By INESA PLESKACHEUSKAYA

ALL Chinese adhere to the old maxim: “Eating is paramount” and accordingly approach each meal in a serious and responsible manner.

Historians agree that the most famous and grand of all imperial banquets was that held in celebration of Emperor Qianlong’s 80th birthday in 1791. Qianlong was the fourth Qing (1644-1911) emperor and had a broad range of attributes and talents. In 1795 on the day of the 60th year of his rule, Qianlong retired from state affairs to take up his lifelong passion – science.

But in 1791 he was still very much ruler of the Kingdom of Heaven and the banquet in his honor was suitably sumptuous. The emperor’s birthday was always a grand event of national celebration that lasted days. Even the supreme ruler himself took that day off from perusing lawsuits and official edicts. The Forbidden City would be decorated with lanterns and flags and numerous pavilions, altars and memorial arches constructed along the entire 15-kilometer length of road between the Forbidden City and the old Summer Palace (Yuanmingyuan). Buddhist monks read sutras and prayed for the Emperor’s health, and concubines, relatives and officials dressed in their most gorgeous raiment. Musical and operatic performances went on day and night.

On the day of his 90th birthday, Qianlong received relatives and high officials that had come to express respect and tribute in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Lunch was held in the Hall of Peace and Longevity Hall, and in the evening there was a grand banquet in the Hall of Heavenly Purity. At its center stood a huge table draped with a gem encrusted yellow tablecloth embroidered with dragons.

The banquet commenced as from the moment Qianlong took his seat. Altogether 129 courses were served, including 40 kinds of wine, 20 entreés, 4 soups, 4 appetizers, 4 kinds of fresh and 28 of dried fruits, and 29 farinaceous dishes. The ware from which the Emperor ate and drank was made of bronze especially for the celebration and each tureen had a golden lid. The emperor ate with a spoon of rose wood and chopsticks made of gold inlaid ivory.

This celebration was named the Manchu-Han Banquet. It was distinct from run-of-the-mill banquets in having 129, rather than the normal 108, courses comprising dishes from all over the Middle Kingdom.

During the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) the increased influence of various ethnic groups was apparent on the banqueting tables of the country’s nobility, that groaned with Hui and Nuzhen dishes as well as Gaoli pies and Han specialties. Even then, attention was paid to healthy eating, the book Principles of a Healthy Diet being very popular. The favorite Mongol dish was whole roasted lamb, and the famous banquet “Eight Treasures” course, comprising eight rare and expensive marine species, was also well-liked.

During the following Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties the emperor’s banquet reached its zenith. Dishes from all over the empire were served, many of them vegetarian. With the occidental voyages of Ming Dynasty Admiral Zheng He West European pastries began to appear on the table. Emperor Tianqi (1621-1627) of the Ming Dynasty liked to organize banquets on decorated boats floating on a lake. When Emperor Yongle (1403-1424) transferred the Ming capital from Nanjing to Beijing, the thousands of chefs that accompanied him adapted Southern cuisine to Northern taste and available foodstuffs.

It was during the Ming Dynasty that the famous “Eight Immortals’ Table,” a square table for eight, each place having special significance, appeared. The rule was to offer the south-west facing east seat to the most honored guest, all other guests being seated according to rank and seniority.

Ming Dynasty emperors were noted gourmands, the Emperor’s Entertainment Service employing 3,400 chefs to cook the most refined of dishes.

In the first year of his rule Emperor Shunzhi (1644-1661), founder of the Qing Dynasty, held the first Manchu banquet. They became the standard gastronomic celebration for such events as marriages, the first stage in the agricultural cycle, good hunting, and the vernal equinox. Manchu and Han officials would often invite one another for dinners and go to all kinds of culinary lengths in an effort to offer the most tempting delicacies.

Today, banquets are a luxury indeed, but a number of restaurants in Beijing nonetheless specialize in them. Other restaurants serve individual dishes of old palatial cuisine rather than laying out the full array in old imperial style. A bowl of chicken soup in Yu Zhuan Tai restaurant is made from poultry raised in Hebei Province and cooked for 10 hours. It exudes a mouthwatering aroma of duck, ham and dried scallops.

These days, not many allow themselves the luxury of a full festive banquet. But it is always a pleasure to eat in any Chinese restaurant. With such a wide scope of delicious dishes, how can you go wrong?

Chinese people eat three times a day, and there are no fasting days on the Chinese lunar calendar. It is normal to start business discussions with a dinner but it is impolite to talk business while eating. So, if your business partners invite you for dinner and you are in a mood for a serious talk, be patient: there is a time and place for everything.

The Chinese always choose dishes seriously and responsibly. Each person around the table is asked about the dishes he/she prefers. Your hosts will be surprised to say the least if you do not show appropriate interest in the process.

Food for Chinese is not simply a necessity but one of life’s fundamental pleasures. Hence, they eat without haste and are willing to try as many dishes as possible. On festive occasions – as in old times – dishes can number in the hundreds. Today, and throughout history, meals start with the traditional “eight cold collations”, among which are cold chicken, beans, black baked eggs, shrimps and various vegetables. Then there are the eight varieties of entreé, the last of which is often a whole fish. Rice is served in the middle of dinner and soup at the end of a meal to “precipitate” it, which I always find excellent for the digestion. Usually dinner finishes with several kinds of sweets and fruits. But no coffee my dears, no coffee.

INESA PLESKACHEUSKAYA is the Beijing bureau chief of the Belorussian national newspaper Belarus Today and the National TV channel ONT.