Food, Food, Foodie, Food

Well the big thing to blog about right now is food. Well I was in Canada I often remember hearing people tell me how Canadian Chinese food is nothing like real Chinese food. First indication is the need for us to put Canadian in front of the word Chinese, obviously its an adaptation of their food.

I will say this, prior to moving here I was terrified to try the food. I am a picky eater, and I am to now thankful to say, I was a picky eater. I was also warned that Chongqing loves their spicy food, and well I use to hate spicy food, however, now I feel like I conquered that hate. Let me tell you something really quick, I still dislike some of the food, however, I don’t order it, or I simply don’t eat it. For example, my Chinese family occasionally will make dishes with something called Bittermelon in it, and I HATE BITTERMELON. I don’t even know what this green melon, or pepper thing is, but it really is bitter and gross. I try not to eat it. However, past that I LOVE CHONGQING FOOD.

Now there is a reason I said Chongqing food, because having been to other parts of China I can now say I am in love with Chongqing food and even find myself missing it when I go travel. And here are some reasons why I love their food.

Yes, it is rice every day and every meal, but that is okay. With rice you get all sorts of other things to go with it. They make most of their food with oil, well by make I mean cook, which sucks, but its soo tasty. Next, they love spice, which, I’m sure for those of you who don’t like spice that doesn’t sound appealing, but this food is amazing. Their spice isn’t just hot, and burn your tongue gross, its flavourful, its like eating the unicorns and rainbows. They also love peanuts and put that nut in everything. Lucky for me I am not allergic. They also love sweet breads, not like our type of wheat bread, but like cake-style bread. Which can be great, however, there is no luck making a good old classic sandwich.

And lets talk about the food Chongqing is most famous for: HOT POT!
So for those of you who don’t know what Hot Pot is I suggest trying it in China Town in Toronto or in Waterloo. So Hot Pot is exactly that, its a hot pot. You can be given one pot with a single broth, classically its spicy, or you can split the pot into two different broths. After the broth is brought out it sits on a warmer to keep the broth warm and continually cooking. Its important that it keeps cooking because you are given all the ingredients, or items you are going to eat RAW. Now that is pretty cool. The meat, whatever you order is not cooked, nor are the vegetables. You can order rice on the side, and other things that you won’t put into the broth to cook.
Now I’ve seen a lot of things put into a hot pot, and sometimes I am not sure what I am eating and I’ve learned not to ask and just eat.

Some other cool things about Chinese cooking is the freshness. So at home most of the meals are bought, prepared and cooked that day. Left-overs are not an option, and frozen meat and veggies are a no go. My Chinese family will often buy a living chicken or other small animals and kill and do all that stuff at home to put in a meal for the evening. Most Chinese people also seem to recognize the health benefits of the food they eat, or the traditional reason and or belief behind eating certain foods. For example, the lotus root, which is delicious, has holes in it and the holes would help make you smarter. It was able to do this because your thoughts and ideas had more holes to go through which meant you were capable of having more thoughts, and apparently it helps circulate both air and blood better (through these holes as well).

Now I am not saying I will be moving back to Canada and won’t be a pick eater, I just know I prefer Chinese food over Canadian food any day. The taste is just so much more lively and delicious.