When combined, 食材 (shícái) literally translates to “food material.” This highlights the Chinese culinary perspective of viewing raw ingredients as the fundamental materials that a cook, like a craftsman, skillfully transforms into a finished dish.
In Chinese culture, the concept of 食材 (shícái) is paramount and holds more weight than the Western term “ingredients.” While “ingredients” can sometimes feel like a neutral, functional list for a recipe, 食材 is deeply connected to ideas of freshness (新鲜 - xīnxiān), seasonality (时令 - shílìng), and the food's inherent properties (as understood in Traditional Chinese Medicine). The selection of 食材 is often considered the most important step in cooking. A common saying is that a master chef can't create a good dish from poor ingredients. This belief is visible in the daily life of many Chinese families who prefer to shop at a 菜市场 (cài shìchǎng), or “wet market,” over a supermarket. At a wet market, they can see, touch, smell, and even bargain for the freshest 食材—live fish, just-picked vegetables, and freshly butchered meat. This contrasts with the common Western supermarket experience, where ingredients are often pre-packaged, processed, and disconnected from their source. For Chinese cooking, the quality and “life force” of the 食材 are believed to directly determine the flavor, nutritional value, and overall harmony of the final dish. The focus is on enhancing the natural taste of the 食材, not masking it.
食材 (shícái) is a common and versatile word used in various modern contexts.
It's easy for English speakers to think 食材 is a perfect 1-to-1 match for “ingredients,” but there are important distinctions that can lead to unnatural-sounding Chinese.