Shandong Cuisine：The Foremost of China's Eight Great Cuisines

Shandong Cuisine is the foremost of China's eight great cuisines. It can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period (about 2,500 to 2,800 years ago). It reached its peak during the Ming and Qing dynasties（about 400 to 600 years ago）, becoming the foundation of imperial court cuisine.

Known for its savory and umami flavors, Shandong Cuisine often uses scallions, ginger, and garlic for seasoning. Its techniques are diverse, focusing on quick stir-frying, stir-frying, and steaming—especially "quick-frying"(爆), which demands precise timing and skill, as even a second’s delay can affect the taste. It also focuses on "using soup to enhance umami"—clear soup is crystal-clear yet rich in flavor, while milky soup is thick and creamy. This soup art was documented in ancient texts over 1,600 years ago.

Shandong Cuisine is divided into three main schools: Jiaodong cuisine, which specializes in seafood; Jinan cuisine, which focuses on soup skills; and Kongfu cuisine, which is all about etiquette. Classic dishes such as sweet and sour fish, roasted sea cucumber with scallions, and Boshan tofu box demonstrate the philosophy of Shandong Cuisine, which is "salty, umami, and pure, highlighting the original flavor". Today, at modern Shandong Cuisine innovation competitions, it’s embarking on a global adventure—dishes like Spanish mackerel tea rice and orange shrimp with beef are giving this ancient cuisine a fresh appeal overseas.

Shandong Cuisine is not only a treasure of Chinese cuisine, but also deeply integrated into the daily tables of thousands of families, becoming a warm memory on the tip of the Chinese tongue.