China in Seven Banquets
A Flavourful History
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected 6 Jul 2024
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- 20,99 €
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- Pre-Order
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- 20,99 €
Publisher Description
A captivating journey spanning five thousand years of Chinese culinary heritage, exploring the essence of each era through seven extraordinary meals.
China in Seven Banquets takes readers on a gastronomic adventure into the history of China’s constantly evolving and astonishingly diverse cuisine. From the opulent Eight Treasures feast of ancient times to the Tang dynasty’s legendary “Tail-Burning” banquet, and the extravagant “complete Manchu-Han feast” of the Qing court, these iconic repasts offer glimpses into China’s rich food history. Delving further, the book invites us to partake of lavish banquets immortalized in literature and film, a New Year’s buffet from 1920s Shanghai, a modern delivery menu reflecting the hyperglobal present, and it even offers a peek at the tables of the not-so-distant future. Drawing upon his extensive gastronomic adventures across China, acclaimed historian Thomas David DuBois unravels its ever-changing landscape of culinary trends, revealing why flavors and customs evolved over time. DuBois also recreates dozens of traditional recipes using modern kitchen techniques. Whether indulging in fermented elk or savoring absinthe cocktails, readers embark on an unparalleled odyssey that redefines their perception of Chinese cuisine.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Historian DuBois (Religion and the Making of Modern East Asia) presents an energetic survey of Chinese culinary history. Ranging from the country's prehistoric agricultural systems to Western influences on 21st-century cuisine, DuBuois uses seven banquets to highlight the foods and cultural attitudes that defined different eras of Chinese history. For example, the Eight Treasures of Zhou feast—described in the Book of Rites, a second-century BCE Confucian text—showcases Bronze Age beliefs that food could help the body reach a harmonious equilibrium mirroring that of nature and the cosmos ("Just like the change in seasons, the human body sought a state of active equilibrium"). Elsewhere, a contemporary hot-pot delivery meal (frozen beef, servings of cabbage, and a "plug-in chafing dish") reflects how the nationwide spread of chains and franchises after China's 2001 entry into the World Trade Organization popularized "a food experience that was cheaper and more convenient, but also less local." Throughout, DuBois debunks the idea that there is one "traditional" Chinese cuisine, explaining how ingredients, dishes, and techniques evolved as a result of imperial expansion, globalization, and industrialization. While Fuschia Dunlop's Invitation to a Banquet covers similar ground in more depth, the detailed recipes and chatty tone make this an accessible overview of Chinese cuisine. Readers will be satisfied.
