GENERAL LAWS OF CHINESE
COOKING
AChinesedishconsistsof threeparts: (a)
meat; (b) secondaryvegetables, suchasChi-
nesewaterchestnut,bambooshoot,celery,Chi-
nese mushroom, and sometimes other vege-
tablesaccordingtotheseason; (c) thegarnish
onthetop ofeachdish, consistingofChinese
ham,chicken,orroastporkcutupinto small
diceorintosmallbarsaboutoneinchlong,and
enough parsley to aidthetaste as well asto
ornament the dish.
Theamountofmeat,inaccordancewiththe
hygieniclaw ofConfucius, is aboutone-third
that ofthesecondaryvegetables.
Themeatshouldbethesamesizeandshape
asthevegetablesandmustbeuniform. Itmay
becutinto dice, intobars,orintofragments
;judgmentmustbeusedastothiswhenthesize
ofthevegetableislimited.
There are three methods employed in Chi-
nesecooking;steaming,frying,andboiling.
B