The tastes of Chinese food are salty, sweet, sour, spicy, hemp and fragrant. These flavors can't be produced without the use of seasonings. Seasoning is an auxiliary product used to prepare food. Seasonings are usually divided into salty seasoning, sweet seasoning, sour seasoning, spicy seasoning and umami seasoning.
Salty seasonings include: soy sauce, salt, sauce sweet seasoning and so on. Salty taste has been listed as one of the five flavors since ancient times, and it is said that not only ordinary dishes can not be separated from salty taste, but also sweet and sour taste, hot and sour taste and so on. Appropriate amount of salty taste should be added to make them rich and palatable.
Sweet flavoring includes: honey, sugar, caramel, etc. In China cooking, there are many sweets used in the south, and Wuxi cuisine in Jiangsu is the most sweet, which is known as "sweet at first, salty in the mouth, and red with thick oil sauce".
Sour seasonings include vinegar, tomato sauce and so on. For many women, they especially like to eat sour food, because sour taste can help digestion, remove fishy smell, relieve greasy feeling, stimulate appetite and enhance appetite.
Spices include: pepper, pepper, ginger, onion, garlic and so on. Spicy food is very famous in Chongqing, and Hunan also likes to eat spicy food. Spicy seasoning can promote eating tension and increase appetite.
Umami seasoning includes fish sauce, monosodium glutamate and oyster sauce. Umami is a kind of delicious food that people strive to pursue in eating and drinking, which can make people feel comfortable and happy.