How is Chinese food different in the USA than in China?

I've heard that chinese food is different in taste/look in the USA than in China. Does anyone know what the primary differences are? And are theyre any differences in restaurant environment in a restaurant in the USA in comparison to a restaurant in China?

There are 3 major differences between Chinese food in America and authentic Chinese food in China: Ingredients, Spices, and method of preparation.

Ingredients - Some ingredients are just not readily available in America. Often times they are not as fresh, sometimes it is cheaper to use local American ingredients, but sometimes you simply can't get them in the US. So restaurants replace Chinese broccoli with regular broccoli, use regular pork instead of Chinese smoked ham, use regular cooking wine instead of Chinese sorghum wine.

Spices - Authentc Chinese food is filled with rich flavor and aroma. But the spices can be a bit too foreign for the common customers in America so restaurants dumb things down. They use a lot less shallots, ginger, garlic, Chinese parsley, etc. They replace Chinese peppers, star sinise, that add a lot of aroma with regular black pepper. They also use a lot less spicy peppers which would otherwise add alot of depth to the dishes.

Preparation Method - Often times the method to prepare the dishes are simplified to cut cost. Chinese ramen noodles are hand pulled to give it more texture, in the US they are all machines made and dried, making them soggy and bland. Peking duck is roasted and smoked in China, in the US they are often mass produced in electric ovens. Soups in China often takes a day or more to stew, in America they are heated and served in less than an hour.

There are some restaurants that are quite authentic in the US, but they are very rare. PF Chang's is actually NOT Chinese food, but most American's can't tell the difference.

Chinese food has such a large variety of styles that I recommend you take some time to try it all. Sichuan cuisine is spicy and aromatic. Shanghai cuisine is lighter, sweeter with an abundance of seafood dishes. Canton cuisine focuses on bringing out the flavor of the ingredients, not to mention dim sum is from Canton area as well. And Beijing cuisine is more flour based with many noodles and roasted dishes.

Chinese food in the States is pretty much all the same. Spicy brown sauce, thick whitish sauce or deep fried. Right? The names vary a little bit, but Chinese food in the US is very unoriginal, and the same wherever you go.

Of course it is.

Three main causes.

1. Recipes are basically American because they only loosely follow Chinese recipes.

2. They are cooked with American foodstuffs which are totally different to their Chinese counterparts.

3. In most cases the heat source around the wok is much lower so you get slower cooked food. Chinese woks are so hot the food is only in them for moments.

Because although Americans want Chinese food they complain when they are giving authentic real Chinese food. So they say here this is Chinese food but change it so much to the point where it's not authentic anymore.

there are no specific differences i can list, because i would have to go on forever. bottom line: Chinese food in North America is NOT Chinese food at all.

I'm not sure about restaurant environment being that much different, but it's probably more generic here in the states. as for the food, american chinese restaurants use a lot more oils and chemicals in their food than their original counterparts. Chinese food is supposed to be light and used for weight loss, but if you've ever been to panda express or p.f. chang's, you know that's not the case.

Indeed it is VERY different. Chinese food in america is enhanced with MSG and grease. they try to make it look and taste better by putting all this junk that's not healthy for you in it. The taste is also different. The american chinese food is, it's compromised with how americans like their food.. not the original way of the chinese. Food in china is wayyy better... but that also depends where you do in china. for example, hong kong has amazing food. It's not as greasy, the presentation is nice, and there is little to none msg. plus authentic chinese food have all different types of sauces.. not just brown sauce, white sauce.. etc. There's this like chinese black bean sauce- xoxo sauce-oyster sauce-soup style sauce- there's a bunch that i can name...but most of them are in chinese.. so i don't exactly know how to type it.. lol... but if you ever get a chance to go to china, you should visit hong kong, shanghai, and beijing. Their food is very different and much healthier than the chinese food here in america. hope this helps!

Most chinese restaurants in the USA are not even really Chinese food at all.

The chinese food in China is more authentic. American chinese food are based loosely on the chinese food recipes from China. The flavour is changed to suit the Americans and all that. Mainly, it's spicier and more salty over there, but the China people love it! And also, the ways of serving is quite different. The names of dishes vary from stall to stall in China, but in the USA, it's almost the same everywhere!

I dont really enjoy Chinese food in the U.S. They are not authentic and cooked to suit the taste buds of the Americans. Every dish seems to have sugar added. Taste real awkful. Anyway, I am really fond of the Chinese food in Superior Buffet in Hanford, CA Could go there every week. Cheap and good.

Chinese food in the states has been dumbed down to please the simplistic palates of the majority of Americans.

Food in China taste very salty, they like it.
And it costs much less than in USA.

Well, first of all, fortune cookies are a U.S. invented gimmick. Don't expect them in China.

I've eaten with Chinese friends here in their home and the meal was definitely different from what I experience in Chinese restaurants. I can't vouch however that this is the way it is in China.

We all had a large bowl of rice. There were several vegetable and meat dishes to choose from - chicken and pork. However it was a lot more slanted to vegetables than I see in Chinese restaurants. We would add the dishes on top of our rice as we went along.

For drinks we had hot green tea and a variety of fruit juices. As I got down to the bottom of the bowl, getting the rice out with chopsticks got to be somewhat of a challenge - until I noticed that the hosts just picked the bowls up close to their mouths and just kinda shoveled the last bit in.

Chinese food sucks in USA as compared to most Asian countries. What is Chow Mein? What is egg foo young? What is egg rolls? They use a bunch of recycled vegetables used to feed to pigs but they got it plenty here. Comprende?

in america-- chinese food is dogz and cats and frogs and sh!T
in China-- chinese food tastes good.

The food in China is much more healthier, but the one in America is loaded with salt and the spices have been altered.

In China it depends on the region. Some regions eat a lot of dishes with noodles, while others use a lot of rice. Some places also eat a dish called hot pot where you boil pieces of meat and vegetable in a broth. Their food is very healthy. Here in the US ours is loosely based on some dishes but we eat alot more fried dishes.

I don't know all of the differences, but I know many American Chinese Restaurants "enhance" their food with MSG, and that does not occur on such a regular basis in China.

The main difference is that in China the food is cooked by Chinese but in America it is cooked mainly by Mexicans.

From my experience the big difference is that in the US Chinese for is heavier.

It's more heavily sauced
It's more heavily salted
It's mostly deep fried

Chinese food in China is more subtle. The ingredients are fresher (they don't open a can of water chestnuts or baby corn and dump it in a Wok).

Most ethnic cuisines are Americanized for American's.
Go to Italy and try to find Chicken Parmesan outside of the tourist traps -- it doesn't exist.

The same way Mexican food is different that Taco Bell. Chinese food in the US has been westernized: lots of sauce, lots of fried, sort of bland. In China, depending upon the regional specialties, the tastes are cleaner and much more differentiated. Also, food is shared family style. You can, if you look really hard, find some real Chinese restaurants in the US. Look for a place with a Chinese menu on the wall and a menu full of things you've not read before. Also, a clientele that is mostly Asian.