Rice is an important part of almost every Chinese meal. Here we explore rice as the staple food of China from very ancient times until today, and its centrality to economics and culture.
Rice in Chinese Agrarian and Culinary Culture
The Chinese people have over 4 thousand years of change and development of agriculture, using labour-intensive methods of agriculture. Scholars see this agrarian system as based on the idea of “recycling”, ie, this farming system did not waste anything since almost everything was recycled back into farming. For example, farming techniques included the collection of human/animal manure as fertilizer for the fields, and non-edible parts of the crop such as rice-husk used to feed farm animals. The basic Chinese diet consisted of a nutritional balance of vegetable, meats and grains, including rice.
Rice at the Chinese Meal
A Chinese meal is much more than just food on a plate, it shows important elements of life. Family gatherings and celebrations are marked by cooking and serving special foods. There is a famous Chinese saying that no business transaction is complete without having a meal and that no family visit ends without sharing a meal.The character of a meal also depends on the type of social occasion. For instance, at a banquet the number and types of dishes show the social status of the host, but also their cultural specificity. Formal dinners for a Hong Kong family would include a series of courses starting with soup , vegetable dish, meat dish, fish dish, staple dish (rice) and many variety of mixes of vegetable/meat/seafood dishes. It would always end with soup (sweet dessert soup).
The Chinese words for meal can be directly translated as cooked rice “fan” and to have meal would be to eat rice. Rice in some form is present at almost all Chinese meals, whether a formal or everyday one. As one of my interview subjects stated “Rice is part of Chinese tradition, because we (the Chinese people) have grown the crop for centuries and continue to grow and eat it. It is part of our lives and identity.”
The Chinese words for meal can be directly translated as cooked rice “fan” and to have meal would be to eat rice. Rice in some form is present at almost all Chinese meals, whether a formal or everyday one. As one of my interview subjects stated “Rice is part of Chinese tradition, because we (the Chinese people) have grown the crop for centuries and continue to grow and eat it. It is part of our lives and identity.”
A new generation of Chinese meals
New generation Chinese-Canadians such as myself and my friends have jobs and busy lifestyles. The traditional and formal Chinese meal consists of many components which require much preparation time. The average Chinese-Canadian adult nowadays tends to eat a simple and convenient breakfast. Most lunches are eaten outside the home, often on the move. Dinner becomes the only meal where families can follow the standard Chinese pattern. Even then, we tend to eat rice daily. Rice may be eaten in the form of porridge for breakfast, as steamed rice in a lunchbox, and as a staple for dinner.
At the supermarkets, where my interview subjects and I shop, rice is sold in bulk bags that never expire if properly stored. It is easy to cook, tastes great, and is cheap compared to vegetables and meats.We can also make rice in as little as fifteen minutes with a press of a button in the rice cooker. Modern technology also brings to consumers Convenient-Involvement Foods (CFIs): frozen meats with pre-cooked dishes and steamed rice as the starch. Sold in most GTA Chinese supermarkets in the frozen food aisles, they are cheap, fast, and easy to prepare meals.
At the supermarkets, where my interview subjects and I shop, rice is sold in bulk bags that never expire if properly stored. It is easy to cook, tastes great, and is cheap compared to vegetables and meats.We can also make rice in as little as fifteen minutes with a press of a button in the rice cooker. Modern technology also brings to consumers Convenient-Involvement Foods (CFIs): frozen meats with pre-cooked dishes and steamed rice as the starch. Sold in most GTA Chinese supermarkets in the frozen food aisles, they are cheap, fast, and easy to prepare meals.