China First Impressions: Part II

The Food

As expected, I have had my challenges navigating the food scene with my need to eat gluten free, but despite this, I can whole-heartedly say that I am really loving the food in China. There is so much food to explore here, I feel I have only scraped the tip of the iceberg. This post could go on forever, but I'll spare you and try to just touch on a few highlights.

I am sure it is a big surprise to everyone that rice and noodles are a prevalent part of the Chinese diet, and the most commonly eaten meat is pork. Chicken, duck and fish are also quite easy to get, but seemingly not as frequently eaten (likely because it is more expensive than pork). Something that I wish I could try, but unfortunately cannot are all of the dumplings that are prepared in different ways, with many different fillings. In general eggs and Chinese cabbage seem to be very common ingredients found in many dishes. I don't find the food in Hangzhou and surrounding areas to be very spicy, but I am told that this will all change when I finally visit Sichuan province.

Noodle soup street food a few blocks from our place

I mostly stick to the rice dishes since I know rice is safe, and I just make sure to ask for no soy sauce (which contains wheat in case you didn't know). I find the rice in Hangzhou to actually be better than the rice we have had in other parts of China so far, so that's definitely a plus! Fried rice is my go to because I know how to order it, I know it will be gluten free if I ask for no soy sauce, and quite frankly it is delicious (so much better than what you get at Chinese restaurants outside of China). My favorite dish that I have had since being in China though is what they call New Year Cake or Niángāo in pinyin or 年糕 in characters. I never tried anything quite like it. They make a sort of dense 'noodle log' that is made from glutinous rice flour (sticky rice flour), and then they slice this into discs, boil it (like a noodle), then stir fry it with some cabbage and eggs. One other dish I really like that can be found all over China but I had never seen in 'western' Chinese restaurants outside of China is simply cooked eggs,  tomatoes and shallots (with some oil, salt and sugar). Quick, easy and delicious.

New Year Cake

Egg and tomato dish (don't know the Chinese name)

Fried rice and beef skewers from a Muslim restaurant (there are over 21 million muslims in China)

There is an abundance of street food and small mom and pop-hole in the wall restaurants, which are exactly what Bill and I love! It is amazing just how affordable eating out is here. My favorite restaurant which is close to where we live has some of the best food and best prices around. It is very common for Bill and I to both get dinner there and pay a total of $1.50. We ate our very first meal in China here, have tried many places since, but this remains our favorite.

Street food: We called this Chinese McMuffin (starts with a batter, then filled with an egg and minced pork)

Our favorite restaurant!

I know I gush on and on about Hungary and how much I loved it there, but I have to admit that the food in China beats Hungarian cuisine. Sajnálom Magyarok. De én mindig szeretni túró rudi és gulyás leves.