Hakka cuisine Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Hakka cuisine

Abacus beads (算盘子), a well-known Hakka dish

客家菜

Hakka

IPA: [hak˨ka˩ tsʰoi˥]

Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Kèjiā cài
Hakka
Romanization	IPA: [hak˨ka˩ tsʰoi˥]
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutping	Haak³ gaa¹ coi³

Alternative Chinese name

Chinese

客人菜

Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Kèrén cài
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutping	Haak³ jan⁴ coi³
Southern Min
Hokkien POJ	Kheh-lâng-chhài

Hakka cuisine is the special cooking style of the Hakka people. You can find this food in parts of Taiwan and in countries where many Hakka people live. There are many restaurants in Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, India, and Thailand that serve Hakka food. In 2014, Hakka cuisine was even added to Hong Kong's list of important cultural traditions.

Hakka food has its own unique style, which is not always well-known outside Hakka homes. It focuses a lot on the texture of the food. This means how the food feels when you eat it. For example, Hakka cooking often uses preserved meats. Also, stewed, braised, and roasted meats are very important. These cooking methods give the meat a special texture.

Preserved vegetables, like meicai (梅菜), are often used. They appear in dishes like steamed minced pork with preserved vegetables. They are also used in braised pork with salted vegetables. Hakka chefs use the same basic ingredients as other Chinese cuisines. They cook with whatever is fresh and available at the market.

Hakka food might look simple, but it is very tasty. The secret to Hakka cooking is being able to cook meat until it is soft. It also brings out the natural, savory flavor of the meat, which is called umami.

In Hong Kong, Hakka people who lived near harbors focused on seafood. Hakka food in Hong Kong uses fewer expensive meats. Instead, it features lots of vegetables. Hakka cooking is practical and simple. It uses only a little seasoning or flavoring. Today, Hakka cooking in Hong Kong often includes offal. This means parts of animals like organs. An example is deep-fried intestines (Chinese: 炸大腸; pinyin: zhá dà cháng). Other popular dishes include tofu with special sauces. Their most famous dish is salt-baked chicken (Chinese: 鹽焗雞; pinyin: yán jú jī). Another special meal is poon choi (Chinese: 盆菜; pinyin: pén cài). This is a big dish with many different foods served in a large basin.

Besides meat, there is a special vegetarian dish called lei cha (Chinese: 擂茶; pinyin: léi chá). It is made from different vegetables and beans. While not all Hakka people eat it, it is very popular among Hakka-Hopo families. This rice tea dish is becoming popular in countries like Malaysia. Making lei cha often involves the whole family. This helps family members spend time together and feel closer.

Steamed bun (茶果) is a favorite snack for Hakka people. It is mostly made from glutinous rice. You can find it in sweet or savory versions. The sweet one has sweetened black-eyed pea paste or peanuts inside. The savory one has preserved radish.

Famous Hakka Dishes
Hakka Food Around the World
- Hakka Food in South Asia
- Hakka Food in Thailand
Images for kids
See also

Famous Hakka Dishes

Hakka cuisine includes many traditional dishes. Here are some of the most notable ones:

English	Traditional Chinese	Simplified Chinese	Pinyin	Hakka	What it is
Abacus beads	算盤子	算盘子	suànpánzǐ	IPA: [sɔn˥˧ pʰan˩ tsai˧˩]	Made from dough of tapioca and yam. They are shaped like abacus beads. When cooked, they are soft outside and chewy inside. This dish is often stir-fried with minced chicken or pork, dried shrimps, mushrooms, and other vegetables. It's seasoned with soy sauce, salt, sugar, and sometimes rice wine.
Beef meatball soup	牛肉丸湯	牛肉丸汤	níuròuwán tāng		A simple, clear soup with lettuce and beef meatballs.
Dongjiang salt-baked chicken	東江鹽焗雞	东江盐焗鸡	dōngjiāng yánjú jī	IPA: [tuŋ˦ kɔŋ˦ jam˩ kuk˥ kai˦]	This chicken was originally baked in a pile of hot salt. Today, many restaurants cook it in salty water or cover it with salt before steaming or baking. "Dongjiang" refers to the Dong River in eastern Guangdong Province, which is a Hakka area.
Duck stuffed with glutinous rice	糯米鴨	糯米鸭	nuòmǐ yā	IPA: [nɔ˥˧ mi˧˩ ap˩]	The bones are carefully removed from a whole duck, keeping its shape. The duck is then filled with seasoned sticky rice.
Fried pork with fermented tofu					A popular dish for Lunar New Year. Pork is deep-fried to remove moisture, which helps preserve it. Then, the pork is stewed with water and wood's ear fungus.
Kiu nyuk	扣肉	扣肉	kòu ròu	IPA: [kʰju˥˧ ɲjuk˩]	There are two main types. The most common has thick slices of pork belly with preserved mustard greens between them. It's cooked in a dark sauce made of soy sauce and sugar. The other version is cooked with yam or taro. The yam and pork are fried until golden, then steamed with five-spice powder and yellow rice wine.
Lei cha	擂茶	擂茶	lèi chá	IPA: [lui˩ tsʰa˩]	A mix of tea leaves (like green tea), peanuts, mint leaves, sesame seeds, mung beans, and other herbs. These are ground into a powder and mixed as a drink. It can also be eaten with rice and vegetarian side dishes like greens, tofu, and pickled radish.
Yong Tau Foo	釀豆腐	酿豆腐	niàng dòufǔ	IPA: [ɲjɔŋ˥ tʰɛu˥ fu˥˧]	A very popular dish with Hakka roots. It has tofu cubes filled with minced meat (usually pork), salted fish, and herbs. It's then fried until golden brown or braised. Other vegetables like eggplants, shiitake mushrooms, and bitter melon can also be stuffed with the same meat paste.
Steamed sticky rice pastry	粢粑	粢粑	qĭ bá		A pastry made from sticky rice.

Hakka Food Around the World

Hakka cuisine has traveled with the Hakka people to many parts of the world.

Hakka Food in South Asia

In India, Pakistan, and other parts of South Asia, what people call "Hakka cuisine" is often a local version of Chinese food. This style is actually a mix of Indian Chinese cuisine and Pakistani Chinese cuisine. It's called "Hakka cuisine" because many restaurant owners in these areas are of Hakka background. Common dishes include 'chilli chicken' and 'Hakka noodles'. These restaurants also serve traditional South Asian foods like pakora. This mixed style is very popular, but it's different from traditional Hakka cuisine.

In Toronto, Canada, many Chinese people from South Asia have moved there. They have opened restaurants that serve this Indian-Chinese style of "Hakka Chinese food." Most of these restaurants serve halal food.

Hakka Food in Thailand

In Thailand, Bangkok's Chinatown is called Yaowarat. It includes nearby areas like Sampheng and Charoen Krung. In the past, many Hakka restaurants were in the Suan Mali area. Now, they have moved to different places, such as Talad Phlu, which is also a Chinatown area.