Cuisine and food are the primary manifestations of culture, which have been endowed with national and regional characteristics in the development of human civilization.The Chinese are creative in cuisine and food, and have incorporated rich ingredients, assorted cooking methods, and different cuisine styles into this realm, and have vested cuisine and food with multiple functions ranging from satisfying hunger to degustation, health preservation, therapy, and communication. Chinese cuisine and food thus occupy a unique place in the world for focusing on both the flavor in the mouth and the enjoyment in the heart, which is a representation of both material civilization and spiritual connotation. To integrate cuisine and food from a macroscopic or mesoscopic perspective, “harmony” “moderation” and “recipe” are three keywords of Chinese food culture. “Harmony”, as a characteristic of the cooking process, requires, for the best result of palatable and healthy purpose, a balance among all factors including water and heat control, the matching of basic materials with condiment and seasoning, and the combination of main course with side order. “Moderation” regulates the process of consumption, which is realized via etiquette among scholarofficials and in the court of ancient China. “Integration” refers to the formulating of recipe, which is closely related to the norms and standards of Chinese cuisine.With the development of the times,the cuisine and food culture of ancient China should also eliminate the rigid elements and keep updating.

Chinese cuisine and food; cuisine and food culture; standards of cuisine and food