Australian Chinese cuisine is a style of cooking developed by
Australians of Chinese descent, who adapted dishes to satisfy local
Anglo-Celtic
Anglo-Celtic people are descended primarily from British and Irish people. The concept is mainly relevant outside of Great Britain and Ireland, particularly in Australia, but is also used in Canada, the United States, New Zealand and South Africa, ...
tastes. Its roots can be traced to indentured Chinese who were brought to work as cooks in country pubs and
sheep station
A sheep station is a large property ( station, the equivalent of a ranch) in Australia or New Zealand, whose main activity is the raising of sheep for their wool and/or meat. In Australia, sheep stations are usually in the south-east or sout ...
s.
Migrant numbers exploded with the
gold rushes
A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...
of the 19th century. By 1890, a third of all cooks were Chinese. Historians believe exemptions for Chinese chefs under the
White Australia policy
The White Australia policy is a term encapsulating a set of historical policies that aimed to forbid people of non-European ethnic origin, especially Asians (primarily Chinese) and Pacific Islanders, from immigrating to Australia, starting i ...
led to the eventual spread of Chinese restaurants across suburbs and country towns.
Most early Chinese migrants were from
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...
province, and so
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Maca ...
became the chief influence, using locally available vegetables and more meat than was usual in traditional recipes. Later Chinese immigration, as well as increasingly adventurous domestic palates, have led to restaurants with more authentic dishes from a wider selection of provinces.
History
Not until the Australian Gold Rushes did many Chinese immigrants move to the country. The gold rushes drew thousands of Chinese people, mostly from villages in Southern China - especially
the Pearl River delta. In 1855, there were 11,493 Chinese arrivals in
Melbourne, Victoria
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung–Taungurung language, Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the St ...
.
As gold was rare, and mining always a dangerous job, Chinese people started to do different jobs to earn a living. Many chose to open small grocery stores or fruit and vegetable-hawking businesses, enter the fishing and fish curing industry. or become market gardeners. Other Chinese immigrants decided to open restaurants that served traditional dishes.
Perhaps because the White Australia policy had an exemption for chefs, many Chinese immigrants and their families became chefs in Australia. By 1890, it was said that 33% of all the cooks in Australia were Chinese.
Over time, these Chinese communities grew and established Chinatowns in several major cities around Australia, including Sydney (
Chinatown, Sydney
Chinatown (; ) is an urban enclave situated in the southern part of the Sydney Central Business District, in New South Wales, Australia. It comprises the majority of the Haymarket suburb, between Central station and Darling Harbour. It is par ...
), Melbourne (
Chinatown, Melbourne
Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave in the Central Business District (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Centred at the eastern end of Little Bourke Street, it extends between the corners of Swanston and Spring streets, and consists of nume ...
) and Brisbane (
Chinatown, Brisbane
Chinatown is a precinct in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Australia. It is centered on Chinatown Mall, a pedestrian street which occupies all of Duncan Street. The Mall runs parallel to Brunswick Street Mall, and connects Wickham Street and Ann Str ...
) and as well as regional towns associated with the goldfields such as
Cairns Chinatown
The Cairns Chinatown Building is a heritage-listed commercial building at 99 Grafton Street, Cairns City, Cairns, Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from to and is one of the last remaining buildings from the Cairns Chinatown ...
.
Chinese cuisine in Australia
Australian Chinese cuisine cooking styles were derived from the cooking styles of provinces such as
Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
and Guangdong. Therefore, Chinese cuisine in Australia from the beginning were usually hot, spicy and numbing (
Sichuan cuisine
Sichuan cuisine, alternatively romanized as Szechwan cuisine or Szechuan cuisine (, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), is a style of Chinese cuisine originating from Sichuan Province. It has bold flavours, particularly the pungency and spicin ...
); and/or sweet and sour (
Guangdong cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Macau.H ...
). During the first Gold Rush period, Chinese labourers were found working their second job at small food stores which were referred to as "cookhouses" to serve their own people. However, at this time, there was little accessibility towards traditional ingredients, especially vegetables such as
bok choy
Bok choy (American English, Canadian English, and Australian English), pak choi (British English) or pok choi (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''chinensis'') is a type of Chinese cabbage, used as food. ''Chinensis'' varieties do not form heads and have g ...
and
choy sum
Choy sum (also spelled choi sum, choi sam in Cantonese; cai xin, caixin in Standard Mandarin) is a leafy vegetable commonly used in Chinese cuisine. It is a member of the genus ''Brassica'' of the mustard family, Brassicaceae (''Brassica rapa' ...
. As a result, after the White Australia policy was revoked, many Chinese migrants brought seeds from China and started to grow their own vegetables at home to increase the variety in Australia.
Chinese food has been named as Australia's favourite cuisine according to Roy Morgan Research. However, despite its popularity, Australian Chinese cuisine still slightly differs to the authentic Chinese cuisine. One of the reason for this is due to the conflicts between Australian and Chinese people. In order for these Chinese restaurants to survive, Chinese chefs were expected to provide food that would not directly compete with that of white establishments, but would still suit Western tastes. As a result, many Australian Chinese restaurants have adjusted their food to better adapt to the Australians' appetites. For instance, traditional cuisines of China considers vegetables as a main dish; while Westerners only treat vegetables as side dishes. To better suit the local diners, Chinese restaurants offer more meat options on the menus.
![Fast food dim sum and soy sauce](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Fast_food_dim_sum_and_soy_sauce.jpg)
Moreover, as Guangdong's cooking styles focusing on producing a fresh and tender taste, their cooking methods usually favor steaming and braising the most. However, to better adapt to the Australian palates, deep-fried and saucy Asian dishes have also been included in the new menus. These includes sweet and sour pork, sticky lemon chicken and
dim sim. Inspired by the authentic Chinese style of dishes,
dim sum
Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
, the dim sim or "dimmy" is developed by Chinese chef William Wing Young around 1945 in Melbourne. Dimsim is a dumpling with thick (crispy) skin filled with meat and is usually fried.
It is normally mistaken for
dim sum
Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
- small bite-sized portions of
food
Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...
served in small baskets which are usually cooked by the
steaming method.
Another example showing the adaptation of the Chinese cuisine can be seen through how Matthew Chan has developed Peacock Gardens Restaurant into the symbol of Modern Australian Chinese cuisine. In an interview with
News.com.au
news.com.au is an Australian website owned by News Corp Australia. It had 9.6 million unique readers in April 2019 and covers national and international news, lifestyle, travel, entertainment, technology, finance, and sport.
Staff
The organiza ...
, Matthew said that back in the 70's, Australian customers are not yet familiar with dishes such as "chicken chop suey, san choy bow and beef and black bean". It was Matthew Chan who has introduced these dishes into Australia with a few Western twists. For example, with 'san choy bow', understanding that Australian people were not familiar with
pigeon meat, Chan decided to change the main protein to pork and beef mince. Furthermore, many vegetables were also substituted: cabbage to celery; bamboo shoots to water chestnuts; and most notably how
Western broccoli have been used more frequently instead of
Chinese broccoli
Gai lan, kai-lan, Chinese broccoli, Chinese kale, or jie lan (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''alboglabra'') is a leaf vegetable with thick, flat, glossy blue-green leaves with thick stems, and florets similar to (but much smaller than) broccoli. ...
.
Furthermore, as the popularity of Chinese cuisine has been increasing steadily in Australia for the past century, unheard Chinese ingredients are now appearing in Australian kitchens more regularly. For instance, tofu - a dish that was not accepted in Australia has now been the main ingredient in many dishes served in the country. Tofu was discovered over 2000 years ago by the action of curdling soymilk and pressing those curds into blocks with different textures such as soft, firm and extra-firm. A well-known tofu dish that are normally served in Chinese restaurants around the country is
Mapo Tofu
Mapo tofu () is a popular Chinese dish from Sichuan province. It consists of tofu set in a spicy sauce, typically a thin, oily, and bright red suspension, based on douban (fermented broad bean and chili paste), and douchi (fermented black bean ...
.
However, on the other hand, some Australian Chinese dishes are actually inspired by Western cuisine, this includes the Wasabi Prawn. This dish was developed by Matthew Chan during a business trip to America "I got the idea from the Hilton's San Francisco Grill where they had mustard on roast beef. I tried to do mustard steak but it didn't work, so I tried it with prawns." In this dish, the prawns are coated with the tangy and creamy English mustard and are served with a side of deep-fried spinach leaves sprinkled with sugar to balance the mustard's sharp and strong flavours.
In short, most Chinese restaurants in Australia are designed to be able to cater both Chinese and non-Chinese customers. That being said, there are many items on the menu such as chicken liver, ox tongue, pig uteri and other dishes that can 'frighten' the Western customers. Furthermore, due to the growing population of Chinese people in Australia, there are more and more Australian Chinese restaurants that serve highly authentic tastes, and there is a wider variety of types of Chinese Restaurants. This has included a significant boom in
Hong Kong(/Macau) Style Cafes, often serving mixed Cantonese-western dishes with HK-style coffee or tea.
Taiwanese
Taiwanese may refer to:
* Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien
* Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa)
* Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan
* Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan
* Taiwanese people, ...
restaurants have also significantly increased, especially in the major cities.
Restaurants
Due to such large popularity, Chinese restaurants can be found in most suburbs and cities of Australia. However, the most concentrated locations of Chinese restaurants in Australia are identified as
Chinatown
A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Austra ...
s. Here, the dishes are normally prepared to cater for recent Asian immigrants, tourists as well as Western people with a larger variety of cuisine; including
Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
,
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
,
Fujian
Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...
,
Shandong
Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region.
Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
,
Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
and others.
Chinese restaurants can also be serving food at different price points; as well as serving both traditional and modern Chinese food. For instance, Chinese restaurants which are found in food-courts normally provide food for customers with shoestring budget. For instance, in
Haymarket Haymarket may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Haymarket, New South Wales, area of Sydney, Australia
Germany
* Heumarkt (KVB), transport interchange in Cologne on the site of the Heumarkt (literally: hay market)
Russia
* Sennaya Square (''Hay Squ ...
,
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, inside Dixon House, there are many Chinese food stalls that serve affordable Chinese meals. Dixon House, opened in 1982, is one of the most well-known Chinatown food courts. According to Thang Ngo "
ixon Houseis still the most Chinese of the Chinatown food courts"
The place now boasts restaurants such as Oriental Dumpling King and Sizzling and Hot Pot Kitchen, where customers can find meals that range from AU$10 - AU$20.
On the other hand, Chinese restaurants can also be very expensive. The Golden Century Seafood Restaurant, located in
Sydney Chinatown
Chinatown (; ) is an urban enclave situated in the southern part of the Sydney Central Business District, in New South Wales, Australia. It comprises the majority of the Haymarket suburb, between Central station and Darling Harbour. It i ...
, has become the symbol for Chinese luxurious dining. The restaurant was established in 1989 and is known for their 'from tank to plate' serving style. This serving style, according to presenter
Gus Worland
Gus Worland is an Australian television and radio personality. He worked on Triple M breakfast radio from 2009 - 2019 and a series of reality television programs '' Man Up'' on the ABC, ''An Aussie Goes Barmy'', ''An Aussie Goes Bolly'' and ''An ...
, has provided an assurance for the freshness of the ingredients. Signature dishes such as ''Braised Lobster with Ginger and Shallot'' as well as ''Braised Whole Abalone with Oyster Sauce'' can cost the customers around AU$300. Moreover, the reason why The Golden Century Seafood Restaurant has become very well-known is that the place has been hosting royalty, politicians and celebrities. For instance, former United States president,
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
has been spotted eating Peking Duck; or well-known celebrities such as
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to the ...
and
Lady Gaga
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...
have also been seen to enjoy seafood at the restaurant.
Australia also contains authentic restaurants which serves traditional styles as well as restaurants that serves contemporary Chinese cuisine. Authentic Chinese cuisine can be found in Supper Inn Chinese Restaurant. Supper Inn was established in the 1980s; the restaurant is located in the central business district of Melbourne. The food served by Super Inn is described as classic Chinese/Cantonese food: "It is such a simple comfort to eat here,
he restaurantserves quality consistent Cantonese food." Super Inn's signature dishes include chicken
congee
Congee or conjee ( ) is a type of rice porridge or gruel eaten in Asian countries. It can be eaten plain, where it is typically served with side dishes, or it can be served with ingredients such as meat, fish, seasonings and flavourings, most o ...
and
BBQ Suckling Pig. These dishes have been around in China for thousands of years. Moreover, the restaurant is also famous for its late night food; the restaurant only decided to close at 2:30 am – every day.
On the contrary, there are also restaurants that decided to combine the authentic tastes Chinese cuisine with other cuisines around the world to create its own version of contemporary Chinese food. Mr Wong is an example of this. The restaurant was co-created by Dan Hong and Michael Lou. Mr Wong, described by Sydney Morning Herald as a "self-contained Chinatown in the middle of Sydney". The restaurant offers a customised menu with the utilisation of many foreign ingredients has changed Australian people's perspective on Chinese cuisine.
Indeed,
xiaolongbao
''Xiaolongbao'' () refers to a type of small Chinese steamed bun (''baozi'') traditionally prepared in a ''xiaolong'', a small bamboo steaming basket, hence the name. ''Xiaolongbao'' are often referred to as a kind of "dumpling", but should not ...
, a type of Chinese steamed bun which usually has a minced pork filling has now been swapped with lobster and scallop. Furthermore, Mr Wong also offers a modern drinks menu with cocktails and house-made ginger beer clearly suggests its effort to change the customers' views on Chinese cuisine.
Dishes
![Sate combination](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Sate_combination.jpg)
Chinese dishes that have been adapted to Australian tastes include:
*
Lemon chicken
Lemon chicken is the name of several dishes found in cuisines around the world which include chicken and lemon.
In Canadian- and British-Chinese cuisine, it usually consists of pieces of chicken meat that are sautéed or battered and deep-f ...
: consists of pieces of chicken meat that are normally deep-fried and coated with a sticky, sweet and sour lemon-flavoured sauce. Despite its lack of resemblance to authentic Chinese cuisine found in China, lemon chicken is very popular in Australian Chinese restaurants.
* Lettuce Wraps: also known as San Choy Bow is a well known Chinese dish where originally pigeon minces were wrapped inside a lettuce leaf. However, in Australia, the pigeon mince has been substituted for mainly pork minces.
* Chicken Stir-fried: also known as Chicken Chop Suey; is a dish that consists of stir fried chicken meat in combination with a green vegetable. In Australia, vegetables can also be swapped for carrot, mushrooms and/or bean sprouts.
* Chow Sam See: is a dish invented by Matthew Chan. This dish includes shredded chicken, barbecued pork and Chinese mushroom being stir fried and later being served in a thin pancake. Matthew Chan said that this was his effort to recreate Peking Duck with less expensive ingredients.
* Mustard Prawns: is a dish inspired by Western cuisine. The main ingredients include prawns, cooking wine, mustard and sweet and sour sauce.
* Dim Sim: is developed by Chinese chef William Wing Young around 1945 in Melbourne. Dim Sim is a dumpling with thick (crispy) skin filled with meat and is usually fried.
[
* Billy Kee Chicken: A dish that hails from Sydney's Chinatown in the 1950s. Named after local identity, Billy Kee, it consists of fried chicken or pork in a sauce made with red wine, worcestershire sauce, five spice, garlic and tomato sauce.
* Ham and Chicken Roll: A appetiser dish made with chicken wrapped around ham and then coated and deep fried. Often accompanied by sweet and sour sauce on the side.
* Mango Pancakes: A staple dish of Yum Cha restaurants in Sydney since the 1980s. It consists of a thin Mango crepe filled with whipped cream and chunks of mango.
*Mongolian Lamb: A staple dish consisting of stir fried lamb pieces and spring onions cooked in a soy and hoisin based sauce. It is often served on a hot sizzling iron dish.
* Honey Chilli Chicken: Popularised from the Australian Women's Weekly Chinese Cooking Class cookbook originally published in 1978.]
* Satay Combination: A dish served on a plate with a mix of beef, chicken and seafood. Often served with a bowl of lemon essence that is set alight in the middle of the dish.
See also
*Yum cha
''Yum cha'' is the Cantonese tradition of brunch involving Chinese tea and '' dim sum.'' The practice is popular in Cantonese-speaking regions, including Guangdong province, Guangxi province, Hong Kong, and Macau. It is also carried out in other ...
*Fusion cuisine
Fusion cuisine is cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions that originate from different countries, regions, or cultures. They can occur naturally and become aspects of culturally relevant cuisines, or they can be part of ...
*American Chinese cuisine
American Chinese cuisine is a cuisine derived from Chinese cuisine that was developed by Chinese Americans. The dishes served in many North American Chinese restaurants are adapted to American tastes and often differ significantly from those ...
*Canadian Chinese cuisine
Canadian Chinese cuisine (french: Cuisine chinoise canadienne) is a popular style of Canadian cooking original to take-out and dine-in eateries found across Canada. It was the first form of commercially available Chinese food in Canada. This co ...
*British Chinese cuisine
British Chinese cuisine is a style of Chinese cuisine developed by British Chinese in the United Kingdom, typically adapted to British tastes, but increasingly inspired by authentic Cantonese dishes. It is considered a major part of British ...
*Australian cuisine
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Au ...
References
{{reflist
Chinese cuisine
Australian cuisine