Shandong Cuisine

Shandong Cuisine

Shandong Cuisine can be the representative of cuisines of North China, not only because its influence spreads to most areas in North China, but also because its history can be dated back to the State of Qi in the Spring and Autumn Period (BC 770). However, because in the adjacent State of Lu, the great Confucius and Confucianism were born, the Shandong cuisine is finally named after the State of Lu.

People may only know about the taste of Chinese Great Eight Cuisines, for example, Sichuan cuisine is spicy, Hunan cuisine is hot, Jiangsu cuisine is sweet, and so on. While Shandong cuisine, as the sole representative cuisine of North China always makes the impression of much salt and deep colors on people, but actually, that partially salty Shandong cuisine is exaggerated apparently. Evaluation of experts on-site on Shandong cuisine mostly is “salt and fresh.”

Salinity, the mineral substance, and nutrition are vital to human physiology. Salinity ensures the health and safety of the human body. For example, when cooking dishes, in traditional Chinese medicine, for compatibility of medicines, it belongs to the dominant aroma rather than the subordinate aroma, that is to say, salty is inevitable. Of course too salty is not good, but without salt, it won’t have any fragrance. That is to say, in Shandong cuisine, salt is regarded as a standard. It is not only one character of Shandong cuisine, but also the inevitable primary flavor of Chinese dishes.

It was salty in the past because they could eat more coarse grains with salt, and increase the labor force by salt. However, authentic Shandong cuisine isn’t salty. Salt means too salty, but genuine Shandong cuisine won’t be too salty. It advocates aroma and neutralization, but not salt.

Then, what about the freshness of Shandong cuisine? In developing a process for a thousand years, Shandong cuisine is divided into many schools. For example, East Shandong school is good at cooking seafood; Confucius school pays excellent attention to luxury; Jinan school is particular about the degree of fire while Shandong school which is located in the former State of Qi, is superb in making soup. Generations of cooks of Shandong have a saying gun significant to soldiers and soup is to cooks. If soldiers don’t have weapons, how can they fight? If cooks don’t have soup, how can they cook dishes? 

Therefore, soup is essential to Shandong cuisine. However, how to make and use soup decides the aroma of the soup. This method records in “Classic of Rites” of China. In fact, there are records: if the clear soup doesn’t match with the dish, the clear soup will not have any aroma. The clear soup, the thick broth which is stewed, clarified and filtered for a long time for keeping the original taste without adding any seasonings; and used to worship the heaven, earth, and ancestors in ancient times is called cooking liquor.

soul of Shandong cuisine

In China, we notice a detail that cooks of Shandong cuisine don’t use monosodium glutamate. Instead, they use a kind of cooking liquor to the season. We decide to spend 5hours according to records in the old recipe in experiencing the unique technique of Shandong cuisine-making clear soup personally. The raw materials that are used to make soup include the front elbow of the pig, spinal joints of the pig, thigh of old chicken and thigh of old duck. After stewing for 4 hours by a slow fire, the first broth is stewed well. The following procedure is called Clarifying the Red Soup. Chop thigh of chicken into muddy meat put in some onion, ginger, and pepper, then pour the first broth which has been stewed to it after adding water. The soup was clear just now, but it’s muddy. Then, heat up. It still needs to heat up. The process is called Clarifying the Red Soup, which is to use the thigh of the kitchen to absorb external components in the soup.

During clarifying the soup, we need to keep stirring it, which can speed up chicken meat consuming foreign elements, and avoid sticking the surface of the span. After the second soup is stewed, we need to cool it and clarify the soup for the second time. This time, we should add white soup seasoned by breast meat of chicken, to absorb external components in the soup thoroughly. After stewed, what’s the effect? It will be so clear that you can see the bottom as the fountain. It seems to be clear water, but in fact, it is not. Whether we cook Shandong cuisine well depends on the soup. This is the spirit of Shandong cuisine.

Without soup, the dish can’t be cooked. This is the primary requirement for typical cooks in old eating houses and restaurants. The soup has been sold out, so I can’t prepare the dish. Only with soup, the dish can be cooked. During making soup, the clear soup is the basis to process top-grade original materials. The characteristic of clear soup is fresh soup and nice taste. After clear soup, there’s a milk soup. The characteristics of milk soup are white soup and pure taste. This is the difference between the two. The Clear soup is used to make top-grade materials and meat dishes mostly. The milk soup is used to cook with fungus and seasonal vegetables.

legend of Shandong cuisine

Shandong people always use “Shandong man is like half a knife, after eating the dish of Shandong, you will move around the world” to describe the developed catering industry of Shandong.

It said the vice-chairman of the Cuisine Restaurant Association of Shandong, who obtained an old Shandong Recipe. More than 300 dishes are recorded in it, which is a sensation in the circle of cooking in Shandong. This is really very old. It is written by hand. Originally, the recipe was the manuscript of the late master of Shandong cuisine, Mr. Wang Guangyong in 50 years ago. The procedure of research and development of more than 300 dishes are recorded completely. Some Shandong cuisines which are lost in recent years, and the history of Jule Village, Shandong are all recorded here clearly.

Because of changes in history, the old Jule Village Restaurant founded in 1919, only left a  plaque with gold characters and the founder’s family photo. We also find the author of the Shandong Recipe, the master of Shandong cuisine, Wang Guangyong. Mr. Wang Guangyong was the leading person of Shandong cuisine, especially, he was the creator of the Four-Four Banquet. Because the man has overall techniques, he could cut scalloped pork on steamer clothes covered on painted tables of wedding and funeral. His cutting skills were very proficient. He once learned how to make imperial cakes in Beijing, in the imperial palace. Once there held a contest in Shandong City, he could cook more than 300 dishes then.

Tofu Box 豆腐箱

Tofu Box, which is a famous dish in Shandong, is said to be created by Wang Guangyong firstly. Use a piece of commonly been curd, shape it by frying, then empty it and add pork to the filling. It could be provided to customers after being stewed and watered cooking liquor. When customers lift the lid of the box with chopsticks slowly, the waiter will shout “Treasures will be seen after opening the box” to send nice blessings to customers. Wang Guangyong and others developed more than 300 dishes successively in Jule Village. He brought the splendor of Jule Village for several decades. Behind Wang Guangyong, there are many famous cooks in Jule Restaurant which attracts attention from the circle of Shandong cuisine.

Shandong cuisine in history

Shandong was called Yanshan Town before, and it has been a (handicraft) industrial city from ancient times. Moreover, it has the title of the metropolis in the middle areas of Shandong Province no later than in the Ming Dynasty. It is because of its three main resources –ceramic, coal and glass, the differentiation of the economic structure of the city and society was formed. Numerous consumer classes and industrialized cities inevitably promoted the city’s consumption and LED to industrial and commercial development. No later than in the Ming Dynasty, it began to change in the catering industry. Take the glazing industry as an example.

Although most glaze artisans are seated when they are working, they are sweating profusely from smudging by fire and smoke. Thus considerable physical strength is consumed. For the above-mentioned reason, they need to replenish physical strength, so they are quite particular about food. Therefore, the artisans in those furnace firms in Baoshan declared that they paid attention to eating. This is one side. Another side is craftsmen and artisans received their income after one day’s work. Especially in the past, not only in ancient times but in modern, handicraftsmen can get their payment each day after they work. So it is the handicraftsmen in Shandong that created a booming market of Shandong cuisine.

Then, a number of top-grade ingredients were continuously brought into Shandong from other places through Qingzhou old passage. Many raw materials were transported from the passage, most of which were the dried sea goods, oils, salt, soybean sauce, and vinegar. Thus, day after day and year after year, the wheelbarrow is also driving people in Shandong to upgrade the quality of food continuously.

Four-Four Banquet and etiquette 四四席

At the end of the Qing Dynasty, Shandong cuisine has become famous all over China. The Jiaozhou-Jinan Railway which was built by Germans in 1904, cut off Qingzhou old passage and also changed the traffic situation of Shandong, which further promoted the Shandong cuisine into the whole country. In the 1930s, Jule Village in Shandong met its heyday. Some people such as Wang Guangyong combined Shandong cuisine with Confucian etiquette and Shandong customs, thus created a regulation of feast Four-Four Banquet at the feast, which established the etiquette status of Shandong cuisine in China.

On account of Four-Four Banquet, people arrange seated themselves according to family rituals. If a man was the oldest, then his seat was in the upper (seated facing south). The seats were arranged from left to right, so the next one was a vice seat. Generally, the one who sat opposite the upper seat was the younger generation. To show the comprehensive ritual, we call it “Unsealed Banquet” if we remove these two chairs, but “Opening Banquet” with one chair removed and “Kakari Banquet” with one chair added. Then, our imperial banquet is ready to begin. Serve the dishes.

In addition to seating on the stress, the traditional Four-Four Banquet in Shandong required four dishes to be served together each time. Four dishes were served at first on the table, namely black and white melon seeds, cigarettes and mints which must be placed in each corner of the table thus the guests can reach easily. But today, cigarettes are replaced by some kind of health food. Then, four plates of nuts, four plates of fruits and four plates of snacks were served. The purposes of serving this hours-oeuvre are to let people have time to fully communicate and know each other so as to avoid impoliteness for the first, and the second is to open the appetite of the guests so they can enjoy the feast behind. The main resonance for serving the snacks is to avoid guests drinking on an empty stomach, for it is harmful to drink with an empty stomach. So in order to make full protection of the gastric mucosa, it had better be padded with some cooked wheaten food.

After the guests run out of snacks, the banquet officially starts. The first is called Four Vegetable Dishes which are made of four kinds of seasonal vegetables. Next is the main course of the banquet which is commonly known as “major course”. A sub-course, known as “minor course”, will be served just following the so-called “major course”, which means everything goes smoothly. The regulation of Four-Four Banquet is finished after four plates of “major courses” are all served. Traditional ethics of young and old and the status, symmetrical balance of aesthetic taste and rich and healthy Shandong cuisine are perfectly and naturally integrated while people are enjoying the food.

All in All

This is perhaps the reason why Shandong cuisine can take root a thousand years ago, pass down the etiquette, leave aroma between lips and teeth, leave sprite in people’s minds, and become one of the Chinese Great Eight Cuisines. 

Chinese Great Eight Cuisines

1. Shandong Cuisines: Salty fresh, thick oil sauce, food therapy health;
2. Sichuan Cuisines: Heavy oil, heavy salt, spicy hot;
3. Cantonese Cuisines: Original, salty, fresh and light;
4. Jiangsu Cuisines: Sweet and yellow wine;
5. Fujian Cuisines: Salty-sweet (southern), spicy (northern);
6. AnHui Cuisines: Heavy oil, heavy salt;
7. Hunan Cuisines: Heavy oil, heavy salt, heavy spicy, preserved flavor;
8. Zhejiang Cuisines: Special, fresh, tender, with yellow wine.