While most people think of Chinese food as a single style of cooking, there are dozens of different genres with eight being the most influential and lasting. Those styles are even referred to as the Eight Cuisines.

The Eight Cuisines Of China

• Shandong Cuisine. Shandong cuisine can be traced to the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368), with its major influences beginning more than 3,000 years ago from the territories of Qi and Lu (as far back as 770 BC). The dishes are characterized by stir frying. Its dishes are crisp, tender, salty, and some sweet and sour. Beijing dishes are included here, such as Peking duck.

• Guangdong Cuisine. Among the most unique of all cooking styles, Guangdong cuisine places an emphasis on rare and fine ingredients and exceptional presentations. In the United States, it is better known as Cantonese. Sweet and sour pork is an example of Guangdong cuisine.

• Sichuan Cuisine. Probably the most immediately recognized cuisine in America, Sichuan was developed as early as the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). It features 38 cooking methods, three peppers, three aromas, seven tastes, and eight flavors. In the last 100 years, the more popular dishes have leaned toward being the hot, sour, sweet, and salty tastes we know today. Kung pao chicken is one example.

• Hunan Cuisine. Sometimes called Xiang cuisine, this style stresses crispness, softness, tenderness, and savory flavors. It can be traced back 2,100 years to the Western Han Dynasty. Cooking techniques include stewing, frying, pot-roasting, braising, and smoking. There are more than 4,000 dishes, including dong'an chicken.

• Jiangsu Cuisine. Developed out of the local recipes of Yangzhou, Suzhou and Nanjing, there is a greater emphasis on braising and stewing in order to enhance the original flavor of the sauce. There are several branches of Jiangsu, including Shanghai and Nanjing. Hong shao paigu (braised spareribs) is one example.

• Zhejiang Cuisine. Known for its fresh and soft flavor with a mellow fragrance, Zhejiang cuisine consists of hundreds of small delicacies from its main cities. The methods are diverse, including frying, quick fry, stir fry, braising, and steaming with the goal to render the dishes salubrious and savory.

• Fujian Cuisine.Fujian cuisine has four distinctive features: fine cutting techniques, alternative soups, unique seasonings, and exquisite cooking. The cuisine emphasizes seafood, river fish, and shrimp. Its cooking methods are stewing, boiling, braising, quick boiling, and steaming, with flavors that are sweet, sour, salty, and savory. Pepper steak is a Western adaption of this cuisine.

• Anhui Cuisine. Braising and stewing tend to overshadow stir frying in order to preserve most of the original taste and nutrition of the food. Ham is often added to improve the taste of many dishes and it's not unexpected that the food from Huizhou and other areas along the Yangtze and Huai rivers tend to be salty and mildly salty. Egg dumplings and Luzhou roast duck are good examples.

Interestingly enough, some Chinese food historians say that Chinese food for various reasons evolved naturally from roasting to steaming to stir frying. These choices were influenced by how the people treated the cuisine, focusing on finding the most natural way to preserve as many of the nutrients in the food as possible.

Even American Chinese creations are often influenced by one of these cuisines. For example, while many people say that Mongolian beef (pictured above) has nothing to do with traditional Mongolian cuisine, it is influenced by Shandong cuisine. The Yuan Dynasty began under Kubla Khan, who was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire.

Any time you visit Kung Fu Plaza or any great Las Vegas restaurants, feel free to ask if they know the origin of the food. You might be surprised, depending on where you are dining.