A Gastronomic Journey through Shantou China, Shantou, China

When gourmands think of food destinations, cities like Puglia, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Singapore probably come to mind. However, if they open their minds (and taste buds), they will realize that they can visit so many deliciously underrated cities. Shantou, a city in the Guangdong province in South-east China, is certainly one of them!

The former fishing village turned major toy-manufacturing center may not be an obvious tourist destination compared to its flashier counterparts, but its scrumptious fare will draw your stomachs in. Shantou is the birthplace of Teochew cuisine, which places a lot of emphasis on freshness of its ingredients to extract the best flavor out of them. Most dishes are steamed, poached or braised, and seafood may be served raw or cured with vinegar or soy sauce. Below are dishes that you should definitely try if you visit Shantou and the restaurants where you can find them.

Teochew cuisine is famous for its seafood dishes and many restaurants display their raw seafood right outside the door to lure customers in. You pick the seafood you like and tell the waiter how you want it prepared. This particular restaurant is famous for its hotpot soups that you cook right at your table. They will bring the chosen raw seafood and vegetables to your table with a lovely broth made from scratch. The seafood is incredibly fresh and when you keep adding new items into the soup, it becomes more and more delicious! Having a hotpot dinner is especially wonderful in colder wintery months. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).