Leverage cheese to enliven traditional Chinese cuisine

Natural cheese makes up 80% of global retail cheese value and approximately 25% of cheese sales in China.¹

Traditional Chinese cuisine is known for its sweet, spicy, sour, sticky and delicious notes, but somewhat surprisingly, doesn’t contain much, if any, natural cheese. Cheese is a natural, nutritious, flavourful ingredient that can be utilised in traditional Chinese cuisine to add new dimensions.

This is a unique innovation opportunity for businesses who want to differentiate their range, as well as a chance for customer experimentation at breakfast, lunch or dinner. We’ve included inspiration for four mealtime creations both you and your customers could try to take traditional Chinese cuisine to the next level.

Breakfast: Congee carbonara with Parmesan cheese

Congee or conjee (KON-jee) is an Asian rice porridge. When eaten as plain rice congee, it is often served with side dishes, but when additional ingredients such as meat, fish and flavourings are added, it becomes a meal. By adding egg yolk and parmesan cheese, this humble meal transforms into a creamy, delicious carbonara-style breakfast bowl full of goodness.

Parmesan is a very popular cheese for its strong bite and is a wonderfully simple way to enhance a traditional dish.

Lunch: Fried rice with Gouda cheese

Fried rice is a stir-fried (in a wok or frying pan) rice dish usually mixed with eggs, vegetables, seafood or meat. As homemade fried rice is typically made with leftovers, there are countless innovative variations.

Gouda cheese, with its natural, nutty taste and smooth creamy texture, works perfectly with the wok flavour, charred vegetables and seafood. Just before the fried rice is finished, add a handful of grated Gouda for a culinary experience deserving of its heritage.

Dinner: Chinese pork burgers with aged Cheddar cheese

A simple pan-baked flatbread stuffed with spiced pork belly, fresh coriander and chili, Chinese pork burgers are a tangy, flavourful and extremely comforting meal.

Natural Cheddar adds another dimension to this humble dish allowing it to resemble a typical cheeseburger, but elevated. 

Street Food Snack: Egg pancake with creamy Egmont™ cheese

Cong You Bing, (AKA green onion pancake or scallion pancake) is a Chinese savoury, unleavened flatbread folded with oil and minced green onions. Unlike western pancakes, it is made from dough instead of batter, but like its western cousin, it’s pan-fried to give it both crispy edges and a chewy texture.

Egmont™ cheese is a New Zealand cheese famous for its delicate flavour, creamy texture and great melting capabilities. Adding Egmont™ elevates this simple street food offering a mouth-watering snack fit for any palette.

Download our NZMP Dairy Foods ingredients range brochure today to discover more about our deep dairy expertise and unmatched processed cheese ingredients range.