Sichuan cuisine includes Chengdu, Chongqing, Leshan, Zigong and other local dishes. The basic taste types of Sichuan cuisine are hemp, spicy, sweet, salty, sour and bitter. Sichuan cuisine is characterized by hemp, spicy, fragrant, fresh, oily and strong, and "three peppers" (pepper, pepper and pepper) and fresh ginger are reused. The main feature is the variety of tastes. Zanthoxylum bungeanum, capsicum, capsicum and bean paste are the main condiments. It is made into dry roasted, spicy, sour and spicy, pepper and sesame sauce, garlic paste, ginger juice, red oil, sweet and sour, fishy, strange taste and other flavors in different proportions, all of which are thick and mellow, with the special flavor of "one dish in a box" and "all kinds of dishes are mixed".
There are Sichuan restaurants in the United States, Japan, France, Canada and Hong Kong, which are very popular with foreign guests from all over the world.
Sichuan cuisine is good at frying, sliding, frying, frying, frying, frying, boiling and simmering. In particular, stir-frying, stir-frying, dry-frying and dry-burning have their own characteristics. From the "three steamed and nine buckled" banquet to the popular simple meals, folk snacks and home-cooked flavors, there are many dishes, novel styles and fine workmanship. There are thirty-eight kinds of frying, frying, dry roasting, frying, smoking, soaking, stewing, stewing, pasting and frying. In terms of taste, it pays special attention to color, fragrance, taste, shape and length of north and south, and is famous for its variety, breadth and thickness. There have always been seven flavors (sweet, sour, hemp, spicy, bitter, fragrant and salty) and eight flavors (dry-burned, sour, spicy, fish-flavored, dry-fried, strange, pepper-hemp and red oil). Therefore, Sichuan cuisine has three characteristics: extensive materials, diverse seasonings and strong adaptability. A complete flavor system consists of five categories: banquet dishes, popular leisure dishes, home-cooked dishes, three-steamed nine-button dishes and flavor snacks. Enjoy the international reputation of "Food in China, Taste in Sichuan".
Among them, the most famous dishes are: dry-roasted rock carp, dry-roasted mandarin fish, fish-flavored shredded pork, exotic chicken, kung pao chicken, steamed beef with rice flour, Mapo tofu, beef hotpot with beef omasum, sliced beef with shredded pork, husband and wife lung slices, Deng Ying beef, Dandan Noodles, Lai Tangyuan and Long Wonton.
Cantonese cuisine pays attention to absorbing the advantages of various cuisines, with diverse cooking skills and strange and extensive materials. Cooking is mainly based on frying and frying, as well as stewing, frying and baking. Pay attention to clear but not light, fresh but not vulgar, tender but not raw, oily but not greasy, with "five flavors" (fragrant, loose, soft, fat and strong) and "six flavors" (sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, salty and fresh). Strong seasonality, light in summer and autumn, strong in winter and spring.
Cantonese cuisine has a long history. Like the cuisines and cuisines in other regions, it is the same as the food culture in China. As early as ancient times, the Guyue people in Lingnan had close contacts with Chu in the Central Plains. With the changes of history and dynasties, many central plains
People crossed the south to escape the war, and the Han and Vietnamese nationalities gradually merged. The southward migration of Central Plains culture and the combination of cooking skills, cookers and utensils with Baiyue's rich agricultural and fishery products are the origins of Cantonese cuisine. Cantonese cuisine originated in the Han Dynasty, which is based on this history.
After the Southern Song Dynasty, the skills and characteristics of Cantonese cuisine became more and more mature. This is related to the southward migration in the Song Dynasty, when many imperial chefs and official chefs gathered in Guangdong, especially Yangcheng. Since the Tang Dynasty, Guangzhou has become a major import and export port in China and a world-famous port. After Song and Yuan Dynasties, Guangzhou became a port city with concentrated domestic and foreign trade, and its business became increasingly prosperous, which promoted the development of catering service industry as a commercial industry and provided very important conditions and places for the growth of Cantonese cuisine, especially Cantonese cuisine.
The Ming and Qing Dynasties were the period when Cantonese cuisine, Cantonese cuisine and Cantonese cuisine really matured and developed. At this time, Guangzhou has become a commercial metropolis, and Cantonese cuisine, Cantonese cuisine and Cantonese cuisine have truly become a system. There are teahouses, hotels, restaurants and snack bars all over the downtown area, and every restaurant is in Bimei. World-famous, rich in food and diverse in style, there is a saying that "food is in Guangzhou" gradually.
The formation and development of Cantonese cuisine is closely related to Guangdong's geographical environment, economic conditions and customs. Guangdong is located in the subtropical zone, bordering the South China Sea, with abundant rainfall, evergreen seasons and abundant products. Therefore, the diet in Guangdong has always been blessed. As early as the Western Han Dynasty, the Spirit of Huainanzi contained the fine and extensive selection of Cantonese cuisine. It is conceivable that Cantonese people had mastered cooking different smells with different cooking methods thousands of years ago. Before that, the Tang Dynasty poet Han Yu was exiled to Chaozhou. In his poems, he described dozens of foreign bodies such as horseshoe crabs, snakes, octopus, frogs, octopus and Jiang Yaozhu in chaozhou people, which made him feel uncomfortable. But in the Southern Song Dynasty, octopus and other seafood were the top delicacies of many local dishes. In terms of ingredients and taste, it is all raw food. There are not many pigs, cattle, sheep and deer in the future.
But the habit of eating sashimi, including sashimi porridge, has been preserved to this day. But it's still the kind of situation where the white-cut chicken is cooked and the thigh bone is bloody. The characteristics of Cantonese cuisine, such as exquisite knife work, exquisite ingredients and clear but not light taste, are embodied.
Cantonese cuisine is also good at learning from the strengths of various families, using it for my own use, and often learning new things. Sweet and Sour Mandarin Fish, a famous dish in Jiangsu cuisine, is well-known in the north and south of the country, but you can't go to a Cantonese banquet. Although Cantonese people like to eat mouse meat, the name of the mouse is not elegant. The famous chef of Cantonese cuisine changed the fish into a man named Qiuhuayu, named Chrysanthemum Fish, with a skillful knife worker. After such a change, it is convenient and hygienic to eat one mouthful with chopsticks and knives and forks. After the transformation, Jiangsu cuisine became Cantonese cuisine. In addition, the cooking methods of Cantonese cuisine, such as soaking, roasting, roasting and steaming, are all transplanted from northern cuisines. The new frying and frying methods are the same as those of western food.
Formed after improvement. However, the transplantation of Cantonese cuisine is not a mechanical copy, but a combination of Guangdong's extensive raw materials, fresh and tender texture, and people's tastes like fresh and always new, thus developing. For example, the steak of northern cuisine is generally seasoned, roasted until crisp and rotten, and topped with oil, which is called clear steak. The steak of Cantonese cuisine is cooked or steamed until it is greasy, and then pushed on the clam, which is mostly manifested as steak with ingredients. Representative works include Babao roast duck, shredded chicken and preserved meat. Guangdong's food culture is closely related to all parts of the Central Plains. One of the most important reasons is that there are many mainlanders who established another dynasty in history. Officials sent by the dynasties to govern Guangdong and relegate brought the northern food culture, and many chefs passed on their skills to their local counterparts, or opened their own shops to directly introduce the local food culture to Lingnan people, making it an important part of Cantonese cuisine. After the Han dynasty, Guangzhou became the transportation hub of Chinese and western sea routes; Most foreign businessmen gathered in Yangcheng in the Tang Dynasty, and merchant ships came in droves. At that time, compared with the inland areas, Guangzhou's economy developed rapidly.
In addition to formal dishes, snacks and snacks in Guangdong are also beautifully made, and the food customs in various places also have their own characteristics, such as morning tea in Guangzhou and kungfu tea in Chaoshan. These dietary customs have gone beyond the category of "eating" and become Guangdong's dietary culture.
Shandong cuisine, also known as Shandong cuisine, has a long history and wide influence, and is an important part of China's food culture. As one of the eight Chinese cuisines, it is famous for its delicious, salty, crisp and unique flavor. Good at onion flavor seasoning at home and abroad, such as "roast duck", "roast suckling pig", "braised pork" and "fried cover"
Shandong cuisine originated in Qi and Lu countries (now Shandong Province) during the Warring States Period and was formed in the Qin and Han Dynasties. After the Song Dynasty, Shandong cuisine became the representative of "Northern Cuisine". Shandong cuisine is the most extensive local cuisine in China, covering Beijing, Tianjin, Tangshan and three northeastern provinces.
Factions: coastal Jiaodong cuisine (mainly seafood), inland jinan cuisine and its own Confucian cuisine. Features: Shandong cuisine pays attention to pure seasoning, which is more delicious than fresh, and has the characteristics of fresh, tender, fragrant and crisp. Pay great attention to the preparation of clear soup and milk soup. Clear soup is fresh, and milk soup is white.
Unique skills: There are more than 30 cooking techniques commonly used in Shandong cuisine, especially frying and baking techniques, which are unique and very professional. The barbecue technique is original in Shandong cuisine. The raw materials are pickled and sticky, fried on both sides and simmered. The baked product is neat in shape, thick in taste and rotten in juice. Shandong cuisine is the first of the eight major cuisines.
The formation and development of Shandong cuisine is related to Shandong's cultural history, geographical environment, economic conditions and customs. Shandong is one of the cradles of ancient culture in China, located in the lower reaches of the Yellow River, with a mild climate. Jiaodong Peninsula lies between Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea. The territory is criss-crossed, with rivers and lakes criss-crossing, fertile fields, rich products, convenient transportation and developed culture. Its grain output ranks third in the country; There are many kinds of vegetables with excellent quality, and they are known as one of the "three major vegetable gardens in the world". For example, Jiaozhou Chinese cabbage, Zhangqiu green onion, Cangshan garlic and Laiwu ginger are well-known at home and abroad; Fruit production ranks first in the country, and apples alone account for more than 40% of the country's total output; The output of pigs, sheep, poultry and eggs is also very considerable; The output of aquatic products is also the third in China. Among them, the precious seafood are shark's fin, sea cucumber, prawn, Cargill, flounder, abalone, swan egg, shih Tzu, scallop, red snail and laver, which are well-known at home and abroad. Brewing industry has a long history, a wide variety and excellent quality, such as Luokou vinegar, Jinan soy sauce and Jimo old wine. , are well-known products. Such rich products provide inexhaustible raw material resources for the development of Shandong cuisine.
Shandong cuisine has a very long history. There is "Qingzhou tribute salt" in Shangshu Gong Yu, which shows that at least in the Xia Dynasty, Shandong had been seasoned with salt; As early as the Book of Songs in the Zhou Dynasty, there were records that snakehead and carp ate the Yellow River. Today, sweet and sour yellow river carp is still the best in Shandong cuisine, which shows that it has a long history. The embryonic form of Shandong cuisine can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. Qilu and China are endowed with unique natural conditions, especially Qi, which is close to mountains and seas. With the advantages of fish, salt and iron, Qi Huangong became the first person to use it.
Legend has it that Yiya, who steamed her son and gave it to the King of Qi, was actually a master cook who was good at seasoning at that time. The clear soup in Shandong cuisine is bright and tender in color, while the milk soup is white and mellow in color and unique in flavor, which may be the inheritance of the ancient tradition of making soup well. Jiaodong cuisine, which is good at seafood, inherited the customs of coastal ancestors to eat fish. Confucius, who is "never tired of eating essence and never tired of eating", also has a series of thoughts of "never eating", such as "the fish is hungry and the meat is defeated, the color is evil, the food is bad, the food is lost, the food is irregular, the food is not tangent, and the sauce is not allowed to be eaten ...". It shows that Shandong cuisine at that time has paid great attention to science and hygiene, and also pursued the artistry of knife work and seasoning, which has reached an increasingly refined level.
During the Qin and Han dynasties, Shandong's economy was unprecedentedly prosperous. Landlords and rich people are criss-crossed by horses and chariots, living in pavilions in Qiongtai and living a luxurious life of "singing and dancing". According to the "Portrait of Zhucheng Front Balcony Kitchen", we can see that there are all kinds of livestock, poultry and game hanging on it, and there are fetching water, cooking stoves, chopping wood, slaughtering sheep, pigs, chickens, dogs, fish, meat, washing, stirring, baking cakes and kebabs below. The complexity of the scene depicted in this painting and the fine division of labor are no less than the whole process of cooking operation, and can really be comparable to modern cooking processing. The Northern Wei Dynasty's Book of Qi Yao Min comprehensively summarized the cooking techniques in the Yellow River basin, mainly in Shandong. Not only the cooking methods of frying, roasting, frying, boiling, roasting, steaming, pickling, waxing and stewing are described in detail, but also the cooking methods of famous dishes such as "roast duck" and "roast suckling pig". This book has a profound influence on the formation and development of Shandong cuisine. After the improvement and tempering of Sui, Tang, Song and Jin Dynasties, Shandong cuisine gradually became the representative of northern cuisine, and even the "northern food store" in Shandong in the Song Dynasty flourished for a long time.
During this long period of time, Wubao, Duan Wenchang, Duan and Gong Dou were all famous chefs or gourmets, who made important contributions to the development of Shandong cuisine. In the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, Shandong cuisine had a new development. At this time, Shandong cuisine entered the court in large quantities and became a treasure of imperial cuisine, which was widely circulated throughout the north. Li Hong, Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty, visited Confucius' House eight times. On his fifth visit to Confucius' House 177 1, he married his daughter to Confucius' 72nd generation grandson, Kong Xianpei, and gave Confucius a set of "full banquet" with silver, copper and tin antique pictographic fire and water tableware. This has further promoted the development of the wonderful "Confucian cuisine" in Shandong cuisine to a high, refined and sharp direction.
After a period of development and evolution, Shandong cuisine has gradually formed two schools: Qingdao, Jiaodong School represented by Fushan Gang and Jinan School including Dezhou and Tai 'an. And there are elegant and luxurious Confucian dishes that can be called "Chun Xue", as well as various local famous dishes and flavor snacks dotted between them. Jiaodong cuisine is good at frying, frying, roasting, frying and steaming; The taste is fresh and light; Most of the ingredients are shrimp, conch, abalone, oyster yellow, kelp and other seafood. One of the famous dishes is "abalone with original shell", and the main ingredient is Zhenhai abalone from Changshan Islands. Cooked by traditional Shandong cuisine, it is delicious, tender and appetizing. Other famous dishes include shark's fin with crab roe, dried scallop with hibiscus, roasted sea cucumber, roasted shrimp, fried oysters and steamed Cargill fish.
Jinan school is famous for soup, supplemented by frying, frying, burning and frying. The dishes are clear, fresh, crisp and tender. Among them, there are clear soup jambalaya and milk soup ordinary dishes, which are fresh and elegant and unique. Sweet and sour yellow river carp with tender inside and burnt outside, crispy pot tofu with oil, and rare vegetarian dishes all show the skill of Jinan school. During the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, the owner of Jiuhualin Restaurant in Jinan cleaned the pig's large intestine, cooked it with spices until it was soft and crisp, cut it into pieces, and added soy sauce, sugar and spices to make a rich and fat braised large intestine, which was famous throughout the city. Later the production was improved. Blanch the cleaned large intestine in boiling water, fry it in an oil pan, and then add seasonings and spices for cooking. This dish tastes more delicious. Literati call it "Jiuzhuan Large Intestine", and because of its exquisite production, it is the Taoist "Jiuzhuan Lian Jin Dan".
"Eight immortals crossing the sea to make arhats" was the first course of Confucius' birthday banquet, and shark's fin, sea cucumber, abalone, fish bones, fish belly, shrimp, asparagus and ham were selected as the "eight immortals". Chop the chicken breast into mud and make it into arhat money at the bottom of the bowl, which is called "arhat" Put it in a circular porcelain jar, arranged in eight directions, put Luohan chicken in the middle, sprinkle with ham slices, ginger slices and sauerkraut leaves, and then pour in the cooked chicken soup. In the past, when this dish was served, it would be sung in an opera. While tasting delicious food, I went to the opera, which was very lively.
Jiangsu is located in the southeast coast of China and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. The climate here is mild, the land is fertile, and it is rich in rice, wheat, cotton, silkworm, fish and other local products. It is known as the "land of plenty". There are fish in spring, fish in summer, fat ducks in autumn and vegetables in winter. All kinds of eggs, fruits and vegetables, aquatic products, vegetables and local products are listed all the year round, which provides favorable conditions for the formation and development of Jiangsu cuisine. After a long-term evolution and development, Jiangsu's food culture has accumulated rich cooking experience and improved cooking technology, and gradually formed Jiangsu cuisine with Huaiyang, Nanjing and Suzhou and Wuxi as the main parts.
Jiangsu cuisine has a long history and a wide variety. According to Historical Records, Wu Yue Chun Qiu and other books, as early as 2400 years ago, there were different cooking methods such as grilled fish, steamed fish and fish fillets. Cooking with ducks originated earlier. Duck was a very popular food in Jinling 1400 years ago.
Because Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine are similar to Zhejiang cuisine, they are collectively called Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine. It is mainly composed of three local dishes: Nanjing, Yangzhou and Suzhou. As early as more than two thousand years ago, Wu people were good at cooking fried fish, steamed fish and sliced fish. one
More than a thousand years ago, duck was a delicacy in Jinling. During the Southern Song Dynasty, Jiangsu cuisine and Zhejiang cuisine were the two pillars of "Southern cuisine". Su cuisine is good at stewing, stewing, steaming and frying. It pays attention to mixing soup and keeping the original juice. Its taste is fresh, thick but not greasy, light but not thin, crisp and boneless without losing shape, smooth and tender without losing flavor.
In the Qing Dynasty, Su cuisine was popular all over the country, and it had the same status as Sichuan cuisine and Cantonese cuisine. Huaiyang cuisine, a branch of Jiangsu cuisine, was once a palace cuisine. Most of the dishes on the state banquet now belong to Huaiyang cuisine. Therefore, Huaiyang cuisine is also called national cuisine. Suzhou cuisine is also very popular in history. When Emperor Qianlong was on his southern tour, he had been to Deyuelou in Suzhou and was very happy after tasting Jiangnan cuisine. He called Suzhou the best restaurant in the world.
Nanjing cuisine tastes mellow, delicate and delicate; Yangzhou cuisine is light and palatable, and the knife work is fine; Suzhou food tastes sweet and elegant. Its famous dishes include roast workshop, crystal pig's feet, stewed lion's head with crab powder, Jinling meatballs, white cabbage, stewed chicken with yellow mud, stewed chicken house, salted duck (Jinling salted duck), golden fragrant cake, dried chicken soup, raw bran with meat, anchovies, three sets of ducks, Wuxi meat bones, pig's head with sauce recommended by Lu manuscripts, and Pei county dog meat.
Jiangsu cuisine is one of the main traditional cuisines in China and enjoys a high reputation abroad.
From Liangzhu in the suburb of Hangzhou to Hemudu in Yuyao, an ancient site of human activities, it is proved from the bones of pigs, cows, sheep, chickens and ducks that the cooking materials of Zhejiang cuisine were quite rich four or five thousand years ago. Traditional famous dishes such as Dongpo meat, bacon, honey sauce fire recipe and Huatuo chicken are all inseparable from these cooking materials.
Zhejiang cuisine, referred to as Zhejiang cuisine for short, is one of the eight major cuisines in China, with beautiful scenery, rich products and delicious food. So the proverb says, "There is heaven in the world and Suzhou and Hangzhou in the world." Zhejiang province is located on the coast of the East China Sea, with dense water networks in the north, and is known as the land of plenty in the south of the Yangtze River. The southwest hills are undulating, rich in food and game. The eastern coastal fishing grounds are densely populated and rich in aquatic resources. There are more than 500 kinds of economic fish, shellfish and aquatic products, with the total output value ranking first in China. Rich in products, delicacies, unique features, known far and near.
Zhejiang cuisine system is composed of four local schools represented by Hangzhou, Ningbo, Shaoxing and Wenzhou.
Fujian cuisine is one of the eight major cuisines in China, which is gradually formed through the integration and exchange of Han culture in the Central Plains and local ancient Yue culture. According to the cookware pottery tripod and continuous stove used by Fujian ancestors in Neolithic age preserved in Tanshishan Neolithic site in Hengxin Village, Sugarcane Town, Minhou County, it is proved that Fuzhou area has entered the cooking age from baking food 500 years ago. Fujian is a famous hometown of overseas Chinese in China. The new food varieties and some novel condiments introduced by overseas Chinese from overseas have also had an impact on enriching Fujian's food culture and enriching the contents of Fujian's cooking system. After long-term contact with overseas people, especially the people of Nanyang Islands, Fujian people's overseas food customs gradually penetrated into their food life, thus making Fujian cuisine a unique and open cuisine.
Fujian cuisine, also known as Fujian cuisine, is one of the eight major cuisines in China. It originated in Minhou County, Fujian Province, and formed three schools in the later development: Fuzhou, Minnan and Minxi. Fuzhou cuisine, including Quanzhou cuisine and Xiamen cuisine, tastes fresh, sweet and sour, and pays attention to the freshness of soup. Minnan cuisine, including Zhangzhou, pays attention to seasoning and spicy. Western Fujian cuisine, including Changting and Southwest, is salty and spicy, and its cooking is mostly delicacies. Therefore, Fujian cuisine has three characteristics, one is better at seasoning with red grain, the other is better at making soup, and the third is better at using sweet and sour. This tradition has not changed even if it entered Shanghai and was infected with Shanghai flavor. Fujian cuisine entered Shanghai in the early 1920s. There was only one Minjiang Hotel a few years ago. Now, after the adjustment of outlets, Minjiang Hotel has become history, only the Capital Hotel and Fujian cuisine. In addition to the "Buddha jumps over the wall", there are also seven-star fish balls, five or six houses, snow chicken, people's livelihood fruit, drunken spareribs, braised fish chops and so on, all of which have different flavors.
The flavor of Anhui cuisine includes the characteristics of dishes in southern Anhui, along the Yangtze River and along the Huaihe River. There are Huangshan, Gexian (Guweizhou), Tunxi and other places in southern Anhui. Pay attention to firepower, be good at cooking game, weigh heavy oil, be simple and affordable, and keep the original flavor. Many dishes are stewed, roasted and steamed with charcoal. The soup is clear and mellow, and the original pot is full of fragrance. Although there are not many aquatic products in southern Anhui, the cooked and salty "osmanthus fish" is well known.
The dishes along the Yangtze River are represented by Wuhu and Anqing, and then spread to Hefei. They are good at cooking fresh rivers and livestock, paying attention to knife work and color and shape. Make good use of sugar to flavor, especially smoked vegetables. The dishes along the Huaihe River are represented by Bengbu, Suxian and Fuyang. The dishes are salty and spicy, the soup is thick and heavy, and it is also seasoned with coriander.
The famous dishes of Anhui cuisine are Wuwei smoked duck, Mao Feng smoked sperm fish, Fuliji roast chicken, Fang La fish, twelve cakes of chicken, cloud meat, mung bean pancakes and butterfly noodles.
Xiaoxiang flavor represented by Hunan cuisine is one of the eight major cuisines in China. Hunan province is located in the south-central part, on the south bank of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. The climate here is warm, with abundant rainfall and sunshine, and the four seasons are distinct. There is Hengshan Mountain in Nanyue in the south and vast Dongting in the north. Four rivers, Hunan, Guizhou, Yuan and Cheng, pass through the whole province. Rich natural conditions are conducive to the development of agriculture, animal husbandry, sideline and fishery, so the products are particularly rich. Xiangbei is a famous Dongting Lake plain, which is rich in fish, shrimp and xianglian, and is a famous land of fish and rice. According to Records of the Historian, Chu is "rich in terrain and has no hunger". For a long time, the proverb "the lake is wide and ripe, and the world is full" has been widely circulated. There are hills and basins in the southeast of Hunan, and agriculture, animal husbandry and by-products are very developed. Xiangxi is mountainous and rich in bamboo shoots, mushrooms and delicacies. Rich products provide exquisite raw materials for diet. Famous specialties are: Wuling soft-shelled turtle, Junshan silver needle, Qiyang basin fish, Dongting scarab, Taoyuan chicken, Linwu duck, Wugang goose, Xianglian, whitebait bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and mountain delicacies in western Hunan. In the long-term food culture and cooking practice, Hunan people have created a variety of dishes. According to research, as early as the Western Han Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, Changsha was able to cook various styles of delicacies with various raw materials such as animals, poultry and fish through cooking methods such as steaming, boiling, boiling and roasting. With the development of history and the continuous exchange of cooking skills, three local flavors of Hunan cuisine have gradually formed: Xiangjiang River Basin, Dongting Lake Area and Xiangxi Mountain Area.
Xiangxi cuisine is famous for its fragrance, sour and spicy taste, and it is rich in mountain flavor. Hunan cuisine has a long history. As early as the Han dynasty, a kind of cuisine has been formed, and its cooking skills have reached a fairly high level. Hunan is located in the south-central part of China, with warm climate, abundant rainfall and superior natural conditions. Xiangxi is mountainous and rich in bamboo shoots, mushrooms and delicacies; Southeast Hunan is hilly and basin, with developed domestic animal husbandry and by-fishery; Xiangbei is a famous Dongting Lake plain, and it is known as "Land of Fish and Rice". The Records of the Historian recorded that Chu was "rich in terrain and had no hunger".