In the early Qing dynasty, only full houses were used in the palace, and Kangxi used Han seats. After that, the banquet was customized, and the palace banquet was divided into four categories: full banquet, Han banquet, bowl setting and chanting offerings. Banquets are divided into six grades, the first three of which are used by emperors, queens and concubines to drink after death; The latter three categories are mainly used in three major festivals, namely, royal banquets, emperor's wedding banquets, giving banquets to foreign ambassadors and marrying foreign princesses, princesses and feasting dukes. Han banquet is divided into three classes, which are mainly used for banquets in the temple, banquets in the palace of civil and military conferences, banquets for books such as memoirs and rituals, and banquets for success. First-class Chinese banquet 23 bowls of meat, goose, fish, chicken, duck, pork, etc. Eat eight bowls of fruit; Steam two bowls; Eat four bowls of vegetables.
The Qing Dynasty cookbook "Tiaodingji" has a whole banquet and a middle banquet. The banquet was filled with whole sheep, whole pig, roast pig, roast duck, steamed pig, steamed duck, steamed pig, white haba, roasted haba, roast chicken and boiled black fork. The "Manchu-Chinese Banquet List" recorded in Yangzhou Painting Boat Record is an early and comprehensive record at present. Its main dishes include shredded chicken bird's nest soup, stewed pork trotters with sea cucumber, shredded radish soup with fresh clams, shredded pork belly soup with kelp, stewed pearls with abalone, stewed shrimps with mussels, shark's fin and crab broth, stewed bear's paw with crucian carp tongue, steamed civet cat's tail, sliced pheasant soup, sliced pork, sliced sheep, breast-fed rabbit, porridge with chicken bamboo shoots and pig's brain soup.
After Cixi's Manchu-Chinese banquet appeared, with the development of the food market, it quickly entered the market from officialdom, which was called "Manchu-Chinese banquet". Lu Gu's "Tongqiao Leaning on the Bridge" has been published for ten years. Suzhou restaurants have all held Manchu banquets, and all the shops have Manchu Dalai Lama. "Clear the banknotes" said: "The barbecue banquet, commonly known as the Manchu banquet, is the highest grade in the banquet. Bake and dry with fire. In addition to treasures such as bird's nest and shark's fin, we must cook pigs and roast vegetables, all of which are cooked all over the body. After three rounds of wine, I entered the roast pig, and the waiters and servants all wore dresses. It was the waiter who prepared the banquet. The waiter cut it with a knife, and the knife was filled with utensils, and his knees were bent, which was dedicated to the first guest. Specially invited guests started with chopsticks, and the diners began to taste them, with a length of yards. The second one is burning square. Square, dolphin meat, not all, but still more valuable than roast duck. "
Manchu-Han banquet includes red and white barbecue, hot and cold dishes, dim sum preserves, melons and fruits, tea and wine, etc. The Manchu-Chinese banquet was also influenced by other banquets, because there were all-sheep banquets and all-eel banquets, which affected the Manchu-Chinese banquet, resulting in 108 dishes and even more than 200 kinds of Manchu-Chinese banquets. Manchu-Chinese banquet spread to many cities, and Cantonese Cuisine Preserves the Truth recorded the Manchu-Chinese banquet spectrum in Guangzhou and Sichuan. During the Republic of China, the Manchu-Han banquet in Taiyuan was recorded in the Full Banquet Map. Shenyang, Dalian, Tianjin, Kaifeng, Taiwan Province, Hongkong and other places also have their own characteristics of Manchu-Chinese banquet. It is precisely because of the changes of the times in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China that the Manchu-Chinese banquet studies in various places are colorful and have their own styles. The Manchu-Han banquet, which originated from officialdom, has made new development after entering the market. Although the pattern of Manchu-Han banquet in different places is similar, there is no universal menu.
The Manchu-Chinese banquet recorded in Cantonese Cuisine Preserves the Truth not only embodies the Guangdong flavor, but also has some western flavor influences.
Due to the variety of dishes, a Manchu-Han banquet can't be better than a meal, and it is often divided into several meals, even a few days. The procedure of eating is also very particular, and the etiquette is more grand.