Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Street Food
Snacking your way around China is a fine way to sample the different flavours
of the land while on the move. Most towns have a
yeshi
( street market or a
night market) for good-value snacks and meals so you can either take away or
park yourself on a wobbly stool and grab a beer.
Vegetarianism
If you'd rather chew on a legume than a leg of lamb, it can be hard going trying
to find truly vegetarian dishes. China's history of famine and poverty means
the consumption of meat has always been a sign of status and symbolic of
health and wealth.
You will find that vegetables are often fried in animal-based oils, while veget-
able soups may be made with chicken or beef stock, so simply choosing ve-
getable items on the menu is ineffective. In Beijing and Shanghai you will,
however, find a generous crop of vegetarian restaurants to choose from.
Out of the large cities, you may be hard pressed to find a vegetarian restaur-
ant. Your best bet may to head to a sizeable active Buddhist temple or monas-
tery, where you could well find a Buddhist vegetarian restaurant that is open to
the public. Buddhist vegetarian food typically consists of 'mock meat' dishes
created from tofu, wheat gluten, potato and other vegetables.
If you want to say 'I am a vegetarian' in Chinese, say (wo chi su).
