On the differences between Chinese and western food cultures

On the differences between Chinese and western food cultures

In all fields of society, people always touch or use paper. With the help of papers, we can discuss problems and conduct academic research. How to write a paper to avoid stepping on thunder? The following is my collection of papers about the differences between Chinese and western food cultures, for reference only, hoping to help you.

1 summary of the differences between Chinese and western food cultures;

By expounding the differences between Chinese and western food cultures, this paper analyzes the differences between Chinese and western food cultures in philosophical systems, values and ways of thinking, so as to promote the integration of Chinese and western cultures and let more people understand the culture behind food through diet.

Key words:

Chinese and western cultures; Food culture; Difference comparison

When it comes to food culture, people always think of "eating" first. Yes, food is indeed the first need for human survival and development, and it is one of the basic forms of social life. But with the word "culture", diet is not only as simple as "eating", but also includes the whole diet culture, which is the creative behavior and achievement of human beings in diet. All thoughts, consciousness, ideas, philosophy, religion and art related to human diet belong to the category of food culture.

First, the differences between Chinese and Western food culture

The most obvious difference between Chinese and western food cultures is the utensils used. Westerners regard knives and forks as tableware. Obviously, different specifications of knives and forks are used in different ways and occasions and cannot be mixed.

The dining table in China is not as complicated as that in the west. Although it is a simple pair of chopsticks, it plays a very important role in food culture: chopsticks can be our cooking tools or a blender for every household. Chopsticks are undoubtedly needed to beat an egg and make a drink. Compared with such strict norms in the West, chopsticks in China are indeed much more casual.

Influenced by scientific orientation, the whole process of western food cooking must be carried out in strict accordance with scientific norms. The cooking process and method of each dish are almost exactly the same, the seasoning used will be accurate to grams, and the cooking time will be accurate to seconds.

Westerners' choice of food is very standardized. They mainly focus on meat. When cooking, they often eat whole meat or whole birds as their staple food, and don't eat internal organs, thinking that internal organs are discarded materials. The choice of vegetables is also relatively simple. Vegetables are used as decorative AIDS in the diet, so vegetables are mostly decorative tools in the diet of westerners.

Compared with westerners, people in China are much more casual in food selection and cooking methods. Chefs in China can also turn it into a delicious dish. Such dishes abound, such as stir-fried pork loin, rotten pork belly, fried pork liver with leeks and so on. When it comes to cooking methods, it is endless. Different from westerners' "accurate to the gram" and "accurate to the second", China people have always been "arbitrary", emphasizing grasping the results by experience. People in China like vegetarianism, and there are far more kinds of vegetables than in the west, so the ingredients are varied. Take fried pork liver as an example. It can be fried pork liver with green onions, fried pork liver with green peppers or fried pork liver with leeks. Each dish has its own flavor.

Westerners pay attention to the nutritional value of food in food culture, so they advocate eating raw. They think that high-temperature cooking will destroy the nutrition of food itself. Only raw food can retain the natural attributes and original flavor of food to the maximum extent, so the nutritional value they pursue can also be well preserved.

China's food culture pays more attention to the taste of food. "Delicious" is the first meaning of China's food culture. Therefore, China people will use all technical means, cooking methods and seasoning methods to make their food delicious. In China, frying, boiling, stewing, stewing, roasting, steaming, frying, frying, stewing and frying are all very common cooked food cooking techniques.

Second, the cultural roots behind the differences

Philosophical System: Metaphysics and Moderation Principle

The main feature of western philosophy system is metaphysics, that is, looking at the world with an isolated, static and one-sided view, thinking that everything is isolated and will never change; If there is any change, it is only an increase or decrease in quantity and a change in position. The reason for this increase or decrease or change is not inside things, but outside things. Reflected in the food culture, what you see is what you get. No matter the menu or the decoration and setting of food, it is presented to people in the most direct way, pursuing truth, without gorgeous embellishment, only reflecting the original attributes of food, which coincides with the western principle of doing things. Under such a philosophical background, it encourages westerners to take "nutritional value" as the first meaning of diet, regardless of the artistic, creative and clear-cut goals of diet.

Different from westerners, one of the most striking features of China's traditional philosophy is fuzziness and unpredictability. Unlike western metaphysics, it does not pursue the objectivity and authenticity of things, but emphasizes what you hear is what you see. On the contrary, it emphasizes moderation, overall coordination and a "degree" Reflected in the food culture, China people regard "delicious" as the first meaning of food. In cooking, China people pay attention to the integration of the whole, not as accurate as westerners. They pay attention to coordinating all parts of a dish by experience to form a delicious dish. The experience is vague. The same dish, the same chef, may make a different taste every time. Grasp the whole dish by experience, and pursue the randomness and artistry of cooking technology. This is the traditional philosophy of China people-vague and perfect.

Values: individualism and collectivism

Westerners advocate individualistic values, and personal goals are higher than loyalty to groups. In other words, everyone only needs to be responsible for himself, and does not need to obey any other collective. He can choose his favorite group according to his own preferences and needs, but this choice is not permanent, and he can make new choices at any time because of changes in his own needs. For example, change the church of prayer, change the employer, and so on. Reflected in the food culture, the most remarkable thing is that westerners practice separate meals.

In contrast, China people advocate collectivism. In China culture, people advocate modesty and politeness, and don't like to be competitive. Social atmosphere often forbids individuals who are too prominent. As the saying goes, "people should be above people." In the food culture, this collectivism concept is really influenced by China's traditional thought. People in China like to hold banquets with round tables, which formally embodies the atmosphere of unity, courtesy and enjoyment. Food is placed in the center of the dining table, which is not only the object of appreciation and tasting, but also the medium of exchanging feelings. In such a banquet atmosphere, diet is no longer the main purpose of the banquet, but emotional communication is the center of the banquet. Different from the straightforward way of communication in the West, the purpose of China people's diet depends on the emotional touch, communication and singing of a large group of people.

Mode of thinking: individuality and wholeness

Westerners pay attention to the development of personality and emphasize the maximum display of personality in the collective. They pursue differences, seek differences in everything, think that everyone is unique, and emphasize that everything in the world is an independent individual and has no connection with each other. They believe that individuality and individual independence are one of the driving forces for the development of human society. Therefore, their views and considerations on things often start from personality, and westerners put the development of unique personality under the premise of all behavioral activities. This is undoubtedly reflected in their food culture. Although different dishes and decorations are on the same plate, they are really independent and have outstanding personality. There is no reconciliation. Meat is meat, vegetables are vegetables and potatoes are potatoes. They have distinct personalities and clear tastes, and will not influence each other and mix with each other. In cooking, different ingredients in the same plate are also processed separately and will not be cooked together, which reflects the respect and attention of westerners to individuals and personalities everywhere. China people pay attention to the overall development, emphasizing a complete and comprehensive way of thinking and concepts. I don't like too bright personality, which is more obvious in cooking. No matter what kind of ingredients are poured into the pot and cooked with various condiments, even the original ingredients with distinctive personality and unique taste will not look so sharp under such a running-in. Therefore, Chinese food is rich in flavor and distinct in layers. Looking back at every dish, red is not so bright red, and green is not so eye-catching green, but a harmonious beauty after reconciliation.

Lifestyle and rhythm of life

In the west, the repetitive work on the assembly line, the implementation of the piece-rate wage system and the acceleration of the pace of life, people are consciously or unconsciously influenced by the mechanical dichotomy, and games and work are clearly divided, that is, working at work and playing in games. This lifestyle is very monotonous and rigid, and the mechanical working lifestyle gradually affects the demand of westerners for diet, leading to the singleness and simplicity of diet itself.

China people are not. The arbitrariness of China people can be seen here. They don't like the simple and mechanical working and living mode, but admire an empirical working mode or like to add their favorite elements or methods to their work. Just like China's cooking, there is instability, which refers to the instability of working methods and methods and the instability of working results. Just like if a dish wants to be less salty, southerners may choose to dilute the salty taste with sugar. For example, the sweet and sour taste of southerners is to neutralize the salty taste of soy sauce with the sweetness of sugar and the sourness of vinegar; Northerners may add boiled ingredients to this dish, which will dilute the ingredients and change the nature of the dish. It may change from a stir-fry to a delicious soup because of different life experiences and living environments. This unstable and empirical way of change makes the original simple dish become three dishes instead of two, and creativity and artistry emerge spontaneously in it.

Third, the current development of food culture and the integration of Chinese and Western cultures.

However, today's Chinese and western food cultures are not as distinct as before. Chinese food also incorporates western elements, and western food shows Chinese style everywhere. This is a new pattern of food culture. The team of Chinese and western food culture will grow stronger and stronger, and people can also understand the world by understanding food culture.

References:

[1] Guo, Jin. Reflections on the differences between Chinese and western food cultures [A]. Business and Economic Culture, 2005(5): 13- 15.

[2] Liu Yansong. Differences between Chinese and Western food culture concepts [J]. Guide to Economic Research, 20 10(36):258-259.

[3] Zhao Qizhi. Differences between Chinese and western food cultures [J]. Food Engineering, 2006.438+02 (4):14-15.

[4] Feng Yong, He Huanhuan. Look at the differences between Chinese and western ways of thinking from the perspective of food culture [J]. Consumer Guide, May 2009: 234

Differences between Chinese and Western Dietary Cultures 2 Abstract:

This paper mainly introduces Chinese and western cultures and their differences, and describes them from two aspects: culture and differences. The development history of Chinese and western food culture respectively describes the different cultural processes in the United States and China. Because of different cultural connotations, food is also different. This paper mainly discusses the differences in ideas, banquet etiquette and the integration of Chinese and western food cultures. Finally, it introduces the influence of western diet on China, and discusses it from both positive and negative aspects. While understanding the cultural differences between Chinese and western food, we should accept the acceptable part and integrate it with Chinese food, which will enrich our daily diet, but it also has its own characteristics. This is our correct attitude towards Chinese and western food culture.

Key words:

Differences between China and the West; Food culture; Dining Etiquette

Different nationalities and countries have their own unique food culture. It has the characteristics of strong nationality and diversity. The difference of food culture is also one of the factors that affect the communication results in cross-cultural communication. China has a splendid, rich and profound food culture; Western countries have a complex and complete food civilization. The collision and communication between Chinese and western food cultures have enriched the global food culture.

First, from the perspective of chopsticks and knife and fork culture, we can see the differences between Chinese and western food concepts.

Knife and fork appeared because they adapted to the eating habits of Europeans, and it and chopsticks influenced the different life concepts of the East and the West. China's diet knives and forks appeared much later than chopsticks. According to Professor You's research, the original origin of knives and forks is related to the living habits of nomadic people in ancient Europe. They immediately live with knives and often cook and cut the meat to eat. Later, after moving towards settled life, animal husbandry dominated Europe, and bread and the like were all non-staple foods, which were directly taken by hand. The staple food is beef and mutton, which is cut with a knife and sent to import. After settling in the city, knives and forks enter the family kitchen, so you don't have to carry them with you. It is not difficult to see that knives and chopsticks, as the main tableware in the west today, have completely different identities. They can be used to slaughter, dissect and cut the meat of cattle and sheep, and can also be used as tableware when cooking and eating.

Around the15th century, in order to improve the posture of eating, Europeans used double sharp forks. It's unsightly to put food in your mouth with a knife, but it's more elegant to put meat in your mouth with a fork. Forks are strictly tableware, but the weakness of forks is that they can't be cut in front with a knife, so both are indispensable. It was not until the end of 17 that the British upper class began to use the three-pointed fork, and it was not until 18 century that the four-pointed fork appeared. So westerners have only used knives and forks for four or five hundred years.

Knife, fork and chopsticks not only bring about differences in eating habits, but also affect the concept of life of eastern and western people. Professor You believes that knives and forks will inevitably lead to the sharing system, and chopsticks will definitely be accompanied by family members sitting around the table to eat together. The west divided itself into two from the beginning, which led to the idea and habit that westerners pay attention to independence and children will enter the world independently when they grow up. The dining system brought by chopsticks highlights the family unit where the old and the young sit together, thus giving orientals a relatively strong family concept.

Although we can't simply correspond the formation of different traditions with the differences of tableware, there is no doubt that they adapt to and contribute to this differentiation. Chopsticks are a symbol of cultural tradition. China people still use chopsticks when they go to Europe and America. Culture is deeply rooted, and foreigners learn to use chopsticks in China, and they still have to pick up knives and forks when they return to their own countries.

Second, the differences in cooking methods.

In China, cooking is an art, which, like other arts, embodies the unity of rigor and improvisation. Therefore, cooking in China has always been extremely interesting, even with a certain degree of playfulness, attracting China people who take diet as their greatest pleasure in life. Because the development has been very mature, it has developed from the method of completely following the menu operation to a higher stage, and each dish can develop and change on the original basis to adapt to the differences of regions, seasons, objects, functions and grades. For example, fried beef with mushrooms should be darker in winter, heavier in taste and lighter in summer. For Jiangsu people, sugar can be added to the seasoning, but in the face of customers in Sichuan and Hunan, more spicy food should be put. There are various cooking methods in China, such as frying, frying, stewing, frying, stewing, boiling, steaming, roasting, salt, freezing, smoking, sweet and sour, etc. The dishes made are dazzling. In the eyes of culinary masters, cooking is as profound as making handicrafts. Even the same dish, different chefs will make different flavors. However, the west is different and can be said to be quite rational. Their cooking skills haven't changed much, and the taste of the same dish from L.A. to new york won't change much. Although it looks monotonous, simple technology enables them to achieve amazing success in large-scale commercialization. The cooking methods of western food are mainly burning, frying, roasting, frying and stewing, and all kinds of raw materials are rarely cooked together. The fish in the main course is fish and the chicken is chicken. Now even the spices are eaten and added. The whole cooking process is standardized, the amount of seasoning is accurate to grams, and the cooking time is accurate to seconds. A cook is like an experimenter in a chemistry lab. Due to the standardization of western food, cooking has become a mechanical job. As long as KFC fried chicken follows the rules according to the ingredients, the temperature of oil and the time of fried chicken, the chef's job becomes an extremely monotonous mechanical job. Furthermore, the purpose of westerners' eating is to absorb nutrition. As long as the nutrition is up to standard, others can tolerate it, so today's potato steak, tomorrow's steak potato. Food advertisements in America are overwhelming, but they are always the same. The processing methods of fried chicken, French fries and fried fish pieces are relatively simple, basically mechanical stirring, so there are few kinds of dishes.

Third, catering etiquette.

In terms of dining atmosphere, China people like to be lively when eating. Many people get together to eat, drink and laugh, and jointly create a lively and warm dining atmosphere. People in China don't have any special manners at the dinner table, except at a very formal banquet. Westerners, on the other hand, like an elegant and quiet environment when eating. They think that they must pay attention to their manners when eating at the table, and they must not lose their manners, for example, they must not make ugly noises when eating.

Chinese and western banquet etiquette also has its own characteristics. In China, from ancient times to the present, most people respect the Left. When entertaining guests, you should arrange the distinguished guests in the left seat, and then arrange them in turn. In the west, respect rights, men and women sit separately, and couples sit separately. The seats of female guests are slightly higher than those of male guests. Men should open the chair for the lady sitting on their right to show their respect for the lady. In addition, westerners should sit up straight when eating. They think it's impolite to bend over and eat with their mouths together, but this is the usual way of eating in China. When eating western food, the host does not advocate binge drinking. China's table wine is a must, and it is used to entertain guests. Sometimes, in order to show respect for each other, they will drink one cup after another.

In a word, the spread of food culture exists in our daily life and constantly acts as a "conveyor belt" between different cultures in the process of global economic and cultural integration. It has become a growing cultural influence, playing a greater role than any other single globalization force, and is quietly changing the world. The collision, communication and integration of Chinese and western food cultures have played a role in filling and coloring the whole human civilization. Chinese and western catering culture will develop together in communication!

References:

Hu Wenzhong. Comparison of cultural customs between English-speaking countries and China [M]. Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 1999.

[2] Lin Yutang. The art of living [M]. Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 1998.

[3] Samwa. Cross-cultural communication [M]. Sanlian Bookstore, 1988.

Abstract: Diet culture is an important part of nonverbal culture in cross-cultural communication. Understanding the differences between Chinese and western food cultures can not only deepen our understanding of the language and culture we have learned, but also improve the success rate of cross-cultural communication. This paper compares Chinese and western food cultures from the aspects of dining form and etiquette, food concept, food structure and cooking, aiming at clarifying the differences between Chinese and western food cultures, eliminating boundaries, enhancing understanding and promoting exchanges.

Key words: Chinese and western food culture, cultural differences, form and etiquette, conceptual structure.

I. Introduction

Food culture is an important part of nonverbal culture in cross-cultural communication. Diet is closely related to culture, and different ethnic groups have created different diet cultures due to the influence of living areas, climatic environment and customs. Western traditional culture is animal husbandry culture and marine culture, while China is farming culture and land culture. Two different cultures reflect the differences in people's lifestyles, while the differences in diet reveal their respective cultural backgrounds.

Second, the differences between Chinese and Western dining forms and etiquette

China's etiquette has the idea that harmony is the most important since ancient times. The idea of harmony is reflected in the idea that people in China eat together as a family when they open their seats, which embodies the traditional food etiquette in China. China people's food collection system lasted for thousands of years. In China, at any banquet, everyone sits around and enjoys their seats. Banquets should use round tables to create a United, polite and interesting atmosphere in form. This is a food collection system. The origin of food collection system is very early. From the excavation of many underground cultural relics, it can be seen that the ancient cooking room and food gathering place are unified. The cooking room is in the middle of the house, with smoke from the skylight above and a bonfire below. Put the pots and pans on the fire. When cooking on the fire, diners gather around the fire. This ancient custom of gathering food continued into later generations. Food is placed in the center of a table, which is not only the object of appreciation and tasting, but also the medium of emotional communication. This is in line with the universal mentality of the Chinese nation's happy reunion, and embodies the idea of neutralization in China's classical philosophy. In addition, the long-term spread of the food-gathering system is also a reflection of China's emphasis on consanguinity and family values in his diet.

Third, the differences between Chinese and Western dietary concepts.

In China's food culture, the pursuit of taste is often greater than the pursuit of nutrition. When people taste dishes, they often say that this dish is delicious and that dish is not delicious. But if you want to further ask what is delicious, why is it delicious, and where is it delicious, I'm afraid it's not easy to make it clear. This shows that China people's pursuit of food is an indescribable artistic conception, that is, it is embodied by what people usually call color, fragrance, taste, shape and utensils, which still cannot cover all its meanings. In China, the pursuit of beauty in diet obviously outweighs rationality. This difference in values constitutes the characteristic that Chinese food pays too much attention to the color, aroma and taste of food. This view of diet is consistent with China's traditional philosophy. As a representative of oriental philosophy, China's philosophy is macroscopic, intuitive, fuzzy and unpredictable. The method of making Chinese food is to reconcile, and finally reconcile a beautiful taste. All this is about discretion, that is, overall cooperation. It contains rich dialectics thought of China's philosophy. Westerners' attitude towards diet mainly insists on its practical characteristics, attaches importance to food health from the perspective of nutrition, and does not pursue food patterns and other functions. They think that "eating" is just adding fuel to a biological machine to ensure its normal work and life. As long as you can stay healthy and resist the invasion of germs after eating, you don't pay attention to other aspects. It can be seen that diet is only a life-sustaining activity in their hearts. In particular, France, a big country that enjoys the reputation of food in western countries, is pursuing high-quality nutrition. Although French cooking pursues delicacy, it never forgets the premise of "nutrition". In modern western society, in addition to nutritional needs, it also attaches great importance to health preservation, and truly achieves people-oriented.

Fourth, the difference of diet structure.

According to western statistics, China people eat more than 600 kinds of vegetables, which is more than six times that of the west. In the daily diet structure of China, vegetarian dishes occupy a dominant position, while meat dishes only enter the normal diet structure during holidays or when the living standard is high, so China has had the saying of "vegetarian dishes" since ancient times. This dietary tradition is closely related to the advocacy of Buddhists, who regard animals as "living things" and plants as "inanimate". Therefore, the traditional culture of China advocates vegetarianism. Western countries have inherited the cultural lineages of nomadic and maritime peoples and made a living by fishing, hunting and breeding. Traditional dietary customs mainly focus on animal food. Because most western countries are located in high latitudes, and some countries even have snow all year round, most people in western countries like meat food. Westerners pay attention to nutrition and adopt a diet that combines raw and cooked food. Vegetables often appear in the form of salads, and the differences in diet structure sometimes reflect the different attitudes of different ethnic groups in lifestyle and diet culture.

5. Cooking differences between Chinese and Western food cultures

Western cooking follows norms and science. Westerners emphasize science and nutrition, and norms and science are everywhere in cooking. In western recipes, the unit of measurement is grams. This recipe seems scientific. In fact, this scientific nature also has its drawbacks and lacks characteristics. In addition, standardized cooking even requires the preparation of ingredients to be accurate to the second. In addition, in the west, a dish tastes the same in different regions, different seasons and facing different consumers, and there is no change. China's cooking values randomness and characteristics. Westerners can't understand that China's cooking does not pursue accurate standardization, but values randomness. When we open China's cookbooks, we often find that the amount of raw materials prepared and the amount of seasonings added are vague concepts. A spoonful, half a bowl, and a little bit are everywhere, but there is no specific standard for how big a spoonful or bowl is. China's diet tends to be artistic. Its characteristic is randomness. For example, the same dish can be treated differently in operation because of its different regions, functions and grades. Take braised fish as an example, the color is darker in winter and the taste is heavier, while the color and taste are lighter in summer. For Jiangsu and Zhejiang people, sugar can be added to the seasoning of braised fish, and more spicy food should be added to customers in Sichuan and Hunan.

Conclusion of intransitive verbs

Studying the cultural differences of food in cross-cultural communication will help people understand each other, enjoy the different feelings brought by different foods, promote the exchange, complementarity and integration between cultures, and promote mutual understanding and appreciation between people. The author believes that the comparison of Chinese and western food culture etiquette can enhance the awareness of cross-cultural communication, and thus realize that tolerance, understanding and respect for cultural differences are essential to improve cultural communication ability.

References:

Hu Wenzhong. Comparison of Chinese and English cultural customs [M]. Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 1999.

[2][ Germany] Ma Zike. Cross-cultural communication [M]. Beijing: Peking University Publishing House, 200 1.

[3] Jiang,,. History of western culture [M]. Beijing Science Press 2004.

[4] Xu. Introduction to China's food culture [M]. Beijing: Tsinghua University Publishing House, 2006.

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