Meat: Pork & Beef

The Chinese preference from ancient times has been for vegetable protein as opposed to meat protein, and the sight of a field full of soybeans has traditionally been far more appetite-arousing than a field full of cattle. Records of ancient palace feasts and writings concerning medieval Chinese marketplaces tell us that the Chinese have gladly chewed venison, beef, lamb, dog, horse, donkey, bear, pig, panther, camel, rabbit, and various species of goat, fox, and rodent over the course of their rich history of eating. However, Chinese gourmands have never particularly prized meat in general, and Chinese pharmacologists have held its nutritive value to be rather unimpressive.