A wooden tray holds separate heaps of coarse salt, white sugar and brown sugar, honey drips from a wooden dipper into a blue-and-white jar, a clay pot beside it holds golden oil, and a wooden spoon on the table holds a little more oil.
The basic seasonings
Introduction
Salt, powdered seasonings, cooking oils and fats, sugar, honey and syrups.
Oils, salt, sugar and honey cover the basic seasonings used in the widest range of cooking: table salt and powdered seasonings such as monosodium glutamate, vegetable oils and animal fats, and white sugar and honey. Salt is divided by source into sea salt, well salt, lake salt and rock salt. The Zhou li has an official in charge of salt who supplied the various kinds. Spices and aromatics belong to Spices, sauces to Sauces and Pastes, and candied fruit to Candies and Preserved Fruit.