For centuries Beijing has been the capital of China. Emperors of different dynasties all had the best cooks at their service. Thus, Beijing cuisine is inevitably influenced by the imperial cooking school. Today many fine restaurants boast of the unchanged royal recipes.
On the other hand, each change of dynasty saw a diverse population inflow from other parts of the country, accompanied by different styles of cooking. For this reason, Beijing cuisine is diverse in nature. All in all, combining variety and quality, Beijing cuisine is among the best in China.
Rice, dumplings, noodles or buns are widely eaten in Beijing.
Beijing Roast Duck (Peking Duck)
Many of the dishes classified as Beijing style originated in the Empirical courts which had at the emperors' command the best of all the food of China. The most famous dish is Beijing Roast Duck, usually prepared for a minimum of six people, of which the crisp skin is the most prized part. Roast Duck's pieces are wrapped in thin pancakes with onions or leeks, cucumber, turnip and plum sauce. Upon request, the remainder of the duck meat can be saute'ed with bean sprouts, and the bones made into a wonderful soup with cabbage.
Hot Pot
Hot pot is also a favorite dish for foreigners and local residents alike. People gather around a small pot boiled with charcoal, pour the slices of mutton for a while, then eat the meat with a specially made sauce.
Dumplings
Noodle, dumpling and bread are favored over rice in Beijing. Because of its northern location, the food of Beijing tends to be more substantial in order to keep the human body warm.
Steamed bread
Zhajiang noodle
Special type of Tofu
You can taste the 'Beijing' style dishes at Beijing Express, Bianyifang Kaoya Dian, Fangshan, Donglaishun and other fine restaurants.
Locals also call Beiji
ng
cuisine "capital city cuisine" for the simple reason that the city
w
as
also the capital during the Liao, Jin, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. The Ming
excepted, the rulers of all these dynasties were from northern nomadic tribes.
Thus for all the 500-plus years spanning the other four dynasties, Beijing dishes
were dominated by meat - the staple of the ruling classes.
During those times, Beijing was the gathering place of the literati and officials,
in whose wake came countless skilled chefs from many parts of China. Naturally
they brought their differing local cuisines with them, greatly enriching such
local dishes as existed. Shandong, Huaiyuang and Jiangsu-Zhejiang cuisines in
particular were strong influences. Because Shandong is near Beijing, more of
its people than from elsewhere migrated to the capital in search of a living,
many of them entering the catering sector.
As Shandong cuisine was similar to Beijing's, the variations in its dishes were
quickly accepted. For example, quick-fired mutton, a common and widely popular
meal to this day, calls for the cooking skills and flavoring methods which originated
in Shandong.
Those
times also saw Beijing engaged in trade and 
cultural
exchanges with other parts of China. Thus many southern Chinese gravitated to
the capital, chefs among them (and as they still do today). When southern food
was introduced in the north, some of its flavors were changed to suit Beijing
palates. This was because southern cuisines were sweeter and less salty than
in the north, where people preferred salty, rich flavors. The end result was
numerous dishes that combined southern and northern characteristics.
Beijing Cuisine is notable for its hundreds of dishes with special flavors that
will not be found elsewhere in China. The cuisine does not emphasize strangeness
or even uniqueness, just delicious food made from common ingredients and providing
very agreeable tastes.
