Shanghai

Soy milk, used to make hot soup, serve with youtiao (deep-fried dough sticks), the combination of soy milk soup with fried dough is dou jiang you tiao (doujiang youtiao)

Cifantuan, also known simply as chi faan or fantuan, is a glutinous rice dish in Chinese cuisine originating in the Jiangnan area of eastern China which encompasses Shanghai and surrounding regions. It is made by tightly wrapping a piece of youtiao with glutinous rice. It is usually eaten as breakfast together with sweetened or savory soy milk in its native Jiangnan. Today, cifantuan is commonly available in two varieties. Whereas the "savory" variety includes ingredients such as zha cai (pickled vegetable), rousong (pork floss) and small pieces of youtiao being wrapped in the rice ball, the "sweet" variety adds sugar and sometimes sesame to the filling. There are many modern variations of the food which are made from purple rice and include fillings such as tuna, kimchi, or cheese. Cifantuan is a major breakfast food item in Shanghai. Cifantuan is also popular in Hubei, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Noodles in broth with soy sauce, green scallions, cabbage, eggs, vegetables, shrimp

Small pastries with peanuts

Small cookies topped with walnuts

Strands of white bread wrapped inside a bun, then either deep-fried (golden thread buns) or steamed (silver thread buns)

Small pastry with a mung bean filling

Nian gao , sometimes translated as year cake or New Year cake or Chinese New Year's cake, is a food prepared from glutinous rice flour and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is also simply known as "rice cake". While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during the Chinese New Year. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time of the year because nian gao (年糕) is a homonym for "higher year" or "grow every year" (年高), which means "a more prosperous year". The character 年 is literally translated as "year", and the character 糕 (gāo) is literally translated as "cake" and is identical in sound to the character 高, meaning "tall" or "high". In Mandarin (though not all Chinese languages), Nian gao (年糕) also is an exact homonym of "sticky cake" (黏糕／粘糕), the character 黏／粘 (nián) meaning "sticky". This sticky sweet snack was believed to be an offering to the Kitchen God, with the aim that his mouth will be stuck with the sticky cake, so that he cannot badmouth the human family in front of the Jade Emperor. It is also traditionally eaten during Chinese New Year.

Pear-syrup candy, also known as lígāotáng or líqīnggāo (梨清膏), is a traditional medicine and confection from eastern area of the Jiangnan region of China, where it was traditionally used to relieve coughing, reduce sputum, and stimulate appetite.[medical citation needed] Its main components are pear juice, honey, and various kinds of herbs. With modern medical science, it is now rarely used to treat coughing; pear-syrup candy has become a souvenir and a snack, and is a part of Jiangnan culture. The history of pear-syrup candy can be traced back to 634 (the Tang Zhenguan Eighth Year). According to legend, the mother of Wei Zheng (a renowned official of the Tang dynasty) suffered from a cough, so the imperial court sent imperial physicians to treat her. However, Wei's mother felt that the medicines were too bitter to take, and so she failed to take them on time, and thus curing her took a long time.[citation needed] For this reason, Wei Zheng decided to make his own medicine, combining almond, chuanbei (bulbus fritillariae cirrhosae), tuckahoe, and juhong (red tangerine peel), and adding the combination to pear syrup, and finally decocting the whole thing into paste. Wei's mother took the medicine and was soon cured. After that, Wei shared this prescription to the public, and not only the upper classes but ordinary people produced it, so the method of making the candy became widespread. During the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127), the production and sales of pear-syrup candy normalized, becoming a huge industry. In Luoyang, the western capital, there were countless shops selling it, and the production technology was quite mature. After the Jingkang incident in 1127, many of the craftspeople involved in its production moved to the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279), in the south of China. They passed through Yangzhou and settled down in Hangzhou, the Southern Song capital. Thus, pear-syrup candy appeared in Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, and nearby areas. The candy has remained popular throughout Jiangnan since that time.

Song gao is a Shanghai snack composed of rice flour, sugar, and water, with azuki beans embedded throughout the cake. Giant pink-colored azuki beans with a diameter of about 1 inch (25 mm) are embedded on top of the cake; conventional sized azuki beans are embedded inside the cake. The cake also has a red bean (azuki) paste filling. This dessert is steamed, as a large round cake and is then partitioned into sections for eating. Soong Mei-ling, who loved to eat song gao, had the Grand Hotel of Taipei to include her version of the cake on the hotel's menu, which the hotel continues to offer to this day.[citation needed]

Soy milk, used to make hot soup, serve with youtiao (deep-fried dough sticks), the combination of soy milk soup with fried dough is dou jiang you tiao (doujiang youtiao)

Beggar's chicken is a Chinese dish of chicken that is stuffed, wrapped in clay and lotus leaves (or banana or bamboo leaves as alternatives), and baked slowly using low heat. Preparation of a single portion may take up to six hours. Although the dish is traditionally prepared with clay, the recipe has evolved; for convenience and safety it is often baked with dough, oven bags, ceramic cooking pots, or convection ovens. Beggar's chicken is very popular in China, with many regions claiming it as traditionally their own. Most experts agree the dish originated in Hangzhou. The clay-wrapped method of slow cooking is thousands of years old. Various legends surround the origins of beggar's chicken.[failed verification][unreliable source?] In one, a beggar stole a chicken from a farm but having no pot or utensils, he wrapped the bird in lotus leaves and packed clay or mud around it, set it in a hole where he had lit a fire, and buried it. When he dug up the chicken and cracked open the clay, he found the meat was tender and aromatic. In other versions, the beggar stole the chicken from the emperor and used the mud-hole method to avoid smoke that might attract the imperial guards. Alternatively, the emperor stopped to dine with the beggar and so enjoyed the dish that he added it to the imperial menu and the beggar prospered by selling the dish to locals. Another legend, the dish was a childhood favorite of Emperor Gaozu of Han, who had been born a peasant. When he became emperor, the recipe became an imperial specialty. Finally, in another legend, during the 17th century toward the end of the Ming dynasty in Changshu, saying that politician and Koxinga's mentor Qian Qianyi met the beggar who made the impromptu dish and had his chefs improved the recipe.

Braised spring bamboo shoots

Nian gao , sometimes translated as year cake or New Year cake or Chinese New Year's cake, is a food prepared from glutinous rice flour and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is also simply known as "rice cake". While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during the Chinese New Year. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time of the year because nian gao (年糕) is a homonym for "higher year" or "grow every year" (年高), which means "a more prosperous year". The character 年 is literally translated as "year", and the character 糕 (gāo) is literally translated as "cake" and is identical in sound to the character 高, meaning "tall" or "high". In Mandarin (though not all Chinese languages), Nian gao (年糕) also is an exact homonym of "sticky cake" (黏糕／粘糕), the character 黏／粘 (nián) meaning "sticky". This sticky sweet snack was believed to be an offering to the Kitchen God, with the aim that his mouth will be stuck with the sticky cake, so that he cannot badmouth the human family in front of the Jade Emperor. It is also traditionally eaten during Chinese New Year.

Soup with congealed chicken and duck blood, liver, gizzards, intestines

The Chinese mitten crab , also known as the Shanghai hairy crab (上海毛蟹, p Shànghǎi máoxiè), is a medium-sized burrowing crab that is named for its furry claws, which resemble mittens. It is native to rivers, estuaries and other coastal habitats of East Asia from Korea in the north to Fujian, China in the south. It has also been introduced to Europe and North America, where it is considered an invasive species. The species features on the list of invasive alien species of Union concern. This means that the import of the species and trade in the species is forbidden in the whole of the European Union. This species' distinguishing features are the dense patches of dark setae on its claws. The crab's body is the size of a human palm. The legs are about twice as long as the 3–10-centimeter-wide (1–4 in) carapace.

Pork cubes simmered in sherry, soy sauce, ginger and scallions

Red braised pork belly or hong shao rou is a classic pork dish from China, red-cooked using pork belly and a combination of ginger, garlic, aromatic spices, chilis, sugar, star anise, light and dark soy sauce, and rice wine. The pork belly is cooked until the fat and skin are gelatinous, soft, and melt easily in the mouth, while the sauce is usually thick, sweet and fairly sticky. The dish has a melt-in-the-mouth texture that is formed as a result of a long braising process, during which the liquid reduces and becomes thick. It is generally served with steamed rice and dark green vegetables, often over holidays. The dish is often prepared with hard-boiled chicken eggs or vegetables, which are used to soak up the juices from the recipe. Many Chinese provinces have slightly different versions, but the Hunanese one (often called "Mao's family style red braised pork" (Chinese: 毛氏紅燒肉; pinyin: Máo shì hóngshāoròu)) is often said to have been one of Chairman Mao's favorite dishes, and is served at the many Hunan restaurants across China specializing in so called "Mao-style cuisine". The popularity of the dish has led the Hunan provincial government to codify the recipe of the dish, in particular deciding that only meat of the celebrated Ningxiang breed of pig should be used in authentic hongshao rou. TT

Steamed whole fish, commonly carp, from the Jialing River

Large pork meatballs flavored with soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, ginger and scallions

Spare ribs are a variety of ribs cut from the lower portion of a pig, specifically the belly and breastbone, behind the shoulder, and include 11 to 13 long bones. Meat and fat cover the bones. Spare ribs (pork) are distinguished from short ribs. Spareribs are typically cooked low and slow, either smoked, grilled, or braised. Pork spare ribs are cooked and eaten in various cuisines around the world. They are especially popular in Chinese and American Chinese cuisine, in which they are generally called paigu (Chinese: 排骨; pinyin: páigǔ; Cantonese Yale: pàaih gwāt; lit. 'row of bones'), and in the cuisine of the Southern United States. In Chinese cuisine, pork spare ribs are generally first cut into 7-to-10-centimetre (3 to 4 in) sections, which then may be fried, steamed, or braised.

Cha siu bao is a Cantonese baozi (bun) filled with barbecue-flavored cha siu pork. They are served as a type of dim sum during yum cha and are sometimes sold in Chinese bakeries. There are two major kinds of cha siu bao: the traditional steamed version is called 蒸叉燒包 (pinyin: zhēng chāshāo bāo; Jyutping: zing1 caa1 siu1 baau1; Cantonese Yale: jīng chāsīu bāau) or simply 叉燒包 (chāshāo bāo; caa1 siu1 baau1; chāsīu bāau), while the baked variety is usually called 叉燒餐包 (chāshāo cān bāo; caa1 siu1 caan1 baau1; chāsīu chāan bāau). Steamed cha siu bao has a white exterior, while the baked variety is browned and glazed.

Shengjian mantou , shengjian bao, or shengjian for short, is a type of small, pan-fried baozi (steamed buns) which is a specialty of Suzhou and Shanghai. It is typically filled with pork and gelatin that melts into soup/liquid when cooked. Within Shanghai, shengjian mantou typically have thin, crispy skins while those sold elsewhere usually have thicker, bread-like skins. It first originated and became popular in Suzhou at the beginning of the 20th century. Then, its popularity spread to the Yangtze River Delta. It has been one of the most common breakfast items in Shanghai since the early 1920s. As a ubiquitous breakfast item, it has a significant place in Shanghai cuisine. In Modern Chinese, a filled bun is usually called baozi or bao, while an unfilled (plain) bun is usually called a mantou. However, in the Jiangnan region where Wu Chinese is spoken, the word mantou refers to both filled and unfilled buns, as in Middle Chinese. Hence, the shengjian mantou is called a mantou despite being a filled bun. The same is true of the xiaolong mantou, which is often called xiaolongbao in the other varieties of Chinese. Shengjian is made from semi-leavened dough, wrapped around pork and gelatin fillings. Chopped green onions and sesame are placed atop the buns during the cooking process.

Xiaolongbao is a type of Chinese tangbao (Chinese: 汤包), traditionally prepared in a xiaolong, a small bamboo steaming basket. The xiaolongbao originates from the city of Changzhou in Jiangsu province, and is an iconic dish of Jiangnan cuisine. Different cities across the Jiangnan region have varying styles of xiaolongbao. Outside of China, the Nanxiang xiaolongbao associated with Shanghai is the most well known. In the Shanghainese language, they are known as siaulon moedeu or xiaolong mantou, as Wu Chinese-speaking peoples use the traditional definition of mantou, which refers to both filled and unfilled buns. The Suzhou and Wuxi styles are larger (sometimes twice as large as a Nanxiang xiaolongbao) and have sweeter fillings. The Nanjing style is smaller with an almost translucent skin and less meat.

Noodles in broth with soy sauce, green scallions, cabbage, eggs, vegetables, shrimp

Braised wheat gluten with mushrooms, serve cold

Steamed meatballs rolled in glutinous rice, made with pork, fish