From Mandarin to Szechuan: China is taking a lead role on the world business stage. What style of Chinese cuisine might become the next big trend?

Prepared Foods, August, 2006 by J. Hugh McEvoy

Gourmet Chinese cuisine is growing in popularity, driven by China's huge and continuing international economic growth. Which of China's many ancient culinary styles will be most likely to become the next big trend? America's culinary savvy consumers have begun to develop preferences regarding Chinese food. Understanding which Chinese culinary styles best suit those preferences will give us the chef's edge in developing new items.

Many self-proclaimed experts in Asian cuisine will insist that there are eight styles of cooking in modern China, based on the eight geographic regions. For Western diners, the differences may be too abstract to be clearly defined. Even the most experienced of American-born "foodies" have trouble separating the cuisine of China into four styles--Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western. So many ingredients and techniques are shared by every region that, to the average American, the styles of Chinese cooking can best be divided roughly into two: Northern, or Mandarin style and Southern, or Szechuan (Sichuan) style.

Even these two basic styles can be hard to pin down. When asked to comment on the differences between the two, Seattle Post-Intelligencer food editor Hsiao-Ching Chou, an expert writer on Chinese cuisine, said, "As there is no region of China called Mandarin, and Szechuan is a province, I could not possibly make a culinary comparison." Luckily for us, there are a few well-known chefs who can help us define the basic differences between Mandarin cuisine (Northern) and Szechuan cuisine (Southern).

Executive chef Gabriele Montevecchio of The Great Wall restaurant at the Sheraton Hotel in Beijing says, "The typical foods in Beijing and Szechuan are two completely different things. Beijing's cuisine (Mandarin) is not too spicy. It is full-bodied and rich. Southern Chinese (Szechuan) recipes are characterized by the Szechuan peppercorn. This pepper-spice is made into a paste, or just fried and infused in hot oil. Black beans served this way are everywhere in Szechuan province--from morning breakfast to lunch and dinner.

"Westerners rarely can tolerate such intensely spicy heat in foods. Most people can cope with spicy flavors from chiles, but not the Szechuan peppercorns! I have come to know many people in China, including many Westerners living in Szechuan and Chengdu (the capital of Szechuan province). After years, they still can not cope with the levels of spice used by the local people. The Westerners do come to love the spicy flavors, but they use them very mildly."

An Expert's Insight

Celebrity chef Martin Yan may be America's most knowledgeable expert in Chinese cuisine. Born and trained in China, chef Yan has cooked professionally, taught, written about and lectured on the many styles of Asian cooking for more than 40 years. His knowledge of Chinese culinary techniques is unsurpassed. A personal friend of this contributor, chef Yan offers wonderful insight.

At the time of this interview, chef Yan was performing a special dinner function for the high rollers at Harrah's Casino Resort in Reno, Nev., getting ready to fly immediately after to Beijing to participate in a Chinese culinary development project. He says of today's cuisine trends in China:

"Cuisine in China can be divided into to four basic styles, based on the four geographic regions of the country. These are North, South, East and West. However, actually we can separate the basic cuisines of China into two primary styles, Northern and Southern. The Yangtze River, famous for the Three Gorges, can roughly divide China. Everything below the river is Southern China. Everything above the river is Northern. Everything is different between the two regions: language, culture, religions and, of course, cooking styles vary from North to South.

"Northern Chinese cuisine also can be called Mandarin-style cuisine. The North comprises Beijing and all major cities north of the Yangtze River. The cooking of this region reflects the culture, climate, history and attitudes of the North. The main difference you will notice between Mandarin and Southern cooking styles is the saltiness. Mandarin cuisine uses salt to highlight the natural flavors of northern ingredients. You also will see a focus on wheat-based foods used as the cornerstone that meals are built around. Noodles and dumplings are an example of those delicious wheat-based Northern Chinese menu items. Flavors are pure and direct, often emphasized with the saltiness of soy sauce, either light or dark.

"Southern Chinese cuisine also can be called Szechuan-style cuisine for the purposes of this article. Though the Szechuan province is only one part of Southern China, its style of cooking is important enough and similar enough to other Southern Chinese styles and familiar enough to Western diners to represent Southern Chinese cuisine for this discussion.

"Szechuan cooking is more flavorful and more highly spiced than Mandarin-style foods. Szechuan peppercorns, dried and even pickled chili peppers, and garlic often are used to create intense flavors. As is seen in other hot, humid locations around the world, the style of eating has been flavored by the climate. People living in sultry climates everywhere have developed hot, spicy recipes. It seems the closer a people live to the equator, the hotter and spicier their local cuisine has become.