Red cooking

Red cooking, also called Chinese stewing, red stewing, red braising, or flavor potting, is a slow braising Chinese cooking technique that imparts a reddish-brown coloration to the prepared food.

Red cooking is popular throughout most of northern, eastern, and southeastern China.

There are two types of red cooking: Soy sauce (usually a mix of light and dark soy sauce), fermented bean paste, red fermented tofu or rock sugar is commonly used to both flavor and impart a reddish brown hue to the items being cooked.

Both lu and hongshao are forms of stewing or braising characterized by usage of soy sauce, Chinese rice wine (Shaoxing wine, huangjiu etc.)

Whole spices (star anise, black cardamom (caoguo), cassia or fennel seeds) or five-spice powder are crucial elements in these dishes but are used in moderation so that their flavors do not overwhelm the main ingredients.