China #2: Food

I’ve been told I have a relatively adventurous palate.  Certainly willing to dabble with any cuisine, I will also sample pretty much any dish proffered provided it does not include any of the following:  reptiles, insects, entrails, or organs.  (Okay, I have eaten crocodile and frog legs, which, I believe, would both carry a reptilian classification.  I also liked them both!  They taste a bit like chicken with a fishy nuance but not exactly the same chicken with fishy nuance.  Both are distinctive, each holding its own unique melding of chicken/fishy nuance flavor and texture—go figure!)  Most plant-based food does not repel me intellectually or visually before sampling, although on multiple occasions I have tasted “vegetarian fare” that needs never be an included portion of my sustenance again.   Keep in mind, too, I really am not a foodie, connoisseur, or gastronome.  Mostly I just don’t like being hungry, and food that actually tastes good as it satisfies makes any day better.

In China any boundaries limiting what ingredients could constitute human victuals seemingly blur.  Case in point—check out the following photos made at a popular night market specializing in meals-on-a-stick, one located on a side street connected to the most upscale (think Gucci, Prada, etc.) shopping district in Beijing:

 So...these actually look quite edible, yes?!  Just keep walking--so to speak--as we did...

 Now, these gave me the willies!

Yummy...NOT!

On these, the scorpions wiggled and writhed.  Apparently the buyer would first select a stick to be grilled.  (And maybe then the scorpions were stilled?!!)

Still, all this said and pictured, meals in China can also include some delectably memorable eats.  Fresh ingredients—but not moving, please—and novel combinations often culminate in a most pleasurable dining experience.  One of my favorite dishes on this latest trip was kung pao chicken.  Now I’m not talking about the ubiquitous Chinese-American style kung pao chicken here.  I’ve never eaten “ kung pao” anything in America that resembled the kung pao chicken I ate in China:  chicken and peanuts in spicy sauce.  Another favorite—and its name I never learned—was this caramelized sugar sauce poured over fresh apple chunks or baked chunks of sweet potato.  Although it was always served as part of the main course, it negated any craving for dessert!