Tips for authentic Chinese dining
Many Chinese restaurants will serve you a more authentic (i.e., less Americanized) meal if you convey to them that you are serious about Chinese food. The direct approach - requesting the type of food the restaurant's staff eats - is certainly worth a shot, but I've found that servers often need to be persuaded. Here are six strategies for success:
Request chopsticks. My general practice is to take my fork and knife and move them as far away from me as possible without dropping them on the floor, but politely requesting chopsticks will work as well (possibly better).
Order a chicken dish with bones. The Chinese believe that chicken on the bone tastes better, and they're right. Nor are most traditional dishes made with legs, breasts and wings; the Chinese way is to hack up the bird, right through the bones, into discrete bone-and-meat chunks. There is nothing Chinese about boneless breasts.
Ask the waiter what green vegetables the kitchen has today. Baby bok choy, Chinese broccoli, snow-pea leaves - these vegetables are rarely on the menu, yet are usually in the kitchen. It is highly unlikely that all the kitchen has on hand is string beans and broccoli.
Don't order brown rice. I have never seen a Chinese person eat brown rice. Americans may fret about fiber, but to the Chinese (at least those from the South, where most Chinese immigrants to the United States are from), white rice is the sine qua non of eating.
Order a whole fish. Whether steamed or deep-fried ("crispy" in Chinese menu-speak), a whole fish is the glory of the Cantonese kitchen. Fervent devotion to fresh fish is why so many Chinese restaurants have live-fish tanks.
Don't order beef. Historically, cattle have not been an important source of protein in China - for either beef or dairy foods. Thus, most beef dishes on Chinese menus have been invented to appeal to Americans.
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