Braised Chicken Rice gives US taste of Chinese culture

China’s fast food chain Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice is scheduled to make its US debut this Sunday in Tustin, California. The celebrated brand is reported to have more than 6,000 locations across China, Singapore, Australia and Japan. Its Tustin landing will ensure the authenticity of the dish, and thus is much anticipated by US foodies fond of Chinese cuisines.

Apart from Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice, Chinese hot pot, roast duck, dumplings and other delicacies have expanded their footprint into Western countries. According to the 2016 China National Image Global Survey, Chinese cuisine is one of the elements that best represents Chinese culture, and is playing an increasingly significant role in the country’s cultural exports. “We’re ready to bring Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice to Tustin, and eventually across the entire state of California and beyond,” Yang Xiaolu, founder of the chain restaurant, was quoted as saying.

The number of Chinese restaurants is reported to have surpassed that of McDonald’s, KFC, Wendy’s, Burger King and other renowned fast-food chains put together in the US since 2005. With more Westerners chowing down on Chinese food, Chinese culture has penetrated into Western society. This undoubtedly is an encouraging trend.

It has proved a resounding success when Western fast food brands, including KFC and McDonald’s, entered into the Chinese market in the 1980s and 90s. It is not only food, but also fast-food culture, that these Western chains have successfully exported to China.

Now, China has familiarized itself with and taken the initiative in its own fast-food culture, and, as a result, has launched a number of chain restaurants overseas. China is learning, absorbing, improving and eventually exporting its culture overseas in the process of opening-up. It may still take some time for Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice to win over the US market, but actively integrating itself into Western society is the right direction for the company’s development.

Cultural integration and globalization is an irreversible trend that the US should welcome. Although it is a Chinese brand, Yang’s Braised Chicken Rice will not only offer Americans a new delicious dish, but importantly, fuel Tustin’s raw material market, stimulate its employment and eventually boost local economic development, bringing mutual benefits to both China and the US.

Washington should welcome foreign goods, and view its competition with foreign enterprises with an open mind. The US companies may repeat the success of KFC and McDonald’s in the Chinese market with other stunning food favorites in the future, and this is what benign competition should be like.