“Since September last year, the leftovers at Tianjin University (TJU)’s canteens have reduced by 40%.” said Kong Na, director of the Peiyangyuan Campus canteen management office of the Logistics Department at Tianjin University. After each meal, there are fewer and fewer plates with leftovers and more and more empty plates at each canteen of Tianjin University.

The secret lies in the exquisite and delicious “small-plate dishes”.

Since September, 2021, a total of 13 canteens on both Weijin Road Campus and Peiyangyuan Campus of TJU have served “small-plate dishes” according to their own characteristics in order to cultivate students’ good habits. The food is sold in various forms such as large or small portions, optional small-plate dishes. For chicken drumsticks, pork ribs, pig feet and other varieties, they can be sold by weight. The flexible and diverse forms of sale not only reduce waste and leftovers, but also offer students more choices for each meal and improve the rate of “empty plates”.

As soon as smaller dishes were launched, they were welcomed by all students.

“In the past, I used to buy too much food carelessly. In order not to waste food, I forced myself to eat it all. Not only did I increase weight, but I also felt uncomfortable. Now with smaller dishes, I can control the purchase process and buy as much as I can eat.” Wu, an undergraduate of College of Management and Economics, said.

In less than half a year, smaller dishes have gradually been integrated into the daily lives of the students. 

“Girls have a smaller appetite. In the past, one dish may lead to monotonous diet and malnutrition, while two dishes are too much to eat and cause waste. Small-plate dishes are cheap, offering various choices and a varied diet at the same time of saving money and reducing waste.”said Zhao, an undergraduate of the School of Chemical Engineering and Technology. 

Now small-plate dishes, and dishes sold by weight can be found in all canteens of Tianjin University, and have gradually become an indispensable part of the students' eating habits.

In addition to smaller plates for regular dishes, there are also other dishes with small portions in the canteens. The “revolving small hot pot” at No. 1 canteen and “one-person hot pot” at No. 4 and No. 5 canteens on Weijin Road Campus are well-known dishes at Tianjin University.

Tianjin University has made great efforts to introduce the smaller dishes. According to Kong Na, the catering section first develops a database of dishes and selects appropriate dishes based on seasons, demand, nutrition, popularity and other elements. At the same time, the Logistics Department constantly optimizes and adjusts the types of dishes to meet the needs of faculty and students by regularly soliciting their opinions and suggestions. In addition, there is a standard of ingredients for each dish, so the catering section also regularly organizes training and exercises for the chef team. By this way, they can master the technique requirements, and cook meals under standardized procedures to ensure the stability of taste. To form a green and healthy way of eating, the canteens reduce the amount of oil and salt and adjust the taste of dishes by adjusting the proportion of salt and oil in the canteen, uniformly using the utensils with scales, and providing self-service seasoning in public areas.

By Liu Shuying

Editor: Sun Xiaofang