	滷水	卤水	lǔshuǐ	lou5 seoi2
Char siu sauce	叉燒醬	叉烧酱	chāshāojiàng	caa1 siu1 zoeng3
Chu hau paste	柱侯醬	柱侯酱	zhùhóujiàng	cyu5 hau4 zoeng3

• 
  Char siu (叉燒) pork often marinated with plum sauce and honey for sweet flavor
• 
  Deep-fried chicken with sweet and sour sauce. Popular version is shrimp paste (虾酱鸡)
• 
  Steamed oysters done two ways, with ginger garlic (蒜蓉), and black bean sauce (豆豉酱)

Dried and preserved ingredients

Although Cantonese cooks pay much attention to the freshness of their primary ingredients, Cantonese cuisine also uses a long list of preserved food items to add flavour to a dish. This may be influenced by Hakka cuisine, since the Hakkas were once a dominant group occupying imperial Hong Kong and other southern territories.

Some items gain very intense flavours during the drying / preservation / oxidation process and some foods are preserved to increase their shelf life. Some chefs combine both dried and fresh varieties of the same items in a dish. Dried items are usually soaked in water to rehydrate before cooking. These ingredients are generally not served a la carte, but rather go with vegetables or other Cantonese dishes.

Dried and preserved ingredients

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping	Notes
Dried scallops	江珧柱	江珧柱	jiāngyáozhù	gong1 jiu4 cyu5	Usually added to clear soup.
	江瑤柱	江瑶柱
Fermented tofu	腐乳	腐乳	fǔrǔ	fu6 jyu5
Fermented black beans	豆豉	豆豉	dòuchǐ	dau6 si6	Usually added to pork and tofu dishes.
Chinese sausage	臘腸	腊肠	làcháng	laap6 coeng2	Usually added to rice together with preserved-salted duck and pork.
Salted fish	鹹魚	咸鱼	xiányú	haam4 jyu2	Usually paired with steamed pork or added to fried rice together with diced chicken.
Preserved-salted duck	臘鴨	腊鸭	làyā	laap6 aap2	Usually eaten with rice in a family meal.
Preserved-salted pork	臘肉	腊肉	làròu	laap6 juk6	Usually eaten with rice in a family meal.
Salted duck egg	鹹蛋	咸蛋	xiándàn	haam4 daan2	May be eaten as it is or mixed with stir-fried vegetables and steam dishes or cooked with diced pork in congee.
Century egg	皮蛋	皮蛋	pídàn	pei4 daan2	can be found served with roasted dishes, in congee with lean pork, and in a sweet pastry with lotus paste
Dried cabbage	菜乾	菜干	càigān	coi3 gon1
Suan cai	鹹酸菜	咸酸菜	xiánsuāncài	haam4 syun1 coi3
Dried small shrimp	蝦米	虾米	xiāmǐ	haa1 mai5	Usually mixed with stir-fried vegetables.
Tofu skin	腐皮	腐皮	fǔpí	fu6 pei4	Usually used as wrapping for ground pork dishes. It is fried in a similar manner as spring rolls.
Dried shrimp	蝦乾	虾干	xiāgān	haa1 gon1	Usually de-shelled, sliced into half and added to vegetable dishes.
Pickled Chinese cabbage	梅菜	梅菜	méicài	mui4 coi3	Usually cooked with pork or stir-fried with rice.
Pickled diced daikon	菜脯	菜脯	càifǔ	coi3 pou2

• 
  Chinese pidan (皮蛋) or a hundred years egg
• 
  Deep-fried vegetarian goose wrapped in tofu skin (腐皮)

Traditional dishes

A number of dishes have been part of Cantonese cuisine since the earliest territorial establishments of Guangdong. While many of these are on the menus of typical Cantonese restaurants, some simpler ones are more commonly found in Chinese homes. Home-made Cantonese dishes are usually served with plain white rice.

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Chinese steamed eggs		蒸水蛋	蒸水蛋	zhēngshuǐdàn	zing1 seui2 daan2
Congee with lean pork and century egg		皮蛋瘦肉粥	皮蛋瘦肉粥	pídàn shòuròuzhōu	pei4 daan2 suw3 yeuk6 zuk1
Cantonese fried rice		炒飯	炒饭	chǎofàn	cau2 faan6
Sweet and sour pork		咕嚕肉	咕噜肉	gūlūròu	gu1 lou1 juk6
Stewed beef brisket		柱侯牛腩	柱侯牛腩	zhùhóu niúnǎn	mun ngou laam
Steamed spare ribs with fermented black beans and chili pepper		豉椒排骨	豉椒排骨	chǐjiāo páigǔ	si6 ziu1 paai4 gwut1
Steamed frog legs on lotus leaf		荷葉蒸田雞	荷叶蒸田鸡	héyè zhēng tiánjī	ho4 yip6 zing1 tin4 gei1
Steamed ground pork with salted duck egg		鹹蛋蒸肉餅	咸蛋蒸肉饼	xiándàn zhēng ròubǐng	haam4 daan2 zing1 yuk6 baeng2
Blanched vegetables with oyster sauce		油菜	油菜	yóucài	ho yuw ceng coi
Stir-fried hairy gourd with dried shrimp and cellophane noodles		大姨媽嫁女	大姨妈嫁女	dàyímā jiànǚ	daai6 ji4 maa1 gaa3 neoi5
Stir-fried water spinach with shredded chili and fermented tofu		椒絲腐乳通菜	椒丝腐乳通菜	jiāosī fǔrǔ tōngcài	ziu1 si1 fu6 yu5 tung1 coi3

Deep fried dishes

There are a small number of deep-fried dishes in Cantonese cuisine, which can often be found as street food. They have been extensively documented in colonial Hong Kong records of the 19th and 20th centuries. A few are synonymous with Cantonese breakfast and lunch, even though these are also part of other cuisines.

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Zaa Leung		炸兩	炸两	zháliǎng	zaa3 loeng5
Yau Zaa Gwai		油炸鬼	油炸鬼	yóuzháguǐ	jau4 zaa3 gwai2
Dace fish balls		鯪魚球	鲮鱼球	língyúqiú	ling4 jyu4 kau4

Slow-cooked soup

Slow-cooked soup, or lou fo tong (simplified Chinese: 老火汤; traditional Chinese: 老火湯; pinyin: lǎohuǒ tāng; Jyutping: lou5 fo2 tong1) in the Cantonese dialect (literally meaning old fire-cooked soup) is usually a clear broth prepared by simmering meat and other ingredients over a low heat for several hours. Chinese herbs are often used as ingredients.

Soup chain stores or delivery outlets in Cantonese-dominated cities such as Hong Kong serve this dish due to the long preparation time of slow-cooked soup.

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Snow fungus soup	銀耳湯	银耳汤	yín'ěr tāng	ngan4 ji5 tong1
Spare ribs soup with watercress and apricot kernels	南北杏西洋菜豬骨湯	南北杏西洋菜猪骨汤	nánběixìng xīyángcài zhūgǔ tāng	naam4 baak1 hang6 sai1 joeng4 coi3 zyu1 gwat1 tong1
Cantonese seafood soup	海皇羹	海皇羹	hǎihuáng gēng	hoi2 wong4 gang1
Winter melon soup	冬瓜湯	冬瓜汤	dōngguā tāng	dung1 gwaa1 tong1

Seafood

Seafood tanks

Due to Guangdong's location on the southern coast of China, fresh seafood is prominent in Cantonese cuisine, and many Cantonese restaurants keep aquariums or seafood tanks on the premises. In Cantonese cuisine, as in cuisines from other parts of Asia, if seafood has a repugnant odour strong spices are added; the freshest seafood is odourless and, in Cantonese culinary arts, is best cooked by steaming. For instance, in some recipes, only a small amount of soy sauce, ginger, and spring onion is added to steamed fish. According to Cantonese cuisine, the light seasoning is used only to bring out the natural sweetness of the seafood. As a rule of thumb, the spiciness of a dish is usually inversely proportionate to the freshness of the ingredients.

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Steamed fish	蒸魚	蒸鱼	zhēngyú	zing1 yu4
Steamed scallops with ginger and garlic	蒜茸蒸扇貝	蒜茸蒸扇贝	suànróng zhēng shànbèi	syun3 jung4 zing1 sin3 bui3
White boiled shrimp	白灼蝦	白灼虾	báizhuóxiā	baak6 zoek3 haa1
Lobster with ginger and scallions	薑蔥龍蝦	薑葱龙虾	jiāngcōng lóngxiā	goeng1 cung1 lung4 haa1
Mantis shrimp	攋尿蝦	攋尿虾	làniàoxiā	laai6 niu6 haa1

• 
  Typical ingredients for hotpot are solenidae (蟶子), crabs (蟹), prawn (蝦), chicken sausage (雞肉腸仔) and dace fishballs (魚旦)

Noodle dishes

Noodles are served either in soup broth or fried. These are available as home-cooked meals, on dim sum side menus, or as street food at dai pai dongs, where they can be served with a variety of toppings such as fish balls, beef balls, or fish slices.

Noodle dishes

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping	Notes
Wonton noodles		雲吞麵	云吞面	yúntūnmiàn	wun4 tun1 meen6	Sometimes spelled as wanton noodles.
Beef chow fun		乾炒牛河	干炒牛河	gānchǎo niúhé	gon1 caau2 nguw4 hoh4
Chow mein		炒麵	炒面	chǎomiàn	caau2 meen6	A generic term for various stir-fried noodle dishes. Hong Kong-style chow mein is made from pan-fried thin crispy noodles.
Jook-sing noodles		竹昇麵	竹升面	zhúshēngmiàn	zuk1 sing1 meen6	Bamboo log pressed noodles.
Lo mein		撈麵	捞面	lāomiàn	lou1 meen6
Beef brisket noodles		牛腩麵	牛腩面	niúnǎnmiàn	nguw4 laam5 min6	May be served dry or in soup.
Rice noodle roll		腸粉	肠粉	chángfěn	ceung4 fun2
Rice noodles		河粉	河粉	héfěn	hoh4 fun2	Also known as hor-fun.
Silver needle noodles		銀針粉	银针粉	yínzhēnfěn	ngun4 zum1 meen2	Also known as rat noodles (Chinese: 老鼠粉; pinyin: lǎoshǔ fěn; Jyutping: lou5 syu2 fan2).
Yi mein		伊麵	伊面	yīmiàn	loohng haa yi1 meen6	Also known as e-fu noodles.

Siu mei

Main article: Siu mei

A roasted pig and char siu (叉烧)

Siu mei (simplified Chinese: 烧味; traditional Chinese: 燒味; pinyin: shāo wèi; Jyutping: siu1 mei6) is essentially the Chinese rotisserie style of cooking. Unlike most other Cantonese dishes, siu mei consists of meat only, with no vegetables.

Siu mei

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Char siu		叉燒	叉烧	chāshāo	caa1 siu1
Roast duck		燒鴨	烧鸭	shāoyā	siu1 ngaap3
Roast goose		燒鵝	烧鹅	shāo'é	siu1 ngo4
Roast pig		燒肉	烧肉	shāoròu	siu1 jzu
Roast pigeon		燒乳鴿	烧乳鸽	shāorǔgē	siu1 jyu5 gaap3

Lou mei

Main article: Lou mei

Lou mei (Chinese: 滷味; pinyin: lǔ wèi; Jyutping: lou5 mei6) is the name given to dishes made from internal organs, entrails and other left-over parts of animals. It is widely available in southern Chinese regions.

Lou mei

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Beef entrails	牛雜	牛杂	niú zá	ngau4 zaap6
Beef brisket	牛腩	牛腩	niú nǎn	ngau4 laam5
Chicken scraps	雞雜	鸡杂	jī zá	gei1 zaap6
Duck gizzard	鴨腎	鸭肾	yā shèn	ngaap3 suhn5
Pig's tongue	豬脷	猪脷	zhū lì	jyu1 lei6

Siu laap

Cantonese siu mei (烧腊) food stall in Hong Kong

All Cantonese-style cooked meats, including siu mei, lou mei and preserved meat can be classified as siu laap (simplified Chinese: 烧腊; traditional Chinese: 燒臘; pinyin: shāo là; Jyutping: siu1 laap6). Siu laap also includes dishes such as:

Meats

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping	Notes
White cut chicken		白切雞	白切鸡	báiqièjī	baak6 cit3 gei1	Also known as white chopped chicken (simplified Chinese: 白斩鸡; traditional Chinese: 白斬雞; pinyin: báizhǎnjī; Jyutping: baak6 zaam2 gai1) in some places.
Orange cuttlefish		鹵水墨魚	卤水墨鱼	lǔshuǐ mòyú	lou5 seui2 muk6 yuu4
Poached duck in master stock	File:Zhangchaduck1.jpg	滷水鴨	卤水鸭	lǔshuǐyā	lou5 seui2 ngaap3
Chicken in soy sauce		豉油雞	豉油鸡	chǐyóujī	si6 yuw4 gei1

A typical dish may consist of offal and half an order of multiple varieties of roasted meat. The majority of siu laap is white meat.

Dishes

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Rice with Chinese sausage and char siu		臘腸叉燒飯	腊肠叉烧饭	làcháng chāshāo fàn	laap6 ceung4 caa1 siu1 faan6
Rice with roast goose and goose intestines		燒鵝鵝腸飯	烧鹅鹅肠饭	shāo'é écháng fàn	siu1 ngo4 ngo4 coeng4 faan6
Siu mei platter		燒味拼盤	烧味拼盘	shāowèi pīnpán	siu1 mei6 ping6 poon4
Siu lap platter		燒臘拼盤	烧腊拼盘	shāolà pīnpán	siu1 laap6 ping6 poon4

Little Pot rice

Little pot chicken rice with vegetable and Chinese sausage (腊肠)

Little pot rice (simplified Chinese: 煲仔饭; traditional Chinese: 煲仔飯; pinyin: bāozǎifàn; Jyutping: bou1 zei2 faan6) are dishes cooked and served in a flat-bottomed pot (as opposed to a round-bottomed wok). Usually this is a saucepan or braising pan (see clay pot cooking). Such dishes are cooked by covering and steaming, making the rice and ingredients very hot and soft. Usually the ingredients are layered on top of the rice with little or no mixing in between. Many standard combinations exist.

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Rice with layered egg and beef	窩蛋牛肉飯	窝蛋牛肉饭	wōdàn niúròu fàn	wo1 daan2 nguw4 yook6 faan6
Rice with minced beef patty	肉餅煲仔飯	肉饼煲仔饭	ròubǐng bāozǎifàn	yuk6 bang2 bou1 zei2 faan6
Rice with spare ribs	排骨煲仔飯	排骨煲仔饭	páigǔ bāozǎifàn	paai4 gwut1 bou1 zei2 faan6
Rice with steamed chicken	蒸雞肉煲仔飯	蒸鸡肉煲仔饭	zhēng jīròu bāozǎifàn	zing1 gei1 yook6 bou1 zei2 faan6
Rice with Chinese sausage and preserved meat	臘味煲仔飯	腊味煲仔饭	làwèi bāozǎifàn	laap6 ceung bou1 zai2 faan6

Banquet/dinner dishes

A number of dishes are traditionally served in Cantonese restaurants only at dinner times. Dim sum restaurants stop serving bamboo-basket dishes after the yum cha period (equivalent to afternoon tea) and begin offering an entirely different menu in the evening. Some dishes are standard while others are regional. Some are customised for special purposes such as Chinese marriages or banquets. Salt and pepper dishes are one of the few spicy dishes.

Cantonese banquet / dinner dishes

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Crispy fried chicken		炸子雞	炸子鸡	zházǐjī	zaa3 zi2 gei1
Seafood with bird's nest		海鲜雀巢	海鲜雀巢	hǎixiān quècháo	hoi2 sin1 zeuhk3 caau4
Roast suckling pig		燒乳猪	烧乳猪	shāo rǔzhū	siu1 ju5 jzu2
Fried tofu with shrimp		蝦仁炒豆腐	虾仁炒豆腐	xiārén chǎo dòufǔ	haa1 jeung4 caau2 dou4 fu6
Roast pigeon		乳鴿	乳鸽	rǔgē	yu5 gap3
Spare ribs with salt and pepper		椒鹽骨	椒盐骨	jiāoyán gǔ	ziu1 yeem4 paai4 gwut
Squid with salt and pepper		椒鹽魷魚	椒盐鱿鱼	jiāoyán yóuyú	ziu1 yeem4 seeun heung gwut1
Shrimp with salt and pepper		椒鹽蝦	椒盐虾	jiāoyán xiā	ziu1 yeem4 haa1
Sour spare ribs		生炒排骨	生炒排骨	shēngchǎo páigǔ	saang1 cao2 paai4 gwut1
Duck with taro		陳皮芋頭鴨	陈皮芋头鸭	yùtóuyā	wu6 tuw4 ngaap3
Yeung Chow fried rice		揚州炒飯	扬州炒饭	Yángzhōu chǎofàn	yeung4 zuw1 cao2 faan6

Dessert

After the evening meal, most Cantonese restaurants offer tong sui (Chinese: 糖水; pinyin: táng shuǐ; Jyutping: tong4 seui2; lit. 'sugar water'), a sweet soup. Many varieties of tong sui are also found in other Chinese cuisines. Some desserts are traditional, while others are recent innovations. The more expensive restaurants usually offer their specialty desserts.

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Red bean soup		紅豆沙	红豆沙	hóngdòushā	hong4 duw6 tong4 seui2
Black sesame soup		芝麻糊	芝麻糊	zhīmahú	zi1 maa4 wu4
Sai mai lo		西米露	西米露	xīmǐlù	sei1 mei5 low6
Sweet potato soup		番薯糖水	番薯糖水	fānshǔ tángshuǐ	faan1 seuu4 tong4 seui2
Mung bean soup		綠豆沙	绿豆沙	lǜdòushā	duw6 saa1
Tofu flower pudding		豆腐花	豆腐花	dòufǔhuā	duw6 fu6 faa1
Tortoise shell with smilax pudding		龜苓膏	龟苓膏	guīlínggāo	gwei1 ling4 gou1
Sweet Chinese pastry		糕點	糕点	gāodiǎn	gou1 dim2
Coconut bar		椰汁糕	椰汁糕	yēzhīgāo	je4 zap1 gou1
Shaved ice		刨冰	刨冰	páobīng	paau4 bing1
Steamed egg custard		燉蛋	炖蛋	dùndàn	deon6 daan6
Steamed milk custard		燉奶	炖奶	dùnnǎi	deon6 naai5
Double skin milk		雙皮奶	双皮奶	shuāngpínǎi	soeng1 pei4 naai5

Delicacies

Certain Cantonese delicacies consist of parts taken from rare or endangered animals, which raises controversy over animal rights and environmental issues. This is often due to alleged health benefits of certain animal products. For example, the continued spreading of the idea that shark cartilage can cure cancer has led to decreased shark populations although scientific research has found no evidence to support the credibility of shark cartilage as a cancer cure.

English	Image	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Jyutping
Braised abalone		燜鮑魚	焖鲍鱼	mèn bàoyú	mun6 baau1 jyu4
Jellyfish		海蜇	海蜇	hǎizhé	hoi2 zit3
Shark fin soup		魚翅湯	鱼翅汤	yúchì tāng	jyu4 ci3 tong1
Sea cucumber		海參	海参	hǎishēn	hoi2 saam1
Bird's nest soup		燕窩	燕窝	yànwō	jin1 wo1

See also

• Chinese food therapy
• Dim sum
• Hong Kong cuisine
• List of Chinese dishes

Further reading

• Eight Immortal Flavors: Secrets of Cantonese Cookery from San Francisco's Chinatown, Johnny Kan and Charles L. Leong. Berkeley, California: Howell-North Books, 1963