"Salt is the Soul of Hakka Baked Chicken": Reimagining Traditional Chinese Culinary ICH for Modern Contexts Without Losing Tradition

TL;DR

This paper explores how GenAI can assist traditional Chinese culinary practitioners in reimagining recipes for modern audiences while addressing challenges in preserving authenticity and traditional flavors.

Contribution

It introduces a human-AI collaborative approach using GenAI tools to innovate and adapt traditional Chinese cuisine for contemporary contexts.

Findings

GenAI inspired recipe innovation aligned with traditional workflows

Challenges in maintaining authenticity and traditional flavors

Potential for collaborative preservation and adaptation of culinary ICH

Abstract

Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) like traditional culinary practices face increasing pressure to adapt to globalization while maintaining their cultural authenticity. Centuries-old traditions in Chinese cuisine are subject to rapid changes for adaptation to contemporary tastes and dietary preferences. The preservation of these cultural practices requires approaches that can enable ICH practitioners to reimagine and recreate ICH for modern contexts. To address this, we created workshops where experienced practitioners of traditional Chinese cuisine co-created recipes using GenAI tools and realized the dishes. We found that GenAI inspired ICH practitioners to innovate recipes based on traditional workflows for broader audiences and adapt to modern dining contexts. However, GenAI-inspired co-creation posed challenges in maintaining the accuracy of original ICH workflows and preserving traditional flavors in the culinary outcomes. This study offers implications for designing human-AI collaborative processes for safeguarding and enhancing culinary ICH.