Diet is the most basic activity of human beings, but if the problem is raised to the level of why and how to eat, it will be reflected as a consciousness or concept. There are obvious differences in dietary concepts between China and the West.
The west is a rational and scientific concept of diet. They emphasize the nutritional value of diet, pay attention to the amount of protein, fat, calories and vitamins contained in food, and do not pursue the perfection of color, fragrance, taste and shape of food. Even if they taste the same, they will listen to rational warnings and eat because they are nutritious. Westerners eat nutrition. They give little or no consideration to diet and spirit.
Diet is only a means of survival to satisfy hunger, but it adopts a more scientific, standardized and reasonable way. Influenced by the receptive way of thinking, western diets pay more attention to science, especially after the emergence of modern nutritional analysis science, which encourages their inherent rational analysis tendency in diet and makes them pay more attention to the combination of nutritional components in diet collocation. Rationing diet according to people's physical condition. For example, their primary and secondary schools are equipped with nutritionists to ensure adequate and balanced nutrition for teenagers. This scientific and reasonable diet concept is worth learning from Chinese food. But at the same time, western food is greatly limited in materials. For example, westerners don't eat animal offal, and everything they think has no nutritional value. At the same time, it also appears mechanical in cooking skills. Steak is steak and chicken is chicken. All kinds of vegetables will never be mixed, and there will not be many tricks. To say grade, we should distinguish it from the collocation of tableware, environment and raw materials of dishes. This mechanical nature of western food is something we must overcome. In short, western diet uses absolute rationality to regulate human behavior, and uses "science" and "nutrition" to exclude delicious food that can bring pleasure to people. Although it can meet the physiological needs, it can
China people's diet emphasizes sensibility and artistry, and pursues the taste of food, but ignores the nutritional components of food. They evaluate the quality of diet from the aspects of "color, fragrance, taste, shape and utensils" and pursue an indescribable artistic conception. To put it simply, China people can taste, which is the charm of China's diet. The purpose of China people's diet is to satisfy hunger.
China cooking often mixes a variety of raw materials together, which makes them almost lose their original color, but it produces a new and complete delicacy. For example, Fujian famous dish "Buddha jumps over the wall" contains chicken, duck, pig's trotters, scallops, abalone, sea cucumber, pork belly, shark's fin and other main ingredients, as well as several auxiliary materials. From this dish, you can no longer eat the original flavor of every dish, but you can taste a delicious food. But the whole is brilliant, which is similar to the golden mean that China people belittle individuality, emphasize average and emphasize harmony. The sensibility of China's diet makes him full of imagination and creativity, and tends to be artistic. This is a realm of freedom beyond necessity, and its greatest feature is randomness. The same dish is treated differently due to different regions, seasons, objects and grades. In the use of raw materials, you can turn decay into magic, but chicken feet can turn decay into magic. Fish head can be made into "casserole stewed fish head" and so on. In terms of cooking techniques, relaxation is a delicious dish. China's diet is only an empirical fuzzy grasp of nutrition science. For example, a banquet must have all kinds of meat and vegetables. The reason is very simple, meat is easy to get greasy, and it must be neutralized with light and refreshing dishes. There is no rational analysis and logical judgment here. Just an experience, a custom. This is also the deficiency of China's diet. China's diet overemphasizes the taste and spiritual enjoyment of meals, ignoring the reasonable combination of nutritional analysis and nutrition, which is one-sided. The western diet pays attention to scientific analysis and nutrition. Although it is mechanical, it is fundamentally positive for maintaining the healthy development of the human body. Therefore, Chinese food should learn from the "scientific" concept of western food in its development.
Compared with China's "taste" diet, the West is a rational concept of diet. No matter the color, fragrance, taste, shape and nutrition of food, how many calories, vitamins, protein and so on should be taken in a day. Even if it tastes the same, you must eat it-because it is nutritious. This concept of diet is compatible with the whole western philosophy system. Metaphysics is the main feature of western philosophy. Western philosophy studies it. The reason of things is often metaphysical, and metaphysical theories are interrelated to form metaphysical philosophy. This philosophy has brought vitality to western culture and made it develop by leaps and bounds in natural science, psychology and methodology. But in other aspects, such as food culture, we can pay attention to the collocation of tableware, materials, services and raw materials in dishes. But no matter how luxurious and upscale, from L.A. to new york, steak has only one flavor, and there is no art at all. As a dish, chicken is chicken and steak is steak. Even if there is a match, it is done in the disk. A plate of "French lamb chops" with mashed potatoes, lamb chops on one side, boiled green beans on the other side, and some tomatoes. The color is bright, but the ingredients are irrelevant in taste.
China people attach great importance to "eating". The proverb "Food is the sky for the people" shows that we regard eating as important as the sky. Because our nation has been at a low level of productivity for thousands of years, people are always hungry, so there will be a unique diet culture that emphasizes food over food. I think this is probably out of a need for survival. If a culture puts eating first, then there will be two phenomena: on the other hand, paying too much attention to food will make people admire the pursuit of delicious food.
In China's cooking, the pursuit of delicacy is almost to the extreme, so that China people make a living by opening restaurants overseas, which has become the foundation for us to settle down in the world! Unfortunately, when we regard the pursuit of delicacy as the first demand, we ignore the most fundamental nutritional value of food. Many of our traditional foods have to be fried in hot oil and stewed with low fire for a long time, which destroys the nutritional components of the dishes and loses a lot in the processing. So when it comes to nutrition, it actually touches the biggest weakness of China's food culture. There is a folk proverb: "Food is heaven, taste comes first".
When people in China taste dishes, they often say that this dish is delicious and that dish is not. However, if you want to ask what is delicious, why is it delicious, and where is it delicious, it may not be easy to make it clear. This shows that China people are pursuing an indescribable "artistic conception" of food, that is, it is still difficult to summarize this "realm" with what people usually call "color, fragrance, taste, shape and container".
China's diet has its unique charm, and the key lies in its taste. The production of delicious food lies in harmony. The original flavor of food, the cooked taste after heating, the taste of ingredients and auxiliary materials, and the harmonious taste of spices should be intertwined and coordinated with each other, so that they complement each other, penetrate each other and blend with each other. You have me and I have you. The harmonious beauty of China's cooking, on the one hand, is the essence of China's culinary artistic taste, on the other hand, it is an intrinsic thing, which emphasizes the interior without deliberately modifying the appearance, and emphasizes the taste of the dishes without excessively revealing the shape and color of the dishes. This is the most important embodiment of China's aesthetic diet view.
In China, the pursuit of beauty in diet obviously overwhelmed rationality, which is also consistent with China's traditional philosophy. As a representative of oriental philosophy, China's philosophy is characterized by macroscopic, intuitive, fuzzy and unpredictable. The method of making Chinese food is to reconcile, and ultimately to reconcile a beautiful taste. This emphasizes moderation, that is, overall coordination. It contains rich dialectical thoughts of China's philosophy, and everything is based on the beauty and harmony of food taste.
Second, the differences between Chinese and western dietary contents.
The content of diet is the question of what to eat. The differences on this issue are rooted in the cultural backgrounds of different nationalities. Westerners eat more meat dishes and pay more attention to the intake of animal protein and fat. In their diet, most of them are animal dishes, mainly beef, chicken, pork, mutton and fish. This is related to nomadic culture and marine culture in the west. The main activities of navigation and nomadic people are fishing, hunting and breeding, supplemented by planting. This determines that the main source of their diet is animals. Not only diet, but many other aspects of life need to be taken from animals. Influenced by agricultural civilization, China people, in their traditional diet structure, the staple food is grain, supplemented by vegetables and a small amount of meat, and plant dishes are dominant. We usually call them "vegetarian dishes", and usually only add meat dishes during the Chinese New Year. This eating habit is deeply influenced by Buddhist culture. Buddhism believes that animals are "living things", and living things cannot be killed, let alone eaten. The idea of "forbidding killing and releasing" advocated by Buddhism is consistent with the Confucian view of "benevolence and righteousness". In addition, Taoism also forbids eating fish and meat, which promotes the development of vegetable planting and cooking technology in China, especially the development of bean products technology.
However, with the improvement of living standard and the popularization of nutrition concept, the proportion of meat and milk food on the dining table in China is increasing. Similarly, in the diet structure of westerners, vegetables are also increasing obviously, and the diet structure of China and the West is gradually merging. The difference between Chinese and western food content is also manifested in the fact that westerners like cold food and cold dishes, and from cold dishes to cold drinks, cold dishes are indispensable on the table. And people in China like to eat spicy food. Except for a few side dishes in front of the main course which are cold dishes, all the main courses are spicy. In China's view, hot dishes lose a lot of flavor when they are cold, and only when they are hot can they taste the food. As the saying goes, "three fresh vegetables are hot" means this.
Westerners believe that dishes are to satisfy hunger, so they specialize in "hard dishes" such as large pieces of meat and whole chicken. While China's dishes are delicious, China's cooking also shows great arbitrariness in the use of materials: many things that westerners regard as discarded are excellent raw materials in China, while things that foreign chefs can't handle can be turned into magic once they reach the hands of chef China, which shows that China's diet has a wide range of materials.
According to the survey of western botanists, people in China eat more than 600 kinds of vegetables, six times more than those in the west. In fact, in China, vegetarian dishes are ordinary foods, and meat dishes only enter the ordinary diet structure during holidays or when the living standard is high, so there has been a saying of "vegetarian dishes" since ancient times, and vegetarian dishes are dominant in the ordinary diet structure. In China, plants are the main dishes, which is related to the advocacy of Buddhists.
When introducing the dietary characteristics of their own countries, westerners think that they pay more attention to the reasonable collocation of nutrition than China. There are developed food industries, such as canned food and fast food, which are time-saving and nutritious, so people in their country are generally stronger than people in China: tall, with long legs, wide shoulders and muscular; On the other hand, China people are thin, with narrow shoulders, short legs and yellow skin. According to the obvious differences between Chinese and western food objects, some people call China a plant word, while westerners call it an animal word.
Third, the differences in dietary patterns.
The way of eating, that is, how to eat, is obviously different between China and the West. In China, whether it is a family dinner or a formal banquet, people sit around to eat and enjoy a seat. People toast each other and suggest dishes, which reflects the virtues of mutual respect and courtesy and the atmosphere of harmonious reunion. Especially in various festivals, they even leave each other by eating. This way of eating, It is based on the patriarchal clan system. Eating was common in families and clans at first, and then it expanded beyond clans. People in China often use this diet to educate and express various "rituals" to reflect the relationship between the old and the young, show respect for the young, get close to each other and exchange feelings. Because this way of sitting around drinking caters to the traditional family concept, it objectively plays a role in maintaining family stability and promoting family members' unity and harmony. So it has been circulated for a long time. It's really a family pleasure to have dinner together. But at the same time, this way of eating also has its disadvantages, mainly unscientific, unhygienic and wasteful. Now, people have gradually realized this disadvantage and started to reform. For example, the state banquet in China is divided into meals, but it has yet to be popularized in the whole society.
Westerners are used to eating separately. At western banquets, although they also sit together, everyone's food is a single dish. The most typical form of western food is buffet. Diners each take a set of tableware and take what they need from the prepared food. They can walk freely without having to fix their seats. This kind of diet can not only fully satisfy the individual's preference for food, but also be conducive to social interaction and the exchange of feelings and information between individuals. You don't have to make all the activities public at the dinner table. Therefore, in western-style banquets, food is only a means and foil, not the whole purpose. The core of the banquet is friendship. This way of eating fully embodies the respect of westerners for individuality and self, and emphasizes individual independence. In this respect, it is completely different from China's unified cultural model, especially since the Renaissance. Western society vigorously advocates the spirit of equality, freedom, human rights and personality liberation, which greatly promotes people's personality and freedom consciousness and creates a cultural environment that emphasizes the free development of personality. More importantly, this way of eating is civilized, hygienic and in line with the scientific spirit. Westerners' eating styles are very different, and this difference also has an impact on national character. In China, any banquet, no matter for what purpose, has only one form. Is that everyone sits around and enjoys a seat. The banquet uses round tables to create a United, polite and interesting atmosphere. Food is placed in the center of a table, which is not only the object of appreciation and tasting, but also the medium of emotional communication between people. People toast each other, offer food to each other and persuade them to eat, which reflects the relationship between people in front of beautiful things. This kind of diet has obvious shortcomings, but it conforms to the general mentality of "happy reunion" of our nation, embodies the influence of the category of "harmony" in China's classical philosophy on later generations, and facilitates the collective emotional exchange, so it is difficult to reform so far.
Although food and wine are very important in western-style banquets, they are actually used as foil. The core of the banquet is friendship, which can be achieved by talking to the guests next door. If we compare the friendship of banquets to dancing, we can say that banquets in China are like group dancing, while banquets in the West are like ballroom dancing for men and women. It can be seen that the friendship purpose between Chinese banquet and western banquet is obvious, but Chinese banquet is more embodied. Western-style banquets are mostly reflected in the friendship between neighboring guests. The difference with China's food style is more obvious in western-style buffets. This method is: all the food is displayed one by one, and everyone needs what they want, and they can move freely without being fixed in their seats. This way facilitates the emotional communication between individuals, and does not need to put everything on the table. It also reflects the respect of westerners for individuality and self. However, they eat separately, do not interfere with each other, and do not lack each other.
So, in the final analysis, it is the difference between sensibility and rationality. However, this difference seems to be blurred with the development of science. In China, more and more people pay more attention to food hygiene and nutrition, not just color, smell and taste, especially after SARS. Moreover, people are getting busier and busier at work, and think that Chinese food is too troublesome to cook. It is better to have a hamburger. Thus, the difference in diet is not obvious.
Fourth, the differences in cooking methods.
In China, cooking is an art, which is extremely interesting and even playful, attracting China people who take food as their greatest pleasure in life. China's cooking is as great as music, dance, poetry and painting in improving the realm of life. There are many cooking methods in China: slip, stew, roast, steam, fry, crisp and stew. The dishes made are even more dazzling. The change of Chinese food technology is more complicated. Many dishes are time-consuming and labor-intensive, and are over-decorated. Many of them are inedible, which not only wastes raw materials, but also does not necessarily have good results. There is a saying in "A Chef's Trip to China": "A chef is divided into three parts, and the ingredients are divided into seven parts", which emphasizes the importance of the chef's personal choice of raw materials and their use in different grades, that is, the standard of raw materials plays a decisive role in the cooking.
Westerners pay attention to scientific nutrition in diet, and the whole cooking process is carried out in strict accordance with scientific norms and cooking is standardized, so the chef's work becomes extremely monotonous mechanical work. Moreover, the purpose of westerners' eating is to ingest nutrition first. As long as the nutrition reaches the standard, everything else can be tolerated. Therefore, today's potato steak and tomorrow's steak potato, the chef repeats the mechanical work with extremely tolerant and harsh attitude every day. Of course it's not interesting. Western cooking methods are not as complicated and changeable as those in China. Western food has a strong three-dimensional sense and strong edibility. Most of the food on the plate can be eaten, and the side dish is the side dish of the main course. The raw materials of western food are mostly fresh, pollution-free, natural and natural in operation technology, so as to give full play to its original flavor. Dry food is not used much, and milk is an indispensable raw material in western food. According to the characteristics of raw materials, suppliers have further standardized them.
Five, the difference of dining etiquette
In terms of etiquette, the difference between China and the West is even greater. In the dining process in ancient China, there was a set of red tape. Qu Ji said, "* * * doesn't have enough food, and * * * doesn't have enough food. Don't scoop food, let it flow, eat, chew bones, fish, dog bones, collect rice. " When eating with others, don't just eat by yourself. If you eat with others, you must check whether your hands are clean. Don't put the extra rice back into the pot, don't monopolize the food, and don't fan the hot rice. After eating, the guests should get up and clean up the dishes on the table and give them to the host. The host will get up and tell the guests not to work, and then the guests will get up again.
In western banquets, the host usually brings food to the guests only once, and the rest is eaten by the guests themselves. If guests don't want it, they won't persuade others to eat, nor will they frequently persuade guests to drink and take food according to the habits of China people. When eating, they don't make a sound, but guests should pay attention to the food prepared by their hosts. If they talk to people, they can only talk to their neighbors, not to people far away. The specific differences are as follows.
In terms of clothes, in China, people can wear casual clothes in restaurants, even T-shirts and jeans, and only at important banquets will they wear grand clothes. But when going to high-end restaurants in the west, men should wear neat tops and leather shoes; A lady should wear a suit and shoes with heels. If formal clothes are required, men must wear ties. You shouldn't wear casual clothes to eat in a restaurant.
Seats are different. Generally, China is seated only after the guests arrive, and the seats are seated according to the order of seniority. The seats are "respect the east" and "respect the door". Generally speaking, in the west, the seat facing the door farthest from the door belongs to the hostess, opposite to the host's seat. The seat on the hostess's right is the first guest seat, usually a gentleman, and the seat on the hostess's right is the second guest seat.
In the order of serving, in China, the first dish is soup, followed by dry rice and other staple foods, and then the last dish is fruit that promotes digestion; In western countries, the order of serving is usually vegetables and soup, fruit, table wine, staple food, and finally dessert and coffee.
The arrangement of food on the table is different. Every dish is served at a time in Chinese food, and everyone enjoys all the delicious food. In western-style dining, everyone has his own set of tableware, and one dish is eaten before the other. In terms of food requirements, China does not need guests to finish all the dishes, but in the west, it is a courtesy and a respect for the host.
Sixth, the difference of dining utensils.
The tableware in China is mainly chopsticks, supplemented by spoons, and there are cups, plates, bowls and saucers of various shapes. China pays attention to the coordination of the shape, size and color of tableware and dishes, and pays attention to "beauty". He regards diet as an artistic activity, not only to have a good meal, but also to get a beautiful artistic enjoyment from it.
Westerners mostly use metal knives and forks, mainly stainless steel or silvered, sterling silver and other tableware, as well as various cups, plates, cups and saucers, each of which has its own function and cannot be mixed. However, western food does not emphasize artistic beauty as China people do, and the types of tableware and dishes are monotonous. In short, Westerners pay attention to the content of food, while China people emphasize the form of dishes and the feelings gained from them.