Pakistani Chinese cuisine
Encyclopedia
Pakistani Chinese cuisine refers to the styles and variations of Chinese cuisine
that are cooked and consumed in Pakistan
. Chinese migrants to Pakistan have developed a distinct Pakistani-style Chinese cuisine.
, and continued operating until 1988. Chinese restaurants are very popular amongst families as opposed to fast food and continental cuisine which is more favoured by the youth.
Pakistani chinese resembles Cantonese cuisine with its liberal use of chicken stock based sauces seasoned with soy sauce, chilli sauce, vinegar, ajino moto and oyster sauce but very rarely any fresh herbs. It is also a common practice in restaurants to serve chinese dishes in sizzling platters. Vegetables used in chinese cuisine are mostly cabbage, capsicum and onion since broccoli or bok choy are not native vegetables. The extent of the popularity of chinese food can be estimated from the fact that chinese variations of local dishes have become quite popular like chinese samosa, chinese broast and chinese pulao.
More recently in Islamabad
, the Phoenix restaurant has become well-known. Their clientele includes ex-president Pervez Musharraf
and ex-prime minister Shaukat Aziz
; Musharraf is said to enjoy their prawns, Peking duck
, stir-fried
beef, and garlic lamb chops. Chicken Manchurian, one of the most popular Pakistani Chinese dishes, is a South Asian-developed Chinese dish that normally consists of chicken with occasional vegetables in a spicy sauce. It is entirely a creation of Chinese restaurants in South Asia, being consumed in India and Pakistan in general, and bears little resemblance to traditional Chinese cuisine
.
. In the United Kingdom, the Lahore Karahi Halal Chinese Restaurant, which offers authentic Pakistani Chinese food, is amongst the most well-known. The restaurant has been appreciated by the likes of people such as HRH Prince Philip, Amitabh Bachan, boxer Amir Khan
, Charles Kennedy
, Waqar Younis
, the English national cricket team, retired Pakistani cricketing ace and politician
Imran Khan
and the Pakistan national cricket team.
is often starkly contrasted with Chinese cuisine. According to Pat Chapman
, the origins of the word Balti can be traced back to the Pakistani area of Baltistan
, in northern Pakistan, where the people cook in a cast iron wok similar to the Chinese way of cooking. (Baltistan shares a border with China
). In his Curry Club Balti Curry Cookbook, Chapman states: "The balti pan is a round-bottomed, wok-like heavy cast-iron dish with two handles." He also states "The origins of Balti cooking are wide ranging and owe as much to China (with a slight resemblance to the spicy cooking of Szechuan cuisine
) and Tibet
as well as to the ancestry of the Mirpuri
s, the tastes of the Moghul emperors, the aromatic spices of Kashmir
, and the 'winter foods' of lands high in the mountains."
Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine is any of several styles originating in the regions of China, some of which have become highly popular in other parts of the world – from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe and Southern Africa...
that are cooked and consumed in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. Chinese migrants to Pakistan have developed a distinct Pakistani-style Chinese cuisine.
History
Chinese cuisine in areas which today make up Pakistan has a history going back to restaurants established in the 1930s. One of these, the ABC Chinese Restaurant, was once patronised by Zhou EnlaiZhou Enlai
Zhou Enlai was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976...
, and continued operating until 1988. Chinese restaurants are very popular amongst families as opposed to fast food and continental cuisine which is more favoured by the youth.
Pakistani chinese resembles Cantonese cuisine with its liberal use of chicken stock based sauces seasoned with soy sauce, chilli sauce, vinegar, ajino moto and oyster sauce but very rarely any fresh herbs. It is also a common practice in restaurants to serve chinese dishes in sizzling platters. Vegetables used in chinese cuisine are mostly cabbage, capsicum and onion since broccoli or bok choy are not native vegetables. The extent of the popularity of chinese food can be estimated from the fact that chinese variations of local dishes have become quite popular like chinese samosa, chinese broast and chinese pulao.
More recently in Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
, the Phoenix restaurant has become well-known. Their clientele includes ex-president Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf , is a retired four-star general who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff and tenth President of Pakistan as well as tenth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Musharraf headed and led an administrative military government from October 1999 till August 2007. He ruled...
and ex-prime minister Shaukat Aziz
Shaukat Aziz
Shaukat Aziz is a world acclaimed Pakistani economist who was the 15th Prime Minister of Pakistan from May 20, 2004 to 15 November 2007 in a joint military government led by General Pervez Musharraf. A Citibank executive, Aziz returned to Pakistan from the United States to be became Finance...
; Musharraf is said to enjoy their prawns, Peking duck
Peking Duck
Peking Duck, or Peking Roast Duck is a famous duck dish from Beijing that has been prepared since the imperial era, and is now considered one of China's national foods....
, stir-fried
Stir frying
Stir frying is an umbrella term used to describe two Chinese cooking techniques for preparing food in a wok: chǎo and bào . The term stir-fry was introduced into the English language by Buwei Yang Chao, in her book How to Cook and Eat in Chinese, to describe the chǎo technique...
beef, and garlic lamb chops. Chicken Manchurian, one of the most popular Pakistani Chinese dishes, is a South Asian-developed Chinese dish that normally consists of chicken with occasional vegetables in a spicy sauce. It is entirely a creation of Chinese restaurants in South Asia, being consumed in India and Pakistan in general, and bears little resemblance to traditional Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine is any of several styles originating in the regions of China, some of which have become highly popular in other parts of the world – from Asia to the Americas, Australia, Western Europe and Southern Africa...
.
Dishes
Amongst some of the most popular Pakistani-Chinese dishes are:- Chicken Manchurian is the most popular dish with pieces of stir fried chicken served in a red ketchup based sauce. It is normally served with Egg or chicken fried rice.
- Chicken with Lime: stir fried chicken served in a sizzling lemon sauce.
- Sweet and Sour chicken or prawns-meat, capsicum, onions and pineapple chunks with a red sweet and sour sauce.
- Chinese rice - BasmatiBasmatiBasmati is a variety of long grain rice grown in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, notable for its fragrance and delicate, nuanced flavour. Its name means "the fragrant one" in Sanskrit, but it can also mean "the soft rice," and the word coincidentally means "my smile" in Arabic...
is the most common form of rice used. The most famous rice recipes are egg and chicken fried rice. - Chicken Honey Wings - Chicken wings dipped in a coating of sweet honey paste
- Chinese soup - Chicken corn soup and hot and sour soupHot and sour soupHot and sour soup can refer to soups from several Asian culinary traditions. In all cases the soup contains ingredients to make it both spicy and sour.-United States:Soup preparation may use chicken or pork broth, or may be meat-free...
are ubiquitous in restaurants, homes and on TV. these are served with staples such as vinegar (sirka) and chili pepperChili pepperChili pepper is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The term in British English and in Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia and other Asian countries is just chilli without pepper.Chili peppers originated in the Americas...
. - Noodles - Chicken chowmein and Chopsuey are popular. Their method of cooking employs hearty use of soy sauce, ajino moto, vinegar and chilli sauce with vegetables, boneless chicken and/or KeemaKeemaKeema, Kheema, or Qeema is a traditional Indian meat dish. Originally this word meant minced meat. It is typically minced mutton curry with peas or potatoes. Keema can be made from almost any meat, can be cooked by stewing or frying, and can be formed into kababs...
(minced meat). Oil concentrations are higher than normal Chinese noodles.
Overseas restaurants
In the recent past, many Overseas Pakistanis have opened and catered Pakistani-Chinese restaurants, including in the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. In the United Kingdom, the Lahore Karahi Halal Chinese Restaurant, which offers authentic Pakistani Chinese food, is amongst the most well-known. The restaurant has been appreciated by the likes of people such as HRH Prince Philip, Amitabh Bachan, boxer Amir Khan
Amir Khan (boxer)
Amir Iqbal Khan , is a British Pakistani professional boxer who is currently the unified WBA & IBF light welterweight champion....
, Charles Kennedy
Charles Kennedy
Charles Peter Kennedy is a British Liberal Democrat politician, who led the Liberal Democrats from 9 August 1999 until 7 January 2006 and is currently a Member of Parliament for the Ross, Skye and Lochaber constituency....
, Waqar Younis
Waqar Younis
Waqar Younis Maitla is a former Pakistani right arm fast bowler in cricket and widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time...
, the English national cricket team, retired Pakistani cricketing ace and politician
Imran Khan
Imran Khan
Imran Khan Niazi is a Pakistani politician and former Pakistani cricketer, playing international cricket for two decades in the late twentieth century. After retiring, he entered politics...
and the Pakistan national cricket team.
Similarities with Balti cuisine
The British-Pakistani Balti cuisineBalti (food)
A Balti is a British-style type of curry cooked and served up in a thin, pressed steel wok-like pan. It is served in many restaurants in the United Kingdom...
is often starkly contrasted with Chinese cuisine. According to Pat Chapman
Pat Chapman
Patrick Lawrence Chapman is an English food writer, broadcaster and author, best known for founding The Curry Club.-Early days:Chapman was born in London during the Blitz...
, the origins of the word Balti can be traced back to the Pakistani area of Baltistan
Baltistan
Baltistan , also known as بلتیول བལིུལ་ in the Balti language, is a region in northern Pakistan which forms Gilgit-Baltistan, bordering the Xinjiang Autonomous Region of China. In addition, a part of Baltistan also falls into Jammu and Kashmir of India. It is situated in the Karakoram mountains...
, in northern Pakistan, where the people cook in a cast iron wok similar to the Chinese way of cooking. (Baltistan shares a border with China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
). In his Curry Club Balti Curry Cookbook, Chapman states: "The balti pan is a round-bottomed, wok-like heavy cast-iron dish with two handles." He also states "The origins of Balti cooking are wide ranging and owe as much to China (with a slight resemblance to the spicy cooking of Szechuan cuisine
Szechuan cuisine
Szechuan cuisine, Sichuan cuisine, or Szechwan cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine originating in the Sichuan Province of southwestern China famed for bold flavors, particularly the pungency and spiciness resulting from liberal use of garlic and chili peppers, as well as the unique flavour of...
) and Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
as well as to the ancestry of the Mirpuri
Mirpuri
Mirpuri may refer to:* Potwari language, an Indo-Aryan Lahnda language related to Hindko* Mahan Singh Mirpuri , General in the kingdom of Maharaja Ranjit Singh* Mirpur, Azad Kashmir, city in Pakistan-administered Jammu & Kashmir...
s, the tastes of the Moghul emperors, the aromatic spices of Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
, and the 'winter foods' of lands high in the mountains."