[Photo provided to China Daily]

Dish: Braised lobster with gnocchi and winter bamboo shoot in sour broth

Chef Tony Lu isn't quite sure if "gnocchi" is the appropriate term to use, since the food, pronounced "mian ge da" in Shanghai dialect, is a low-budget dish that is mostly made at home as an "emergency food" when a housewife has little time to prepare for a proper meal. Regardless, the dish has proven to be a crowd favorite. He has tweaked the taste profile of the dish by using marinated yellow peppers from Southwest China's Guizhou province for spice and lemon for sourness. These ingredients, he says, are more effective at helping diners stay warm during winter.

"I am often asked if this or that is quintessential Shanghainese cuisine. The essence of Shanghainese cuisine is, like the city, inclusive and adaptable," says Lu.