Jiangsu cuisine is called Su cuisine for short. Represented by Suzhou and Yangzhou cuisine, it is one of the eight famous culinary schools in China. The famous chefs of past dynasties in Jiangsu have created the traditional dishes in the style of Su cuisine. Nanjing repted as the "emperor's continent" since antiquity, Suzhou with a good reputation as "paradise" and Yangzhou acclaimed as "the most affluent city under heaven" by historians are the cradles of famous chefs and delicious food. The culinary school of Jiangsu is just formed by joining the flavors of these three places together. In sum, Jiangsu cuisine has the following several characteristics: firstly, with precise material choice and exquisite and fine cooking, it is made according to materials and on schedule; secondly, it excels in cooking methods such as stewing, simmering, baking over a slow fire, warming-up, steaming, sautéing and stir-frying, and is skillful in braising in mud and baking on fork; thirdly, it has a clear and fresh taste with moderate saltiness and sweetness, which is thick without being greasy and light without being thin; fourthly, it places an emphasis on flavoring soup and retaining original juice.

Nanjing cuisine has fine cutting techniques and is skillful in timing. Hence, it has thick flavor with tastiness of four directions and caters to tastes of people from eight directions. It wins especially by freshness, fragrance, crispness and tenderness. Suzhou cuisine tends to be sweet in taste and excels in making vegetables of four seasons, riverfood and lakefood. Yangzhou cuisine, which has been called Huai-Yang flavor in the history, has fine cutting techniques, perfect timing, fresh color and original design. It gives prominence to main ingredients and lays stress on original flavor. Being light and tasty, it caters to a wide range of diners. It is especially noted for excelling in making soup.

Representative Dishes: Diced chicken and carrots, mandarin fish in squirrel shape, dry-blown chicken, sparrow with special hot sauce, braised turtle dove with spiced powder, fresh water shrimp with bitter melon, egg soup with chrysanthemum leaves, lasting wealth (stir-fried large intestine) and sweet-smelling and crispy duck, etc.