January 09, 2017

Experiencing Hangzhou Style Zhe Cuisine in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province (East China)

If there's any distinction between Shanghai and Hangzhou cuisine, it would have to be that the former is beloved for its vastly rich, flavorful taste. In contrast, Hangbang cai (Hangzhou cuisine) is appreciated for its subtle taste and seasoning.

In an interview with gbtimes.com, Hu Zhongying, one of China’s most acclaimed chefs and a leading figure in the Hangzhou culinary world doesn't just mention one but eight types of cuisines integral to China.

As expected, Hangzhou cuisine is one of them. "The seven others are Lu cuisine from Shandong, Chuan cuisine from Sichuan, Yue cuisine from Guangdong, Huaiyang cuisine from Jiangsu, and the cuisines of Hunan, Fujian, and Anhui," explains Lu.

"If we summarise the eight Chinese cuisines, we simply say that it’s spicy in the east, sour in the west, sweet in the south, and salty in the north.”

According to Hu...

"Hangzhou is in the east and south of China, and our cuisine is light and mild and slightly sweet. In the south we like to add a bit of sugar when we cook - this helps to bring the fresh flavors out.

Hangzhou cuisine is unique in its characteristic[s]. It’s light in salt, sugar, cooking oil, and starch. The taste is mild, light and delicate, meeting modern people’s needs.”

As a blogger, I can't even fully express how extremely thrilling it was to experience Hangbang Cai up close.

Relax Hotel Hangzhou

Our initial immersion to Hangzhou Style Zhe Cuisine happened the night we arrived at Relax Hotel Hangzhou situated in the intersection of Qianjiang Road and East Wangjiang Road.

We feasted on a variety of dishes native to the enchanting and historic city of Hangzhou which is considered to be one of China's seven ancient capitals.

Let's begin.

1ST DISH: A Variation of the Famous Longjing Prawns
Initially, this dish consists of just live river prawns blanketed in egg white, starch and fried at medium-low temperature for 15 seconds. It is then briskly stir-fried over maximum heat with boiling water steeped in Longjing tea leaves and Shaoxing wine.

The World of Chinese.com tells of an interesting tale of how the Longjing Shrimps came into being.

Qianlong (乾隆) Emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1616 A.D. – 1911 A.D.) was known to enjoy traveling incognito to Southern China.

"During one such journey, he stopped at a farmhouse and was offered a cup of tea. The brew carried such a delicious fragrance that he grabbed some tea leaves from the farmer’s basket before he left. Later, he visited a restaurant in town and gave the tea to the waiter to prepare. By accident, a corner of his dragon robe, a garb that could be worn only by the emperor, gave away his identity. The waiter scuttled in to tell the chef the news. Reeling from the shock, the chef mistook the tea leaves for chopped green onion and mixed them with the shrimp. The dish turned out surprisingly well and greatly pleased the emperor."

Relax Hotel decided to shake this time-old recipe a bit by adding peas, corn, ham, and diced carrots to the shrimp. The sweet and salty taste added a layer of energy to the otherwise lightness that the original recipe is known for.

A Variation of Longjing Shrimps at Relax Hotel Hangzhou

2ND DISH: Hangzhou Suyu

Hangzhou crispy fish in special sauce. This cold Hangzhou dish is made from Hangzhou's impressive West Lake.

Hangzhou Suyu

3RD DISH: West Lake Fish in Vinegar Sauce (Xi Hu Cu Yu)

According to Ref Chef Master ...

"In Hangzhou, their dishes are usually named after a famous place or a famous person and usually have some fascinating stories behind them. Xi hu Cu Yu is sometimes called "Sister Song's Treasure". The interesting story behind it is about the death of the older brother, and Sister Song, the wife cooked the fish with sweet and sour sauce to stimulate the appetite of the grieving younger brother. The sauce is sweet and sour, as a symbol of the sweetness of life, and sour to remind them of the sour oppression of the commoners and of their grieving. Having eaten the fish with sweet and sour sauce, the younger brother left town. He was greatly moved by the significance of the dish he just ate and he made sure to earn fame and fortune before he went back to Hangzhou to avenge his elder brother and to look after his sister-in-law."