Jilin cuisine

Jilin cuisine is the regional cooking style of the Han Chinese with heavy influence from native Manchu, Korean, and Mongolian minorities in the Jilin Province of Northeastern China.

Characteristic features

Due to short growing seasons and prolonged winters, fermentation is the main method of preserving food. Suan cai is very prominent in Jilin cuisine. The cold winters have also led to the development of regional styles of hot pot such as Fucha Manchu Hot Pot. The colder climate of Northern China is generally unsuited to growing rice, making wheat, buckwheat, and sorghum the primary sources of starch. The abundance of starch has given rise to the staple steamed buns and noodles dishes of the region. Jilin cuisine is unique among Chinese cuisine in its extensive consumption of raw seafood and vegetables.
Jilin cuisine is primarily characterized by influences from the three largest minorities of the province:

Manchu – boiled pork and blood sausages, cold vegetables
Korean – fermented vegetables, cold noodles
Mongolian – lamb dishes

The ethnic Han in Jilin cuisine draw influence from Beijing, Shandong, and even Western cuisine. The deep preference and influence of Shandong cuisine come from immigrants who left the province for Jilin during the Qing Dynasty.
Jilin cuisine shares similar dishes with neighboring Heilongjiang and Liaoning provinces being part of the Northeastern Chinese cuisine.