Follow the grain
Wheat gives us noodles, jiaozi and nang; rice becomes congee, rolls and leaf-wrapped parcels. Geography is a starting point, with plenty of overlap and migration.
CHINESE FOODS · A CULTURAL FIELD GUIDE
A taste of China.
Stories to savor.
From a basket of dumplings to a warm Xinjiang nang and a slowly poured cup of tea. Discover the flavors, places and people behind the food.
Find your next taste100 foods & drinks · 8 chapters · Countless local variations
A FEW FAVORITES
A delicious place to start.
Chongqing & Sichuan
Chongqing & Sichuan hotpot
Ingredients cooked at the table in simmering broth, often fragrant with chili, Sichuan pepper and beef fat.
Yangzhou, Jiangsu
Yangzhou fried rice
Separate rice grains stir-fried with egg and a finely diced mix of vegetables and savory ingredients.
Across regions
Mooncakes
Rich pastries with lotus paste, beans, nuts, salted yolks or savory fillings, depending on the style.
PULL UP A CHAIR
Where would you like to begin?
Dumplings & dim sum
Pleated, steamed, boiled or pan-fried. Small parcels with very different stories.
Noodles & rice noodles
Hand-pulled strands, knife-cut ribbons and silky rice noodles, from breakfast to midnight.
Breads & breakfast
Xinjiang nang, flaky pancakes and the everyday comfort of a warm breakfast.
Rice & rice parcels
Claypot crusts, leaf-wrapped rice and grains fragrant with broth or lamb.
At the regional table
Roasts, braises, hotpots and vegetables: a bigger picture of regional cooking.
Street food & small bites
A market stall, a paper bag, a quick bite. Meet the foods that make a city feel like itself.
Sweets & festival treats
Sesame-filled tangyuan, mooncakes, flower pastries and a little sweetness with tea.
Tea & local drinks
Six tea families, many ways to welcome a guest, and drinks shaped by everyday life.
Images are AI-generated food illustrations, reviewed for this guide. They show representative preparations, not particular restaurants.
THE FOOD INDEX
Follow your appetite.
Search a name, an ingredient or a place. Open any food for its background and serving notes.
100 foods & drinks
Jiaozi dumplings
饺子Northern China
Xiaolongbao soup dumplings
小笼包Shanghai & Jiangnan
Shengjian pan-fried buns
生煎馒头Shanghai & Suzhou
Wontons
馄饨／云吞／抄手Jiangnan, Guangdong & Sichuan
Har gow shrimp dumplings
虾饺Guangdong & Hong Kong
Shaomai / siu mai
烧卖Inner Mongolia, Jiangnan & Guangdong
Steamed baozi
包子Across China
Char siu bao
叉烧包Guangdong & Hong Kong
Guotie potstickers
锅贴Northern China
Xinjiang baked samsa
烤包子Xinjiang, especially Uyghur food traditions
Lanzhou beef noodles
兰州牛肉面Lanzhou, Gansu
Biangbiang noodles
biangbiang面Shaanxi
Knife-cut noodles
刀削面Shanxi
Zhajiangmian
炸酱面Beijing & northern China
Dandan noodles
担担面Sichuan
Chongqing xiaomian
重庆小面Chongqing
Wuhan hot-dry noodles
热干面Wuhan, Hubei
Crossing-the-bridge rice noodles
过桥米线Yunnan, especially Mengzi
Liuzhou luosifen
螺蛳粉Liuzhou, Guangxi
Guilin rice noodles
桂林米粉Guilin, Guangxi
Xinjiang laghman
新疆拌面Xinjiang / Uyghur food traditions
Taiwan beef noodle soup
台湾牛肉面Taiwan
Xinjiang nang bread
新疆馕Xinjiang
Jianbing breakfast crêpe
煎饼馃子Tianjin & northern China
Shaobing sesame flatbread
烧饼Northern China & the lower Yangtze
Scallion pancakes
葱油饼Jiangnan & many other regions
Youtiao & soy milk
油条与豆浆Across regions
Mantou steamed bread
馒头Northern China & beyond
Huajuan flower rolls
花卷Northern China
Baijimo & Tongguan mo
白吉馍与潼关馍Shaanxi
Tsampa roasted barley
糌粑Tibetan plateau
Savory tofu pudding
豆腐脑Northern China & beyond
Cantonese claypot rice
煲仔饭Guangdong & Hong Kong
Zongzi rice parcels
粽子Across China
Lotus-leaf sticky rice
糯米鸡Guangdong & Hong Kong
Xinjiang polo / pilaf
新疆抓饭Xinjiang / Uyghur food traditions
Yangzhou fried rice
扬州炒饭Yangzhou, Jiangsu
Cheung fun rice rolls
肠粉Guangdong & Hong Kong
Congee / zhou
粥Across regions
Nian gao rice cakes
年糕Jiangnan & many other regions
Mapo tofu
麻婆豆腐Sichuan
Gongbao / kung pao chicken
宫保鸡丁Sichuan and other regional versions
Chongqing & Sichuan hotpot
川渝火锅Chongqing & Sichuan
Peking roast duck
北京烤鸭Beijing
Dongpo braised pork
东坡肉Hangzhou & other regional versions
Lion’s-head meatballs
狮子头Jiangsu / Huaiyang cooking
White-cut chicken
白切鸡Guangdong
Cantonese steamed fish
清蒸鱼Guangdong & coastal regions
Buddha Jumps Over the Wall
佛跳墙Fuzhou, Fujian
Steamed fish head with chopped chilies
剁椒鱼头Hunan
Huizhou fermented mandarin fish
徽州臭鳜鱼Huizhou, Anhui
Shandong sweet-and-sour carp
糖醋鲤鱼Shandong
Guobaorou crisp pork
锅包肉Harbin & Northeast China
Northeastern sauerkraut & pork stew
酸菜白肉Northeast China
Xinjiang big-plate chicken
新疆大盘鸡Xinjiang
Hand-served lamb
手抓羊肉Ningxia, Gansu & Qinghai
Guizhou sour-soup fish
贵州酸汤鱼Guizhou, especially southeastern areas
Yunnan steam-pot chicken
汽锅鸡Yunnan
Roujiamo meat-filled bread
肉夹馍Shaanxi
Liangpi cold noodles
凉皮Shaanxi & Northwest China
Xinjiang lamb skewers
新疆烤羊肉串Xinjiang
Stinky tofu
臭豆腐Hunan, Zhejiang & other regions
Fried sesame balls
煎堆／麻团Guangdong & many other regions
Oyster omelette
蚵仔煎／海蛎煎Fujian, Chaoshan & Taiwan
Fuzhou & Chaoshan fish balls
福州鱼丸与潮汕鱼丸Fujian & eastern Guangdong
Hot-and-sour glass noodles
酸辣粉Sichuan & Chongqing
Tianjin mahua twists
天津麻花Tianjin
Wuhan sanxian doupi
武汉三鲜豆皮Wuhan, Hubei
Yunnan erkuai rice cakes
云南饵块Yunnan
Hong Kong curry fish balls
香港咖喱鱼蛋Hong Kong
Tangyuan sesame rice balls
汤圆Across regions
Mooncakes
月饼Across regions
Qingtuan green rice cakes
青团Jiangnan
Yunnan rose pastries
鲜花饼Yunnan
Hong Kong & Macao egg tarts
港式蛋挞与澳门葡挞Hong Kong & Macao
Sweet douhua
甜豆花Southern China & Taiwan
Tanghulu candied fruit
糖葫芦Northern China
Osmanthus rice cake
桂花糕Jiangnan & other regions
Double-skin milk pudding
双皮奶Shunde, Guangdong
Sichuan bingfen jelly
冰粉Sichuan & Chongqing
Longjing green tea
龙井茶Zhejiang, especially Hangzhou
Biluochun green tea
碧螺春Dongting hills near Suzhou, Jiangsu
Fujian white tea
福建白茶Fuding & Zhenghe, Fujian
Yellow tea
黄茶Hunan, Sichuan & Anhui
Tieguanyin oolong
铁观音Anxi, Fujian
Wuyi rock oolong
武夷岩茶Wuyishan, Fujian
Qimen / Keemun black tea
祁门红茶Qimen, Anhui
Pu’er tea
普洱茶Yunnan
Liubao dark tea
六堡茶Wuzhou, Guangxi
Jasmine-scented tea
茉莉花茶Fujian, Guangxi & wider drinking traditions
Tibetan butter tea
酥油茶Tibetan plateau
Mongolian salty milk tea
蒙古族咸奶茶Inner Mongolia
Hong Kong milk tea
港式奶茶Hong Kong
Taiwan bubble tea
台湾珍珠奶茶Taiwan
Beijing lamb hotpot
北京涮羊肉Beijing
Chaoshan beef hotpot
潮汕牛肉火锅Chaoshan, Guangdong
Yunnan mushroom hotpot
云南菌菇火锅Yunnan
Egg fried rice
蛋炒饭Across regions
Beef chow fun
干炒牛河Guangdong & Hong Kong
Taiwan braised pork rice
台湾卤肉饭Taiwan
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MORE THAN A MENU
Three ways to read the table.
Taste the technique
Steaming, roasting, fermenting and slow braising transform familiar ingredients. A numbing Sichuan peppercorn, a sour bamboo shoot and a roasted oolong leaf tell very different stories.
Make room for the occasion
A family folding dumplings, friends lingering over dim sum, tea offered to a guest: food is also a way to spend time together. Customs vary by family and community.