Why are Rice and Noodles Staple Foods in Chinese Cuisine?

Whilst wheat, barley and oats are the main cereal crops of the Western world, in China and many other countries it is rice which is grown as the dominant staple foodstuff. Rice has been farmed in China for thousands of years and many miles of terraced mountain slopes which have been artificially flooded to enable the crop to thrive are a common sight across the continent. Particularly in southern China, the climate is particularly suited to growing rice, which is why it is grown in preference to wheat or oats.

Rice is enormously versatile and can be used to make both sweet and savoury dishes. Fried rice is a common way of cooking this delicious cereal crop, although it can also be ground down to make rice flour. In Chinese cookery, rice or wheat flour may be mixed into a paste then cut into long strands to make tasty noodles.