What's the key difference between Chinese and non-Chinese food?!
Answers: Please don't write "origin", "cook".
The differences most likely lie on the types and number of spices or ingredients used.
Rice is a critical part of much of Chinese cuisine. However, in many parts of China, particularly northern China, wheat-based products including noodles and steamed buns (such as mantou) predominate, in contrast to southern China where rice is dominant. Despite the importance of rice in Chinese cuisine, at extremely formal occasions, sometimes no rice at all will be served; in such a case, rice would only be provided when no other dishes remained, or as a token dish in the form of fried rice at the end of the meal. Soup is usually served at the start of a meal and at the end of a meal in Southern China.
In most dishes in Chinese cuisine, food is prepared in bite-sized pieces (e.g. vegetable, meat, doufu), ready for direct picking up and eating. Traditionally, Chinese culture considered using knives and forks at the table barbaric due to fact that these implements are regarded as weapons. It was also considered ungracious to have guests work at cutting their own food. Fish are usually cooked and served whole, with diners directly pulling pieces from the fish with chopsticks to eat, unlike in some other cuisines where they are first filleted. This is because it is desired for fish to be served as fresh as possible. It is common in many restaurant settings for the server to use a pair of spoons to divide the fish into servings at the table. Chicken is another meat popular in Chinese meals. While the chicken is cut into pieces, every single piece of the chicken is served including gizzards and head. The emphasis in Chinese culture on wholeness is reflected here. It is considered bad luck if fish or chicken is served without its head and tail, as that is synonymous with something that does not have a proper beginning or end.
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the MSG
p.s to the guy below that said i said it was the "only" difference, I didnt say that.at all. It may have been the difference long ago.. before the fast food companies had to find a way to make their crap taste good.. and then it became the norm
non-Chinese food didn't originate in China
It is the MSG that is different from the other foods of the world.
Here is so inof about mSg: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_...
To Nikki and other above answers misinformed that MSG is only in Chinese Food
Check your Budget Gourmets and Campbell Soup labels...MSG is in everything. Get educated so you don't give uninformed answers.
From: http://www.rense.com/general67/msg.htm
"Many employees, even the managers, swore they didn't use MSG. But when we ask for the ingredient list, which they grudgingly provided, sure enough MSG and Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein were everywhere:
Burger King
McDonalds
Wendy's
Taco Bell
And every restaurant like: TGIF, Chilis', Applebees and Denny's use MSG in abundance.
Kentucky Fried Chicken seemed to be the WORST offender: MSG was in EVERY chicken dish, salad dressing and gravy. No wonder I loved to eat that coating on the skin, their secret spice was MSG. "
MSG
the "non"