A Brief History of Cantonese Cuisine

Cantonese food has a long history back a few thousand years. Let's ride on the time machine and fly through its development in the next few minutes.

I. Ancient Period

According to archaeological findings, traces of primitive human eating have been found in Guangdong Guangfu culture sites about 8,000 years ago, one of which is the use of animal bones to cook food. In the early Neolithic culture sites also used animal bones to cook food. The earliest trace of cooked food can be traced back to Panyu City built by Zhao Tuo in the 17th century B.C. in South Vietnam, Guangdong. Panyu City was originally a separate settlement village, and the remains of the rammed earth walls and some houses of Panyu City still prove that the site existed in the 17th century BC. It is believed that "cooked food" was already available to humans 6,000 years ago.

II. Pre-Qin Period

According to the Rites of the Zhou, there were three government offices in Guangzhou during the Western Zhou period: Nanhai, Dongguan and Panyu.

During this period, Guangzhou was still in the nomadic society mainly for hunting.

However, from the archaeological data unearthed so far, there was already a large amount of pottery for cooking. Among the pottery, some pottery li, pottery stove and stone mortar with culinary significance were also found.

This shows that before the late Western Zhou Dynasty, the Guangzhou area already had quite developed cooking techniques and abundant ingredients.

III. Qin and Han Dynasties to Tang and Song Dynasties

From the Qin and Han dynasties to the Tang and Song dynasties, the cooking methods of Guangdong cuisine had become mature.

From the Qin Dynasty to the Western Han Dynasty, the Guangdong region had a more developed food culture.

During the Qin and Han dynasties, people in the southern coastal areas and the Lingnan region made great improvements in the cooking methods of food in order to pursue the taste of food.

In this period, Guangdong cuisine had begun to mature.

IV. Ming and Qing Dynasties

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, with the development of Guangzhou's economy and culture, its food gradually received the attention of local diners from all walks of life.

For example, the famous restaurant "Heshun House" in Guangzhou during the Qing Dynasty was famous for its "abalone sauce with pork".

In the Qing Dynasty, Cantonese people had the habit of adding sugar to their dishes, such as "sweet and sour pork" and "fish and shark's fin".

In the Ming Dynasty, the Cantonese people not only innovated in cooking methods but also began to appear various dishes and dishes.

For example, Zhang Jiusi, the imperial chef of Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, cooked many delicious dishes for the emperor; during the Wanli period, Wang Tingxian, a famous Guangdong chef, created "money belly" made from ham and pork belly; later known as the originator of Guangdong cuisine --Ltd.; and "Chaozhou Cuisine", which is classified as Guangdong's culinary heritage, was created before the creation of Li Jinji.

V. Late Qing and Republican Periods

In 1905, Sun Yat-sen founded the Xing Zhong Hui in Guangzhou and launched an armed uprising to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, and established a revolutionary regime overseas.

Overseas Chinese and foreign students in Guangdong returned to China to participate in the revolutionary and construction cause, and at the same time contributed to the spread of revolutionary ideas.

Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau became famous overseas Chinese hometowns and tourist destinations.

After the Xinhai Revolution, Cantonese cooking was further developed with the improvement of the "Four Great Pieces" of Cantonese cuisine.

From 1906 to 1910, the first catering stores appeared in Guangzhou.

VI. Since the founding of New China to the present

With the development of economy and the improvement of people's living standard, more and more friends from all over the world have come to Guangdong.

With the economic development and improvement of living standards, more and more people from all over the world are coming to Guangdong. Guangdong people are also more and more sophisticated about food, not only in traditional dishes, but also in the quality of ingredients, using more modern cooking techniques.

Representative dishes of Cantonese cuisine: Buddha jumping wall, white-burned shrimp, roast goose, jelly pot, phoenix claw with black bean sauce, dry-fried beef river, etc.

Representative restaurants of Cantonese cuisine: Guangzhou Restaurant (1963), Panxi Restaurant (1967), Taotaoju (1978), etc.

Guangdong people still have a deep concern for food, but with the continuous development of Cantonese cuisine, Guangdong people are constantly exploring new ideas and trying to make more delicious dishes with more fresh ingredients!

Throughout Chinese history, Guangdong's culinary culture has always maintained its uniqueness and the development of its culinary skills is unique in the history of China and the world. Since ancient times, Guangdong ancestors have mastered primitive cooking techniques. For example, the ape, the "god of all fruits" in primitive society, was an animal that could eat, which means that it already knew how to use plant fruits and animal meat to satisfy hunger at that time, and after the Han Dynasty, the ancestors in Lingnan already started to use plant fruits and wood and animal. This shows that Lingnan had already developed a food culture a long time ago.