Chinese cuisine belongs to the world’s most famous ones. However, what many people mean by “Chinese cuisine” is chicken in a sweet-sour sauce or Peking Duck. And that’s not true…
It’s also believed that Chinese people eat absolutelly everything. And that IS true…
Some years ago, in a Guangdong province, people started eating some kind of (poisoned!) squirrel which eventually caused the SARS epidemic. In the same province, if women decide to do abortion, people eat those human fetuses believing they are healthy. Another controversial “dish” is… (live) monkey brain.
In the middle of a special table with a hole inside, people put still living monkey (only the monkey’s head is actually on the table), crash its head and eat its brain. Doesn’t that sound… delicious?
Since I came here, I got to try many Chinese dishes and snacks… Famous baozi, jiaozi, rice noodles, rice porridge and maaaany other ones. But most of all I like Chinese BBQ. Because people in China work long hours, they can find on the streets places to eat anytime. Crappy Chinese “street restaurants” offer almost anything… Chicken, beef, pork, noodles, all kinds of vegetables and fish but not only…
To the most exotic things I’ve tried belong: ox stomach, beef brain, beef intestines, pork skin, pork tails, pork ears, duck tongues, chicken soft bones, chicken feet, beef penis soup with a mixture of Chinese herbs or… bamboo termites, fried baby bees and fried grasshoppers. Yummy… 
The most shocking dish in Yunnan (where I live) though is “Three Screams”. The dish consists of live baby rats. No hair, still red color. The baby rats are in a bowl. First scream is when you take the baby rat in chopsticks, second one, when you dip it in chilli pepper sauce and third one… when you bite it.
Well… Sometimes I have a feeling we are not so very far from the caves after all…
PS.The myth about eating dogs and cats: People in Yunnan province, whenever asked, say they never eat dogs or cats but only because… they just don’t think their meat is tasty enough. However… dry squirrels are ok
Chinese food is delicious! You can learn more about the best places to eat in Shanghai with A la Carte Map Shanghai!