We are living in a time that is closely connected. Technology has enabled this connection and made it seamless. Our current existence is that of a citizen of a country by birth but each one of us is a global citizen. We have access to anything across the globe. Clothes, food, jobs are not restricted to boundaries anymore. This is a reason why regional cuisines have become global food menus. Two such cuisines are Italian and Chinese.
There’s nothing more romantic than Italian food, yes! No doubt about it. Italian cuisines typically from Italy are one of the most popular cuisines across the globe. It has rich culture, diversity and history dating back to 4th century. In Italy food is not just for survival it defines them. Italians owned food as much as Michael Angelo and Leonardo da Vinci owned art. Italian cuisine has also influenced various other cuisines especially French and that of USA.
A major aspect of Italian food is the diversity. It is heavily diversified across the country; the food available in northern part of Italy is hard to find in southern region. It provides profound taste and rich tastes. Italians cuisines are known for their simplicity with limited number of ingredients, a lot of importance is given to the quality of the ingredients than the process of preparation. Key ingredients include fruits, vegetables, sauces, meat, maize, potatoes, wine and different types of cheese.
Italian cuisines borrow heavily from Greek and Roman. Over a period of time they developed their own flavor by introducing potatoes, tomatoes, bell peppers and maize. Italian meal structure composes of different stages, it starts with Apervitivo means an appetizer taken before the large meal, it comprises of Martini, Prosecco, and Vermouth etc. followed by Antipasto another set of hot or cold appetizers, then comes Primo it’s the first main course meal which usually have hot dish like pasta, risotto and soups, joined by Secondo, second main course which consists of fish, chicken and pork dishes, then Contorno meaning side dish usually salad or cooked vegetables, followed by Formaggio e frutta, the first desert with fruits and cheese, then Dolce meaning sweet such as cakes and cookies, then caffe, coffee finally ending with Digestivo, digestives such as liquor and coffee killers. The way an Italian meal is structured, it is no less than an art in itself.
Yet another world famous cuisine is the Chinese cuisine. There is famous saying, “The Chinese eat everything with four legs, except tables, and everything that flies, except airplane”. Well, jokes apart, Chinese cuisines is one of the most popular cuisines that originated in china. Chinese cuisine has deep roots in history. It is specially known for its medicinal value. The Chinese give a lot of importance to food as a source of health. There is an extensive use of ingredients that have medical benefits.
Chinese cuisines are known for their seasoning and cooking techniques which are diversified across the country, the geographical conditions, and different climatic variations ranging from tropical in the south to subarctic in the north east influenced the availability of ingredients.The essential ingredients include sauces like chili, soya, oyster, dried mushrooms, ginger, all types of spices, rice, rice wine, vinegar, sesame oil etc.
There are four majorly accepted cuisines Chuan, Lu, Yue and Huaiyang and there are also eight modern cuisines of china. The cutlery used to serve and eat are different from western world instead of forks and knives, chopsticks are primarily used. The philosophy behind Chinese cooking is remarkable and inspirational where it focuses on traditional medicinal value and food is judged for color, fragrance, flavor and delicacy and an excellent meal has to balance four natures(hot, warm, cool, cold) and five tastes(pungent, sweet, sour, bitter and salty).
Such flavors and ingredients are now available across borders, thanks to tech enabled food delivery. As a foodie, this is probably the best time to be alive on this planet!
