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China Summer Camp Essentials | Meals

Studying and traveling require the best nutrition. Our choice of food is consistently praised by past participants.

Breakfast is served buffet style in the student residence or guest house dining hall while lunch and dinner are served in traditional Chinese dishes and sometimes western dishes in school or restaurants in the vicinity (for homestay campers, breakfast and dinner are served by the host family in homemade style).

During weekend excursion trips, food will be served at local restaurants. Many different styles of genuine Chinese cuisine can be tasted. These may include Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Sichuan, Hunan, Cantonese cuisines, etc.

About Chinese Cuisine
China can be divided into many geographical areas, and each area has a distinct style of cooking. The ingredients used in the food are based on the natural agricultural products of the region. In Northern China, for example, wheat is eaten more than rice as the staple food. Food using wheat as its main ingredients, such as noodles and dumplings is prevalent there. Compared to the rather monotonous fare of the North, China's southern cuisine is notable for its exceptional tastiness and its great variety. Most of the famous Chinese dishes served in international capitals, i.e., what is considered "Chinese Cuisine" abroad, belong, in fact, to the cuisine tradition of southern China.

Zhejiang Cuisine
Zhejiang Cuisine is famous for its mellow, yet not greasy, taste. Hangzhou style is the most notable style. It has good taste as well as a delicate appearance. It requires expertise in the cooking techniques of quick frying, stir-frying, braising and deep-frying and features clearness, freshness, tenderness, delicateness and purity. Besides seafood and freshwater fish, Hangzhou style exhibits a fondness for bamboo roots. About half the dishes on a Hangzhou menu contain bamboo roots, which add a tender element to the food.

Jiangsu Cuisine
Jiangsu Cuisine has a fresh taste, with moderate saltiness and sweetness, which is thick without being greasy, and light without being thin. Meanwhile it places an emphasis on the making of soup and retaining the original taste of the ingredients. Once it was the second largest cuisine among ancient China’s royal cuisines, and it remains a major part of the state banquet in China.

Anhui Cuisine
Anhui Cuisine uses only local produce, so the freshness of the dishes is unparalleled. Most ingredients in Anhui Cuisine, such as pangolin, stone frog, mushroom, bayberry, tea leaves, bamboo shoots and dates all come from mountain areas. It places a great deal of emphasis on natural foods, which makes it a healthy cuisine. It follows traditional ways and uses foods that are also used for medicinal purposes. The use of wild herbs is one of Anhui Cuisine’s notable features.

Sichuan Cuisine
The dishes of Sichuan Cuisine are famous for their spicy-hot flavors, a spicy-hotness that Sichuaners call "dry hot", insisting that it differs from the "wet hot" spiciness of other cuisines. Chuan Cuisine is also famous for its bold tastes in general, which all seem to come together in one of the most famous dishes: Hot Pot. Other typical dishes include Kung Pao Chicken (diced chicken fried with peanuts), Mapo Tofu (Stir-Fried Bean Curd in Chili Sauce).

Hunan Cuisine
The salient features of Hunan cuisine are richness, creaminess, and moistness, combined with the delicate use of chili. Hunan cuisine is also fragrant, with crunchy fresh vegetables that are cooked "al dente". It is said of Hunan cuisine that it not only has the saltiness of the cuisines of North China and the sweetness of the cuisines of South China, it also has the spicy-hotness as well as the tanginess of more local dishes.

Cantonese Cuisine
This particular type of Chinese food has been popularized by Chinese restaurants around the world as the majority of those who set up these restaurants were of Cantonese origin. Guangdong dishes are characterized by their tender and slightly sweet taste. Sauces are a crucial seasoning in Guangdong cuisine. Classic Cantonese sauces are light and mellow.

A Typical Sample Menu

-Breakfast: cereal, pastries, bread, egg, juice, milk, soymilk, etc
-Snack: cookies, fruits etc
-Lunch: Rice with beef/chicken/pork, spaghetti, dumplings, fried rice, noodle etc
-Dinner: Chinese meals (meat, fish, vegetable, soup etc)

Three meals are provided daily to full camp students. Only snacks and lunch are provided to day camp students. Special requests like vegetarian, and food allergies can be catered to as long as prior notice is given to us.