Differences Cultural in Chinese Food and Western Food

In an article written by Amy S. Choi entitled, “What Americans can Learn From Other Food Cultures,” Choi discusses food in ways that pertain to ones culture. Today, our younger generation has become less thankful for simple, traditional foods and more wanting of foods prepared in less traditional ways, almost as if, “the more outlandish the better.” Choi mentioned in her article that, “those slightly younger have been the beneficiaries of the restaurant culture exploding in Shanghai” (Choi, Amy. “What Americans Can Learn From Other Food Cultures.” Ideastedcom. 18 Dec. 2014. Web. 17 June 2015) being from America I agree with her statement. Food in many cultures has become a status symbol; I believe that dining in expensive restaurants that serve

China and America are both diverse and have a fascinating history. American and Chinese cultures both have similarities. For example, both cultures prefer to dine with family and friends. Dining with loved ones brings joy to both American and Chinese society. Another similarity is that American and chinese cultures tend to engage in conversations while eating. They talk during meals to socialize and talk about the events that happened during their day. Both countries also prefer to have a wide variety of food. Chinese and American cultures tend to do this so that you can have a lot to choose from. These two cultures differ in etiquette and cuisine.

Moreover, I support the Fischler (1988, p. 289) statement that food identification in contemporary social life is problematic and complex. According to me the modern-day consumers barely know the history and origin of food they are consuming. The food items are processed and modernised so much that it is no more a traditional dish. The change in flavors, taste, fragrance is highly treated because of the advanced technology in food is becoming powerful. This sophisticated methods to manipulate the traditional products are done to suit the international markets and taste of the modern customers. Earlier it was much easier to distinguish the food with traditions, but in modern era it is complex to understand this behaviour. Food has both the meaning one, is nutritional and second is symbolic. While consuming a particular dish, we get influenced to that culture and becomes a part of it. Consumers worldwide can relate to the domestic culture of that food they are consuming. This is called the relationship of food and

Secondly, the ingredients in Chinese and American food are different. Chinese cuisine involves rice, flour, beans, and vegetables. American cuisine is relatively simple and mainly includes meat, bread and vegetables. For the Chinese one, most dishes include rice, because it is the main crop of many Asian countries and is used in almost every capacity. Not only steamed rice, but rice paper and noodles can be included in a meal. Second, tofu is often used in vegetarian meals, because it is high in protein. It is used heavily in regions with a tradition of Buddhism. Third, sauces are important to flavor rice and stir-fry. Soy sauce, oyster sauce, black bean sauce, and fish sauces are easy to keep on hand (Yang 3). Rice is a major staple food for

After reading this article, I’ve realized that the idea of food, eating, and even the type of food is different when compared to different cultures. Specifically, the article talks about food as an identity, as survival, as a status, as a pleasure, as a community, and as humanity. For each of these main ideas, the article gives an example of each culture and what they do differently with food. One that I though was really cool was how in China, people would rather eat unique textured foods such as Jellyfish and pig ears, instead of something that has a unique taste. After reading this, I began to thinking that this was the complete opposite compared to the American culture. This is because we will usually eat foods for taste and when we eat

Looking at the years of progression of food in china it started with Chinese imperial food originated around the Zhou Dynasty 11th century B.C. – 476 B.C. Although China’s dietetic culture developed and grew prior to the Zhou Dynasty, it truly flourished during the Zhou, Qin, and Han dynasties 1122 B.C. – 220. (www.china.org.cn/english/imperial/25995.) But when we look at the food today it has a mix of diversity of mix culture with the main ideas of the imperial dinning back in Zhou dynasty. We can look at food like curry which came from India and the Chinese culture took the spice and added to its food but also remembering the balance of sweet and sour and hot and spicy as well as tart. We can also look at the U.S.A and seeing the

Chinese food isn’t different items separated by spaces among a plate, it is a blend of different meats and vegetables sitting among a grain such as rice. There is a sauce that brings the dish’s unique and separate elements into one blend of tasty flavors that combine into a unique and signature dish.

Growing up, I had the privilege of exploring different cultures in my community; one aspect - food. A love for going to a Chinese restaurant by my school and converse in Mandarin Chinese with the waitress, or go to the Mexican grills near my home and learn the cuisine in Spanish, spurred my passion for finding a connection to my own culture’s value of food. With so many wide ranges of cultural foods, I have begun to learn that it wasn't just one culture that loved food or good times, but a universal theme.

While it is difficult to pinpoint the exact time human beings began to consume foods, for millions of years a diverse range of culinary patterns and convivial customs were cultivated. As the human dining habits evolve, food can be seen as a continuous reflection of the different cultures around the world. In fact, “food is perhaps the most distinctive expression of an ethnic group, a culture, or, in modern terms, a nation” (Flandrin, Montanari and Sonnenfeld 1999, p. xvi). The huge wave of globalisation in the past few decades made cultural exchange commonplace, however, indigenous dishes from an alien country may come as cultural shocks to people who are foreign to the certain culture. This essay intends to explain how Asian identity is expressed

Food is an essential component of many social events: it brings people from a wide variety of society together, it provides nourishment, and in modern and globally interconnected times in can even be used to share different cultures’ ideas of good food in a relaxed setting. Humans require food to survive, but the different ways that food is prepared and served is highly varied among cultures. Even how these cultures utilize food in larger social settings is widely variable. Sometimes it’s just a small gathering of families sharing food, other times it’s specialized food preparers providing food to a large number of people. Here we’ll look at one of the latter events where food plays a part.

The more Asian cultures mix with America them more we take from the culture, such as Chinatowns, Chinese food, Vietnamese food, religion, fight styles, etc. We have not just taken from their cultures, but we have also added to theirs by assimilating them into our daily lives and providing different currencies and school programs along with an entirely different government system. Each culture brings something to the table. Asian-Americans have introduced three different cooking styles to the U.S., southwest, northeast, and southeast. According to Asian Nation, each cooking comes from different parts of Asia. Southwest cooking comes from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, etc. This kind of cooking usually consists of flat bread, kebabs, and the use of strong spices. Unlike Southwest cooking, Northeast traditional cooking styles come from China, Korea, and Japan. The tradition in the cooking is to use fats and oils to emphasize sauces in their cooking. Foods from these places are connected to their religion Hinduism and can be used as medicine for good health, and longevity. Southeast cooking comes from Thailand, Viet Nam, Singapore, etc. Featured dishes in this culture are lightly prepared and aromatic, such as stir-fry, steaming, and foods with lots of herbs (Purpose of This Site).

1. The essay was talking about the huge different between Chinese’s food and American’s food and they are totally make different foods. Chinese don’t understand how the American people are cutting food with two hands and changing the fork from one hand to the other hand while they are eating food. This is new thing and amazing thing Chinese’s restaurant people are talking too much and crowded seating which is their culture.

It was a life changing experience to move to the United States from Armenia. The United States has a very rich diversity of cultures and therefore, there is diversity of cuisines. Although America’s population is massive, many people living in America are not from America; they are from other countries. As they move to America, they try to stay true to their culture and have a small community of their culture in the new environment. One of the most common ways to maintain one’s culture in America is through food and its practices in order to honor and remember where they came from. Another way of saying maintaining cultural food practices and sustaining tradition would be sustainability. Therefore, traditional food can represent a whole culture and a way to find out more about any culture is to taste their food. Tasting another culture’s

This paper will discuss the multifaceted relationships among food, and culture. I will be looking at the relationships people have with food, and explore how this relationship reveals information about them. Their food choices of individuals and groups, can reveal their ideals, likes and dislikes. Food choices tell the stories of where people have travelled and who they have met along the way.

For many people in Thailand today, food has become a very important aspect of any holiday celebration and special occasions. In the American western cuisine today, a regular restaurant quality meal consists of appetizers, followed by the main course, and ends with a serving of dessert, where each person would order his or her own food. In Thailand it’s the complete opposite to the American cuisine where they would never have any structure in their meals like beginning with appetizers and ending with dessert. In Thai cuisine the number of dishes is based on the number of people there are around the table, so for example if there are ten people, then ten dishes would be order. One interesting aspect about Thai cuisine is that everyone sitting around the table would equally share their food, so that no one would get stuck with eating the same plate of food, everyone gets the opportunity to enjoy the unique flavors of all the different dishes. The main reason that the Thais share their food is because they believe that it is bad luck for them to eat alone and they see that each meal is a big celebration of social and friendly interactions.