Confucius was a Foodie

Every journey starts with a single step. Although looking for the five traditional Chinese cuisines in North America is a monumental task, you have to start somewhere.

Chef Cushing starts her journey of discovery where Cantonese first began in North America; on the west coast. She follows the path of Cantonese cuisine, discovering why, when most North Americans think Chinese food, they think Cantonese.

It is said of Sichuan cuisine that "100 dishes will have 100 flavors". So why is it that when North Americans think Sichuan they think hot hot hot?

Huaiyang cuisine is a bit of a mystery. Said to be the cuisine of poets and scholars, and a cuisine which demands meticulous knife skills and elaborate presentations, the cuisine appears to be a personification of the teachings of Confucius. The creative presentation of skillfully combined ingredients expresses the four most important elements in the art of Chinese cooking; color, aroma, flavor and texture. This type of cuisine is refined and delicate, and a far cry from what most North Americans think of coming out of a takeout container! All of this is incredibly enticing, so why then is Huaiyang cuisine so little enjoyed or understood in North America?

What is Northeastern cuisine and what makes it so distinctly different? A huge part of North America has more in common with the weather and agriculture of the northeastern area of China so surely this cuisine would be more prevalent here. But Christine has learned that immigration is everything when it comes to portable cuisines. And, as China is so large and the northeast so remote, it turns out that even the Cantonese might not know Northeastern (or Dongbei) cuisine.

Christine invites her mentor Chef Qu to join her in preparing a Shandong banquet for her chef/foodie friends as well as experts she has met throughout her travels.