How do you know when you are eating real Chinese Food?

wolson
April 09, 2008, 10:49 AM posted in General Discussion

I loved Bazza's post on Addiction to Chinese. Therefore, I thought I might create some more trouble. http://chinesepod.com/connections/viewpost/bazza/connect/You+know+you%27re+addicted+to+learning+Chinese+when...

 

When there is are more than 4 dishes of food on the table, at least one of which you have never eaten before, and so much food that no one could possibily finish it all.

 

I have several more ideas for this thread but I will let others get a few shots in.

 

I just have two wonderful Chinese meals in Hangzhou today. What I ate, I have almost no idea... but it was very good! Yes I know one was fish, one was beef (I think), and there was duck and ... But I have no idea what they were called in English or Chinese and probably can never order them again. 很好吃,很好喝,所以我吃饱了。

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light487
April 09, 2008, 11:41 AM

When you have plate with fried chicken feet, you know you are eating real Chinese food. :p

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wolson
April 10, 2008, 09:25 AM

when the orange juice for breakast is hot: Speaking of chicken feet: At Wuhan, my hotel was on the campus of Zhongnan University of Economics and Law. This was a classic Chinese hotel: in the dim sum area at the head of the buffet table were these these plates in steamers with something I took for perhaps breaded fried meat... I was wrong! They were chicken feet and they were very good. And yes, the orange juice was hot!

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mikeinewshot
April 09, 2008, 03:38 PM

When the chicken is swimming in blood

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wildyaks
April 09, 2008, 04:27 PM

when people can tell that you have eaten 火锅 (huoguo hotpot) because of the smell your clothes are emitting

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RJ
April 09, 2008, 05:31 PM

when they give you clear plastic gloves with which to eat goose feet the size of human hands drenched in orange colored sauce. UH, more beer please.

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RJ
April 09, 2008, 05:37 PM

when the "drunken shrimp" you are about to eat are still swimming in the alcohol.

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RJ
April 09, 2008, 05:39 PM

when you notice the antennae of the lobster at the table are moving back and forth and you have only had 2 beers.

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RJ
April 09, 2008, 05:41 PM

when you realize that Bull "whip" is on the menu and you pray you havent already eaten it.

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azerdocmom
April 09, 2008, 07:36 PM

when you think, " Gee, I've never seen rice that color before...and in that shape!" http://www.flickr.com/photos/azerdocmom/2372314035/in/set-72157604313412786/

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gesang
April 09, 2008, 07:58 PM

Think i first saw a bowl of chicken soup looking back at me in China.

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mikeinewshot
April 09, 2008, 03:34 PM

When you can't see the meat for the bones, or you can't take a mouthful of fish without choking on a thousand bones

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gesang
April 09, 2008, 08:44 PM

If there is toilett paper placed on the restaurant table, sometimes in funny colourful dispensers... (which is most likely not to be found in the toilett (if there is one)(in the same street)).

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mayor_bombolini
April 10, 2008, 01:47 AM

Meat - bone in - chopped to bit size. Ratio of Meat to veggies - 3 or 4 to 1. Sauce - light - usually oil based (often with soy sauce) - does not over take the above. Key starters can be onions, garlic, ginger. Seasoning - depends on region of origin. 怕不辣

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mayor_bombolini
April 10, 2008, 01:48 AM

Correct ratio above to 1 to 4

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henning
April 10, 2008, 04:30 AM

rjberki: I had the "drunken shrimp" also - in San Fransciso (where we stayed with Chinese friends). It was pretty bad, but believe me the chicken embryo I had several years later was a lot worse.

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henning
April 10, 2008, 04:33 AM

...when you are getting scared because you just have passed that 40-饺子-barrier which according to the laws of physics can by no means be crossed by a human being...

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azerdocmom
April 10, 2008, 06:08 AM

henning ah, 真的嗎?四十個饺子!你真的吃了那麼多嗎?

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henning
April 10, 2008, 06:28 AM

我没说谎。 最可怕的是第一次吃过饺子只吃十个就抱了。 不过我妻子的饺子的确是太诱人 。。。欲罢不能!

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auntie68
April 10, 2008, 06:36 AM

Ahh, henning, my respect for you (already very high) has just increased 100-fold because of how you wrote about your wife's cooking. So nice!

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mikeinewshot
April 09, 2008, 08:20 PM

When your hosts order food that they expect you to eat but dont touch themselves: eg sea cucumber