Opting for the Meat-free Alternative
By admin on 2015-01-28

"Fish" ball

Braised "pork" with soy sauce

"Shrimp"

"Beef"

AMONG the ways in which the upcoming Chinese lunar New Year is celebrated, food plays a major part. And as a staple of many Chinese dishes, meat, from basic cuts of pork to luxurious fish delicacies, is a must. However, vegetarianism has a long tradition in the country ever since Buddhism flourished more than 1,000 years ago, so many Chinese refuse to eat meat on religious grounds, as well as the ethical reasons.

So while Chinese cuisine boasts many classic meat dishes such as spicy diced chicken with peanuts, and sweet and sour pork, it also has a history of distinct vegetarian dishes, many of which use vegetables to pose as meats, both in shape and texture.

Pan-fried "steak" with black pepper, bean curd sheet stewed with "pork," fried "shrimps" and "fish" ball soup were some of the meat-free meals prepared by cooks at a meeting to initiate the Zhejiang Vegetarian Association held Tuesday in Hangzhou.

"The 'steak' is actually dried tofu, the 'pork' is made of Amorphophallus konjac (a perennial plant native to eastern Asia), the 'shrimps' are made from white mushrooms and the 'fish' balls consist of the residue from beans after making soybean milk," said Zhao Shuiliang, the initiator of the association, and boss of a local vegetarian restaurant.

The magic of those foods does not only lie in the shape, but flavor, and even the texture. For example, the "steak" appears to have a beef texture when cut; the "fish" balls have the firmness of real ones.

"A long history has perfected the distinctive art," said Zhao.

The first record of "fake meat" appeared in the book "Qimin Yaoshu" written in the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 386-534), the most completely preserved ancient Chinese agricultural texts written by official Jia Sixie.

According to the book and other historical materials, the cuisine was originally created to cater for almsgivers at Buddhist temples, and was later provided to vegetarians who used to eat meat. Gradually, vegetarian restaurants of such cuisine were established next to temples, or affiliated with temples, and the tradition continues today.

Mushroom, Amorphophallus konjac and tofu are the main ingredients of these foods, but the cooking process so special and the recipes confidential, only chefs who have had special training are qualified to cook them. As a result, the price of these fake meats can be similar to, or even higher than, that of real meats.

Health benefits

In recent times, many vegetarians have shown a preference for dishes made purely with vegetables and lacking in meat subsititutes or meat-like flavor.

"Those fake chicken, duck, fish and pork obey the original intention of Buddhism, but are usually oily, which doesn't meet modern people's demands," said Claire Yan who has been a vegetarian for more than two years.

"Chinese people are increasingly aware of the advantage of vegetables to their health, and they do eat more vegetables," said Zhao. "I am personally for organic vegetarianism, and I'll shape the idea into the future Zhejiang Vegetarian Association."

The association centralizing local vegetarian restaurants and cooks will launch this March. Its aim is to promote vegetarianism in the province, and reckons vegetarian restaurants should focus on cooking "real vegetable dishes" and creating more vegetable cuisines.

Tips

To live on a diet of vegetables only is healthy, but to balance nutrition here is some advice given by Yang Zhongwu, director of the Naturopathic Medicine Academy of Disease Control and Prevention Professional Committee of China High-tech Health Industry Commission.

1. Vegetarians get hungry fast because vegetables are more digestible than meat, therefore nuts and coarse food grains are recommended to fill the stomach. Nuts can replace meat to supplement protein and fat to vegetarians.

2. The amount of fruit and vegetables vegetarians ingest is supposed to be more than the amount of rice and flour, as the latter foods need to be absorbed by enzymes in the former.

3. Some vegetarians eat too much tofu, but consuming only one alternative to meat is not smart, and a balanced source of meat alternatives is recommended.

4. Even if you are not a vegetarian, meat dishes accounting for 30 to 40 percent of your meal is enough. Too much meat acidifies the body, which aggravates chronic diseases, while fat in the meat can block blood vessels.

Hangzhou's Vegetarian Restaurants

Shou Kang Yong

Speciality: "shrimp" salad; sweet and sour tofu sheet, rice noodles

Address: 37 Yanan Rd S. and 108 Dadou Rd

Jing Lian Ju

Speciality: West Lake sweet and sour "fish," vegetarian "pork" (tofu sheets) cooked with black pepper, vegetarian "goose" (tofu sheets), fish-flavored eggplant

Address: 56 Nanshan Rd, next to Jingci Temple

Lingyin Temple Restaurant

Speciality: all kinds of noodle cooked with vegetables

Address: No.1 Fayun Lane, next to Lingyin Temple

Fuxing Guan

Speciality: "chicken," "fish," fried and sliced "eel," tai chi soup (mixed vegetable soup)

Address: 1 Yuhuangshan Rd, at the top ofYuhuang Hill.