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An epicurean vegetarianism
Latest Updated by 2002-04-30 17:41:58
WESTERN vegetarians would be surprised to learn that their Chinese peers do not settle for just the shape and taste of sheer vegetables. Rather than a simple lettuce salad, cucumbers and tomatoes that can be eaten raw, things like vegetarian "shark's fin " and "lobster" have the magic to cheer up even the dullest Chinese vegetarian.
Vegetarianism prevailed after Buddhism spread to China during the Liang Dynasty (A.D.502557), and many methods of cooking flourished in the household of the rich and the important, as well as in temples around the country.
"Ancient Chinese emperors always preferred to eat vegetarian food, "said Guo Fangyou, manager of Dengpin Vegetarian Foods Restaurant, "for the sake of good health." As a result, chefs stormed their brains for recipes to cook delicious─sometimes meat ─and fishlike-vegetarian food.
With sandalwood incense and ancient zither music faintly floating n the air, the spacious lobby of the restaurant gives you an illusion that you are in an exquisitely decorated monastic room. It is only the shrine exotically replaced by a Western bar that offers juice, cocktail and milk tea that remind you where you really are. Green bamboo and liana decorates each of the 135 tables, and bamboo curtains separate guests from the hilarious crowds outside.
As you take a sip of the brown rice tea, the fragrance of rural earth and sun instantly give one an image of a healthy lifestyle, something long missed by modem city-dwellers. If you are a "hard-line " vegetarian, clover buds wrapped in laver scroll will help you approach the essence of vegetarianism. Fresh clover buds, crisp and nutritious, are mixed with condensed milk and a slightly sour salad sauce before being wrapped into a laver scroll. You've got to eat the layer cone while the freshly baked laver is still hot and crisp. Surely the sweet and sour taste will linger on your tongue before you realize the scroll is finished.
If you are the epicurean vegetarian, you cannot miss the "lobster slices." With koniaku to give it the transparent look, carrot ingredients to give the flesh color and alga ingredients to add a seafood flavor, the "lobster slices" exactly resemble the seafood in every respect.
Accompanied by mustard sauce, it tastes fresh and crisp.
Mushrooms and bean powders are made into "pork" wereas lotus root mimics the bone in a dish that impresses most guests with its similarity to fried chops in shape and taste. The same materials can also made a vivid "sweet-and-sour fish" dish, the secret lying in the different wild vegetable ingredients added to mimic the flavor of fish.
Snacks and desserts are also worth a try. A petite pumpkin cake that has chopped peanuts and sesame inside as well as almond slice dressings outside is quite yummy. Another fruit scroll has small pieces of pineapple and nectarine wrapped in a tiny pancake, savored with condensed milk and honey.
Editor: Weiwei
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By:Dawn Li Source：
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