The rise of China's agricultural civilization
In the Neolithic period, the vast and fertile plains of the Yellow River Basin had already begun to engage in the most primitive agricultural activities. They used rudimentary stone tools to reclaim the land and grow grains like wheat.
Although the labor efficiency is low, it has initially entered the agricultural civilization.
In the long years that followed, a large number of people gradually gathered in the Central Plains. The farmers in these villages have lived on the land for generations, bringing more and more agricultural experience and technology to them.
Planting tools are becoming more sophisticated, and the area of farmland is also expanding. Along the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, large areas of farmland have been formed, and people use water buffalo to help plant rice.
Southern China, such as the Jiangnan and Sichuan basins, has a humid climate that is also suitable for growing crops such as rice. As a result, the earliest rice culture in history flourished here.
The ancient inhabitants relied on a suitable climate and abundant precipitation to finally get rid of the food shortage of the primitive society.
As a result, wheat in northern China and rice in southern China became the main food crops. At the same time, people began to experiment with more diverse crops to cope with the changing climate, which laid the foundation for abundant products in the future.
It can be said that since the Neolithic Age, China's agricultural civilization has begun to take shape. This is inseparable from the humid and mild natural environment.
Simple way to cook
As more and more agricultural products are harvested, the ancient Chinese are also thinking about how to make them more delicious. As a result, the most primitive cooking techniques came into being.
In the beginning, people would simply roast ingredients on a fire, such as cooking grains over a fire; Or put the food in a casserole with water and cook the rotten food by heating it continuously.
This is the most basic means of cooking, but it is already a leap forward for the people of 80387's era.
Due to the limitations of tools, for a long time after that, the ancient Chinese only treated ingredients by roasting, boiling, and steaming. Especially for vegetables and legumes, it's more about simply boiling and boiling.
After all, at that time, meat was still a luxury, and most people's daily intake was mainly vegetables.
Therefore, we can imagine that the study of the cooking methods of various vegetables was of special importance to the ancient people. They hope that through the means of cooking, the flavor of the vegetables themselves will be enhanced, and the weak daily meals will be enriched.
This also laid the foundation for China's vegetarian-based food culture in the future.
Simple cooking methods have served ancient people for a long period of time. It was not until later that China's metallurgical technology progressed, and iron tools appeared. This opens up more culinary possibilities.
The advent of iron and the invention of stir-frying
In China, the history of metallurgical and foundry technology is much older than that of other civilizations. As early as 1500 BC, copper and other metal alloys were used to make tools and utensils.
In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, iron products gradually became popular, especially some weapons and equipment.
Subsequently, iron tools penetrated into more areas, including cooking tools. Archaeological results show that in the Qin and Han dynasties, simple iron pots for cooking had already begun to appear, which brought a revolution to the kitchen.
Due to the advancement of production technology, the shape of these iron pots has also become more and more humane, with an easier handle to grip, and the addition of a lid, which is safer and more convenient to use.
Later, by the time of the Tang Dynasty, the casting pot process in the mainland was extremely mature, and a variety of iron pots of different materials were produced, such as fine iron pots, cast iron pots, etc. Iron pots of different materials and thicknesses are suitable for different cooking methods.
This breathes life into traditional kitchens.
With an iron pot that can be easily moved and temperature controlled, Chinese chefs are experimenting with new cooking techniques. One of the most important is the invention of "stir-frying".
They found that stir-frying ingredients quickly in an iron pot not only preserves the freshness of the ingredients, but also plays a role in locking in nutrients. The vegetables fried in a pot are full of color, flavor and freshness.
The cooking technique of "stir-frying" obviously originates from the intelligent and industrious wisdom of the Chinese nation. Since then, it has quickly become an inseparable cooking technique in Chinese kitchens, fueling an unprecedented boom in Chinese cuisine.
Later generations of Cantonese cuisine and Sichuan cuisine are closely related to this technique.
And in the distant Western world, for various reasons, the use of iron did not extend far into the culinary realm. For a long time, the cooking methods of Western food were limited to simple barbecue and frying.
As a result, they missed the opportunity for innovation such as "frying". In a sense, the trajectories of East and West began to drift apart during this period.
Differences between East and West in Central Europe
Unlike the north and south of China, Europe is located at a higher latitude in the northern hemisphere, and the climate is a temperate oceanic climate, with four distinct seasons but less sunshine.
This has constrained the development of local agriculture.
Especially in Europe during the Middle Ages, there were perennial wars and relatively backward scientific and technological civilizations. Most of the land was divided into fiefs with the nobility.
The vast number of peasants can only barely make a living on limited land, and production is mainly self-sufficient. The owners who actually control the land also place more emphasis on the use of land for animal husbandry and to supply meat and dairy products.
They have limited investment in the development of plantations. Therefore, for a long period of time, the cultivation industry in Europe was relatively weak. There are very few plant-based crops, and there are basically only some crops that do not pick the soil, such as buckwheat and oats.
High-grade staples such as wheat have long been scarce. This directly led to the fact that the staple food of Europeans for a long time was rye bread.
As a result, meat and cheese have become the main source of protein for the local population. This is in stark contrast to China, which is dominated by plant-based foods. In terms of recipes, Europeans also pay more attention to the various preparation of meat and cheese.
And the culinary research on vegetable ingredients is not as intensive and rich as that of the Chinese.
This discrepancy continues to this day. The main finished product of modern Western food is still hamburger ribs with beef and mutton as the core. In Chinese food, there are countless kinds of vegetables. In terms of innovation, Chinese chefs have always borne the brunt, while the food culture of European and American countries is much more conservative.
By all indications, the gap between Chinese and Western culinary skills can be traced back to ancient times. China's abundant agricultural base opens up endless possibilities for culinary techniques. Europe, on the other hand, has missed out on many opportunities to innovate cooking techniques due to natural constraints, and this gap cannot be reversed to this day.
brief summary
To sum up, the reason why Chinese culinary culture is unique in the world is rooted in the highly developed agriculture of ancient China. This depends not only on the advantages of China's vast and densely populated natural and cultural conditions, but also on the national spirit of the Chinese people who have been industrious, intelligent, and brave in innovation for generations.
The Chinese have mastered advanced agricultural production technology very early, and it can be said that "everything is ready and can be used". On this fertile soil, the culinary civilization of the Chinese nation has been able to thrive and spread out, achieving today's colorful Chinese cuisine.
Western countries such as Europe and the United States started late, and have been subject to natural conditions for a long time, with limited development of planting industry and single ingredients. It's hard for them to make much progress in their culinary skills.
The difference between Chinese and Western food cultures stems from the differences in the development of Eastern and Western civilizations thousands of years ago. This historical inertia has not been reversed to this day.
Therefore, Europe and the United States do not like to stir-fry, and the innate disadvantages are inseparable. This has been imprinted in the genes of both civilizations and has become their cultural imprint.
It may continue to be for a long time to come.