Why you should cook healthy Chinese food at your home
Chinese food traditions have freely adapted over time. For more than 5,000 years, these culinary practices have been devised, improved, and stood the test of time. For example, steaming, a basic cooking technique, was widely used long before the establishment of the First Dynasty. Through trade, non-local ingredients have made their way into stadium kitchens while combining with local crops to produce exceptional, unusual, and surprising dishes.
A well-prepared Chinese dish is expected to appeal to more senses than just taste. Their colors must be clearly visible, and the ingredients must be of uniform size and fragrant. There should be a discrepancy between the tastes and textures within the meal; If one dish is crunchy, it should be paired with another dish that is soft. A mild dish is paired with a spicy dish, thus always trying to create balance. It is important to have this equality of yin and yang.
Real Chinese food is mostly vegetarian. Fat and meat are used sparingly for minimal flavour, and there are very few dishes that require deep frying. This is because fat and meat can be scarce and expensive in China. As a result, real Chinese food is very good for your health as most of the recipes are low in calories and low in carbs. The Chinese also prefer to use soy products instead of meat and dairy products. Soy products or tofu are full of good fats and protein and are a great alternative to meat because their texture can mimic the meats we all love.
Moreover, Chinese food is very cheap and easy to cook because it is a cooking style that is very open to flexible interpretations of recipes and you can often use leftover ingredients to make new dishes. Chinese chefs have learned to make more with very little, and this can be applied in our kitchens to save money. Thrift is definitely a virtue in Chinese culture, and it is sometimes said that a Chinese chef can make dirt and bark taste good. This is a tribute to the creativity and practicality of Chinese cuisine.
In conclusion, if you love Chinese food but feel guilty about eating it, then you should make it at home with fresh and healthy ingredients. You will find a new appreciation for the culture and genius of the Chinese people and improve your health at the same time.
