Summary: A guide to twelve dishes that are cooked most often in China and recognised all over the world – from Peking duck and Sichuan classics such as Kung Pao and mapo tofu to Cantonese dim sum and wonton soup. Each entry covers origin, key technique, main ingredients and a link to a tested recipe. Written for beginners and confident cooks alike. Reading time 13 minutes
Category: Articles · Chinese Cuisine | Reading time: 13 minutes
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Chinese cooking is not one cuisine. It is eight large regional traditions that share a common foundation: rice or wheat, fermented soy products, garlic with ginger, and fast cooking over a very hot pan. Peking duck is not about spice but about dry skin. Kung Pao and mapo tofu rest on Sichuan pepper and chilli. Char siu, dim sum and wonton belong to the Cantonese tradition, which favours gentle flavours and steam. Whichever dish you start with, temperature, the order of ingredients and patience during preparation will decide the result.
Quick overview
- Topic / Dish: 12 most famous Chinese dishes: traditional recipes from Chinese cuisine
- Category: Articles · Chinese Cuisine
- Cuisine: Chinese
- Variants included: Peking duck – celebratory roast duck with crisp skin, thin pancakes and a sweet sauce, Kung Pao chicken – spicy Sichuan chicken with peanuts, chilli and a sweet-savoury sauce, chilli and a sweet-savoury sauce, Mapo tofu – tofu in a spicy Sichuan sauce with minced meat and Sichuan pepper, Sweet and sour pork – fried pork pieces in the classic sweet and sour sauce, Char siu – Cantonese roast pork with a glossy caramelised crust, Dim sum – small Cantonese dishes, especially steamed dumplings and parcels, especially steamed dumplings and parcels, Xiaolongbao – delicate Shanghai dumplings filled with pork and hot soup, Chow mein – stir-fried wheat noodles with vegetables, meat or seafood, meat or seafood, Yangzhou fried rice – fried rice with egg, prawns, ham and peas, prawns, ham and peas, Hot pot – a shared meal cooked in bubbling broth at the table, Dan dan noodles – Sichuan noodles with a spicy sauce and chilli oil, Wonton soup – clear broth with filled wonton dumplings and spring onion
- Key techniques: Stir-frying in a very hot wok, deep-frying, roasting on a rack, steaming, simmering in sauce, thickening with starch
- Physicochemical background: Maillard reactions on meat and pastry surfaces, starch gelatinisation during thickening, sugar caramelisation in glazes, solubility of aroma compounds in fat
- Common mistakes: a cold wok, damp skin, an overcrowded pan, starch tipped into boiling sauce, chilli burnt in oil
- In a nutshell: Chinese cooking starts from the base: fermented soy gives flavour, the wok gives texture and steam gives delicacy
- Last updated: 10. 10. 2026
WAGUU says: “Chinese cooking is not decided by the number of ingredients but by the order in which they enter the pan and the temperature the pan reaches beforehand.”
Key facts
| Preparation time: | 20–60 min |
| Cooking time: | 15–105 min |
| Servings: | 6 |
| Difficulty: | Demanding, Medium, Easy |
Method at a glance
- Boiling the noodles to just underdone and stir-frying each component separately over the highest heat
- Pre-steaming the dumplings and finishing them in the boiling broth
- A long marinade and glazing in thin layers during the last third of roasting
- Frying the pork until dry and building the sauce directly in the bowl under the noodles
- Rolling the wrapper until it is translucent, pleating in about twenty folds and steaming without lifting the lid
In a nutshell
- Kung Pao chicken – spicy Sichuan chicken with peanuts, chilli and a sweet-savoury sauce: Kung Pao rests on three things: cornflour, heat and timing. Cornflour seals the surface of the chicken so the juices stay inside while the outside browns; without it, the meat releases water into the pan and starts to stew. The chillies and Sichuan pepper are toasted in oil for no more than twenty seconds, enough to release their aroma but not to burn. The sauce is mixed in a glass beforehand because there is no time to measure anything once the wok is at temperature; cornflour thickens it within seconds of contact, so the sauce clings to the chicken instead of pooling at the bottom. Peanuts are added at the end, either dry-fried or roasted, so they keep their crunch
- Mapo tofu – tofu in a spicy Sichuan sauce with minced meat and Sichuan pepper: Mapo tofu is built on fermented paste, not on chilli heat alone. Doubanjiang is fried in oil until the oil turns red and separates from the paste; that step releases the aroma and removes the raw, beany taste. Tofu is poached in lightly salted water first, which firms the surface so it survives the sauce. Cornflour goes in twice: the first addition thickens the sauce, the second – added after the sauce relaxes – gives the glossy coating that makes it cling to the tofu. Sichuan pepper is added at the very end, off the heat, so its tingle survives; cooked for minutes it turns bitter and flat
- Sweet and sour pork – fried pork pieces in the classic sweet and sour sauce: Sweet and sour pork depends on two temperatures and one timing decision. The first fry at 160 °C cooks the meat through and sets the coating; the second at 190 °C drives out the last of the water and makes the crust brittle. Between the two fries the pieces rest, which lets steam escape instead of being trapped under the crust. The sauce is built separately from ketchup, vinegar, sugar and pineapple juice, then thickened lightly with cornflour so it coats rather than pools; it is poured over the pork off the heat because a long simmer would pull water back into the crust and make it soggy
- Char siu – Cantonese roast pork with a glossy caramelised crust: Char siu builds sweetness in two layers. The first sits in the marinade: honey and hoisin carry sugars that penetrate the surface and, over a long marinade, soften the outer fibres slightly. The second sits on the surface: a glaze of honey and strained pan juices goes on only in the last third of roasting, because sugar caramelises above 150 °C and turns bitter if it is held at that temperature too long. The pork therefore roasts first at a gentler heat so it warms through to the centre, and only then is the surface brought up to colour. Five-spice adds anise and cinnamon notes, sesame paste rounds the flavour and helps the marinade cling to the fat in the meat
- Dim sum – small Cantonese dishes, especially steamed dumplings and parcels: Dim sum depends on two things that are easy to get wrong: the temperature of the filling and the tightness of the wrapper. The filling must be cold, because a cold mixture holds its shape and does not leak moisture into the wrapper as you pleat it. The wrapper is sealed with the air pressed out – trapped air expands in the steam and splits the dumpling open. Bamboo shoots in the filling act like a sponge and soak up the juices released by the pork and prawns, so the wrapper stays dry. The steamer is filled in a single layer so steam circulates around each dumpling and the wrappers never touch
- Xiaolongbao – delicate Shanghai dumplings filled with pork and hot soup: Xiaolongbao is a technique for keeping water inside a dumpling. The stock is cooked from pork bones and skin, which are rich in collagen; once chilled, the collagen sets into gelatine and the stock becomes a jelly that can be diced and mixed into the meat. In the steamer the jelly melts above 60 °C and turns back into soup, and it stays inside only because the wrapper is thin, pliable and firmly sealed. The dough is therefore made with boiling water: part of the flour is gelatinised during mixing, the gluten network stays weak and the dough can be rolled to about half a millimetre without springing back. Starch in the filling absorbs the jelly and holds it until the heat arrives
- Chow mein – stir-fried wheat noodles with vegetables, meat or seafood: Chow mein rests on two techniques. The first is pre-cooking the noodles: they are boiled a minute less than the packet says and then rinsed in cold water, which washes off the surface starch so they do not clump together in the pan. The second is frying on a dry, very hot surface: the noodles are left alone for a minute so brown spots form, and only then are they tossed. Aromas from the sauce arrive in the last stage, when everything is combined. Meat and prawns are fried separately because they release water; cooked together with the noodles that water would drop the pan temperature and the noodles would steam instead of frying
- Yangzhou fried rice – fried rice with egg, prawns, ham and peas: Fried rice depends on dry grains and a very hot wok. Cooked rice holds water inside the starch granules; on chilling, that water migrates into the grains and the starch firms up, which is why cold rice does not turn to paste in the pan. The wok must be hot enough that the surface water on the grains evaporates instantly; a merely warm wok steams them instead. Every component is fried separately because each releases a different amount of water – eggs set at once, meat gives up juices, vegetables release more. Combining them only at the end gives a mixture in which every texture survives
- Hot pot – a shared meal cooked in bubbling broth at the table: Hot pot depends on two things: the flavour of the broth and the order in which ingredients enter it. The broth is first heated with ginger, star anise and Sichuan pepper so that the aromatic compounds move into the water. Meat is cut into slices two millimetres thick, which heat through in twenty to thirty seconds; a thicker slice would stay raw in the middle. Ingredients that release starch, such as noodles and tofu, go in last so they do not cloud the broth. At the table the broth is kept just below a rolling boil, because a hard boil breaks the meat slices apart and evaporates the broth unnecessarily
- Dan dan noodles – Sichuan noodles with a spicy sauce and chilli oil: Dan dan noodles rest on a thick sauce that clings to the noodles. Sesame paste and pork fried until dry form the base that binds liquid; soy sauce and black rice vinegar bring salt and acidity, and the chilli oil ties the flavours together. The oil is heated to 150–160 °C so the aromatics of the chilli and Sichuan pepper are released into the fat; hotter than that and the chilli burns and turns bitter. The noodles are boiled to just done, rinsed only briefly and laid straight onto the sauce, so the whole flavour reaches each bowl individually and nothing is lost in the colander
- Wonton soup – clear broth with filled wonton dumplings and spring onion: Wonton soup separates two steps: the dumplings are pre-steamed and only go into the broth for the final minutes. In the steamer the wrapper sets and firms, so in the soup it absorbs flavour without falling apart. The filling must be cold, otherwise it holds its shape poorly and dampens the wrapper from the inside. Bamboo shoots in the filling soak up the extra juices from the pork and prawns. The broth is kept at a gentle simmer, because a hard boil breaks the dumplings and clouds the soup; soy sauce, ginger and sesame oil carry the seasoning, so no salt is added
- Result: Master three core techniques – stir-frying in a blazing hot wok, thickening with starch and steaming – and the whole of Chinese cooking opens up to you.
Who this guide is for: Beginners – start with Yangzhou fried rice or chow mein, where nothing is coated and nothing is deep-fried. Improvers – try Kung Pao chicken, char siu or mapo tofu, which teach you to work with heat and starch. Confident cooks – attempt Peking duck or xiaolongbao, where preparation the day before and patience with dough matter most.
Chinese Cuisine in a nutshell
What the dishes share:
Every one relies on fermented soy flavour, fast cooking and a precise balance of salty, sweet and sour.
Easiest ingredients to find:
Soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornflour, ginger, garlic and spring onions are stocked by most supermarkets and by Asian grocers.
Most expensive item:
A whole duck. For the other dishes the cost per portion stays low, because meat is only part of the weight and rice, vegetables or tofu fill the rest.
Fastest dish:
Yangzhou fried rice and chow mein take under half an hour when cooked rice or noodles are ready.
Most demanding dish:
Xiaolongbao. Thin wrappers and soup sealed inside a filling take practice; the first batch rarely comes out perfectly.
The result:
Master three techniques – stir-frying in a hot wok, thickening with starch and steaming – and the rest of the cuisine opens up.
Who this guide is for:
Beginners – start with Yangzhou fried rice or chow mein, where nothing is coated and nothing is deep-fried. Improvers – try Kung Pao chicken, char siu or mapo tofu, which teach you to work with heat and starch. Confident cooks – attempt Peking duck or xiaolongbao, where preparation the day before and patience with dough matter most.
Chinese cuisine at a glance
Chinese cooking divides into eight large regional traditions. Sichuan builds on chilli and Sichuan pepper, which produces a gentle tingling on the tongue. Cantonese prefers fresh ingredients, steam and delicate flavours, which is why dim sum and char siu come from there. The Peking and Shandong traditions lean on roasting, wheat pancakes and robust fermented sauces. Across all regions, however, the foundation is the same: rice or wheat as the staple, fermented soy products for depth of flavour and fast cooking over a hot pan that preserves texture.
For a cook in the UK, Chinese food is accessible for one simple reason: the ingredients keep. Soy sauce, rice vinegar, Shaoxing wine, cornflour and sesame oil store for months in a cool dark cupboard. With those on the shelf you can cook two thirds of the recipes in this guide without hunting for anything exotic. Only fermented pastes, dried seafood and whole duck remain harder to source.
The regions and what defines them
Knowing which region a dish comes from lets you predict its flavour before you open the recipe. Look to the west for hot, assertive cooking, to the south coast for gentle, sweeter food, and to the north for roasted, celebratory dishes.
Region
Character of flavour
Sichuan
Hot and bold, with the tingling of Sichuan pepper; fermented pastes and chilli oil form the base
Canton
Delicate, fresh and sweeter; built on steam, seafood and roast meat glazed with honey
Peking and Shandong
Roast meat, wheat pancakes and robust sauces made from fermented soybean paste
Shanghai and Jiangsu
Sweet, rich and savoury; steaming, braising and dumplings with soup inside are typical
Hunan
Sharp, sour and dry; less oil, more dried chilli and smoked ingredients
Fujian
Umami from fermented sauces and seafood, soups with a thick body
Anhui
Herbal and rustic; plenty of braised meat, mushrooms and mountain herbs
Zhejiang
Fresh and mildly sweet; a focus on fish, bamboo shoots and short cooking times
Peking duck – celebratory roast duck with crisp skin, thin pancakes and a sweet sauce
Kung Pao chicken – spicy Sichuan chicken with peanuts, chilli and a sweet-savoury sauce
Sichuan stir-fry of chicken thigh cut into cubes, marinated in soy sauce, Shaoxing wine and cornflour, then cooked over the highest heat with dried chillies, Sichuan pepper, peanut and vegetables. The sauce is mixed in advance from light and dark soy, black rice vinegar, sugar and a little cornflour, so it goes in during the last minute and thickens on contact with the hot pan. Dry-fried peanuts go in at the very end and stay crunchy. Total time 45 minutes, base 6 servings
Mapo tofu – tofu in a spicy Sichuan sauce with minced meat and Sichuan pepper
Sichuan dish of firm tofu simmered in a sauce built on fermented broad bean paste, black beans, chilli flakes and Sichuan pepper, with a small amount of minced pork. The tofu is poached in lightly salted water first so it holds its shape, then added to the sauce and thickened twice with cornflour slurry so the sauce clings rather than runs. Finished with ground Sichuan pepper and spring onion. Total time 40 minutes, base 6 servings
Sweet and sour pork – fried pork pieces in the classic sweet and sour sauce
Cantonese takeaway favourite made properly at home: cubes of lean pork leg marinated in soy sauce and egg, coated in cornflour and flour, fried twice so the crust stays crisp, then tossed for a minute in a sauce of ketchup, rice vinegar, sugar and pineapple juice with fresh pineapple and peppers. The sauce is thickened with a little cornflour at the end so it clings to the crust instead of running off. Total time 60 minutes, base 6 servings
Char siu – Cantonese roast pork with a glossy caramelised crust
Cantonese roast pork made from boneless neck fillet cut into long strips. The marinade of hoisin, honey, two soy sauces, Shaoxing wine, sesame paste and five-spice works for twelve to twenty-four hours; the pork is then roasted on a rack and brushed three times with a glaze of honey and the pan juices until the surface turns glossy and caramelised. Served sliced thinly with rice and a quick cucumber pickle. Total time 90 minutes, base 6 servings
Dim sum – small Cantonese dishes, especially steamed dumplings and parcels
Cantonese steamed dumplings filled with minced pork and prawns, wrapped in square wonton wrappers and cooked in a bamboo steamer. The filling holds together thanks to cornflour and chopped bamboo shoots, which soak up the extra juices. The dumplings steam in two batches of twelve so the steamer is never overloaded and the wrappers do not go soggy. Served with a bowl of soy sauce and sesame oil. Total time 65 minutes, base 6 servings, 24 pieces
Xiaolongbao – delicate Shanghai dumplings filled with pork and hot soup
Shanghai soup dumplings made from a thin wrapper filled with minced pork and set stock. The stock is cooked in advance from pork bones and skin, chilled until it sets into a jelly and folded into the filling – in the steamer it melts back into soup and stays sealed inside the dumpling. The wrappers are rolled almost translucent and pleated with about twenty folds, then steamed for ten minutes. Total time 80 minutes, plus six hours chilling the stock, base 6 servings, 24 pieces
Chow mein – stir-fried wheat noodles with vegetables, meat or seafood
Stir-fried wheat noodles with chicken thigh, prawns and vegetables. The noodles are boiled a minute less than the packet says, rinsed in cold water and tossed with a little oil so they do not stick. Meat and prawns are fried separately from the vegetables and everything comes together with a soy and oyster sauce in the final two minutes. Total time 35 minutes, base 6 servings
Yangzhou fried rice – fried rice with egg, prawns, ham and peas
Yangzhou-style fried rice made with rice cooked the day before and chilled. The eggs are scrambled first, then the ham and prawns, then the vegetables, and finally the rice, fried in portions so it never clumps. It is seasoned with soy and oyster sauce only at the end. The result is separate, glossy grains rather than a sticky mass. Total time 40 minutes, plus overnight chilling, base 6 servings
Hot pot – a shared meal cooked in bubbling broth at the table
Hot pot, the Chinese shared meal: a pan of simmering stock flavoured with star anise, Sichuan pepper, ginger and soy sauce stands in the middle of the table. Guests drop thin slices of beef and pork, tofu, mushrooms, vegetables and rice noodles into it and eat what they cook, dipping each piece in their own bowl of sesame paste and chilli oil. Total time 60 minutes, plus the cooking that happens at the table, base 6 servings
Dan dan noodles – Sichuan noodles with a spicy sauce and chilli oil
Sichuan noodles with minced pork, pickled greens, sesame paste and chilli oil. The pork is fried with the pickles until dry and crumbly; the sauce is mixed straight into the bowl from sesame paste, soy sauce and black rice vinegar and the cooked noodles are laid on top. Hot chilli oil is poured over and ground Sichuan pepper finishes the dish. Total time 45 minutes, base 6 servings
Wonton soup – clear broth with filled wonton dumplings and spring onion
Wonton soup made with a clear chicken broth and dumplings filled with minced pork, prawns and bamboo shoots. The filling is seasoned with soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, ginger and sesame oil and wrapped in thin squares that are steamed for two minutes before going into the boiling broth. Bok choy, spring onion and a drop of sesame oil finish the soup. Total time 65 minutes, base 6 servings, 24 dumplings
WAGUU Pro Tip: Before your first recipe, buy cornflour and Shaoxing wine. Cornflour decides the texture of the sauces and the wine suppresses the smell of meat; without them the flavour will taste flat even when the technique is right.
Frequently asked questions
Where should I start if I have never cooked Chinese food?
Yangzhou fried rice or chow mein. Nothing is battered, nothing is deep-fried and everything happens in one pan. You will learn pan temperature, the order of ingredients and how to handle soy sauce.
Do I need a wok?
No. A deep cast-iron or stainless steel pan with a thick base works well. What matters is the mass of the base, which holds temperature when cold ingredients go in, not the shape of the vessel.
Where can I buy Sichuan pepper and fermented pastes?
Asian grocers and the world foods aisle of larger supermarkets. Sichuan pepper is sold whole and ground; whole berries keep their aroma far longer, so grind them just before use.
Why do the recipes use sugar in meat dishes?
Sugar does not make a dish sweet; it balances the saltiness of soy sauce and the sharpness of vinegar. In sweet and sour sauces it also caramelises during cooking and adds gloss.
Are these dishes hot and spicy?
Only some. Kung Pao chicken, mapo tofu, dan dan noodles and hot pot are spicy. Peking duck, char siu, dim sum, xiaolongbao, chow mein, fried rice and wonton soup are not spicy at all.
Can Chinese food be cooked gluten free?
Partly. Swap standard soy sauce for tamari, wheat noodles for rice noodles and coating mixtures for gluten-free flour. Mapo tofu, fried rice, hot pot and wonton soup with rice wrappers remain gluten free.
Also known as: Chinese cooking, the eight great traditions, Sichuan and Cantonese cuisine, traditional Chinese recipes
Author: WAGUU Petr & Team • Published: 8 Oct 2026 • Updated: 10 Oct 2026
Conclusion
The twelve dishes in this guide cover the full range of Chinese cooking, from a quick weeknight supper to a celebratory Peking duck. The gentlest route in is to start with noodles and fried rice, then add wok-cooked dishes, and only then attempt techniques that need preparation in advance – duck, char siu and dumplings. Once you can heat a pan properly, thicken a sauce with starch and steam a batch of dumplings, the rest of the cuisine follows without any extra equipment.
More recipe variations
Peking duck on a tray with water bath
The duck roasts on a rack over a tray of water, so the meat stays moist even with longer cooking. The skin isn’t as crisp as in the classic version, so it’s finished under the grill. Suitable for households without a large fan oven.
Duck breasts instead of whole duck
Two breast fillets are salted, brushed with honey and vinegar, and rest in the fridge for four hours. They’re done in an hour and the skin is crisp, but there are no legs to make the sauce juices from. Ideal for two to three people.
Kung Pao with chicken breast
The breasts are sliced into thinner strips and marinated for ten minutes longer. The dish is leaner and cooks faster, but risks drying out, so it’s stir-fried for a shorter time. Suitable for those who don’t like dark meat.
Kung Pao without peanuts
Peanuts are replaced with roasted cashews or pumpkin seeds. The flavour is milder and the dish is free from one of the most common allergens. Suitable for school lunches and allergy sufferers.
Mapo Tofu without meat
Minced pork is replaced with chopped shiitake mushrooms and an extra tablespoon of soy paste. The dish is lighter and fully meat-free, but mushrooms release water, so add as needed.
Mapo Tofu with beef
Minced pork is replaced with coarsely ground beef topside. The flavour is stronger and less sweet, so add a teaspoon of sugar and two extra tablespoons of stock to keep the sauce moist.
Sweet and sour pork from the air fryer
The coated pieces are cooked at 210°C for twenty minutes, turning halfway. The fat is significantly lower and the crust drier, but even those afraid of deep-frying can manage it.
Chicken in agrodolce
Pork shoulder is replaced with boneless thighs cut into the same size pieces. The meat heats through faster, so it’s fried for thirty seconds less the first time and the coating stays lighter.
Char Siu from pork shoulder
Pork shoulder has more fat and connective tissue, so the marinade penetrates deeper and the meat stays juicier. It roasts for ten minutes longer and is sliced thinly against the grain.
Char Siu from chicken thighs
Boneless thighs are marinated in the same mixture and roasted at 200°C for twenty-five minutes. The result is cheaper and quicker, but the crust isn’t as glossy as with pork.
Dim sum with prawn filling
Pork filling is replaced with chopped prawns, bamboo shoots, and sesame oil. The filling steams for a shorter time, so it stays juicy and pink.
Pan-fried dim sum
After steaming, the pieces are dried and pan-fried for two minutes in oil until golden. The bottom is crisp and the top stays tender, but the fat is higher than with plain steaming.
Chicken Xiaolongbao
The set pork stock is replaced with chicken stock, which is lighter and more delicate. The filling is less pronounced, so a tablespoon of soy sauce and a pinch of sugar are added.
Prawn Xiaolongbao
Half the minced pork is replaced with chopped prawns and a teaspoon of sesame paste. The filling is sweeter and juicier, so the dough is sealed even more carefully to prevent the stock from escaping.
Know another variation? Add your own suggestion below.
Chinese cuisine at a glance
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Frequently asked questions about the variations
- Can Peking duck be roasted in one day? Yes, provided the skin dries for at least twelve hours. A shorter drying time leaves part of the skin pale and soft after roasting.
- Why is Kung Pao not normally made with breast meat? It can be, but breast is leaner and dries out faster. If you use it, marinate for longer and stir-fry for less time.
- Is vegetarian mapo tofu still authentic? Meat-free versions are cooked routinely in China, particularly in monastery kitchens. The flavour comes from fermented paste and mushrooms rather than meat.
- Can sweet and sour pork be baked instead of fried? Yes, at 210 °C for twenty minutes. The coating is drier and more brittle, but the fat in the dish drops to about a third.
- What is the difference between char siu from shoulder and from leg? Shoulder is fattier and stays juicier; leg is leaner and holds its shape better when sliced thinly.
- Why do dim sum fillings include bamboo shoots? They add crunch and soak up excess juices from the meat, so the wrapper does not go soggy.
- Can xiaolongbao be prepared in advance? Yes. Fill and shape them, freeze in a single layer, then steam straight from frozen for two minutes longer.
- Are rice noodles in chow mein gluten free? Yes, unless the manufacturer adds wheat starch. Always check the label, as cross-contamination is possible.
