Universally recognized as one of the greatest cuisines of the world, Chinese food in all its variety and complexity is unquestionably one of the finest pleasures a visitor can experience in China.
中国菜以其丰富的种类和复杂的技艺被公认为世界最伟大的菜系之一，也无疑是游客在中国能够体验到的最美好享受之一。
Chinese cuisine is a brilliant facet of Chinese culture, which is proven by the fact that Chinese restaurants are found scattered everywhere throughout the world. Today, the culinary industry is developing even more rapidly than before. A decade ago, Beijing had a few thousand restaurants, while today there are over 100,000 restaurants of different sizes in the city.
中国烹饪是中华文化中光彩夺目的一面，遍布世界各地的中餐馆便是明证。如今，餐饮业的发展速度比过去更快。十年前，北京只有几千家餐馆，而今天这座城市已有十万多家大小不一的餐馆。
Regional Chinese Cuisines. It is widely acknowledged that from the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) onwards, there have been eight major schools of cuisine based on regional cooking. They came from Shandong, Sichuan, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Anhui provinces. In addition to these traditional cuisines, the culinary industry in China has undergone great changes, as almost every place has its own local specialties, and as the different cuisines gather together in big cities, such as Beijing.
中国地方菜系。人们普遍认为，自明代（1368—1644）以来，中国形成了以地方烹饪为基础的八大菜系，分别源自山东、四川、广东、福建、江苏、浙江、湖南和安徽。除了这些传统菜系，中国餐饮业也发生了巨大变化：几乎每个地方都有自己的特色菜，各地菜系又汇聚到北京等大城市。
Sichuan, known as Nature's Storehouse, is also a storehouse of cuisine. Here, each and every restaurant provides delicious yet economical culinary fare. The ingredients for Sichuan cuisine are simple but the spices used are quite different. Sichuan cuisine is famous for its spicy and hot food, yet just being hot and spicy does not necessarily distinguish it from other hot and spicy cuisines such as Hunan or Guizhou cuisines. What is really special about Sichuan cuisine is the use of Chinese prickly ash seeds, the taste of which leaves a feeling of numbness on one's tongue and mouth. Besides this unique spice, Sichuan dishes are also usually prepared with other spices such as chili pepper. Using fermented bean sauce and a set of unique cooking methods, Sichuan cuisine is now famous and popular across the world. In recent years, there have appeared many more renowned restaurants specializing in Sichuan cuisine, such as the Tan Family Fish Head restaurant.
素有“天府之国”之称的四川也是美食宝库，这里的餐馆家家都能提供味美价廉的菜肴。川菜用料并不复杂，但调味独具特色。川菜以麻辣闻名，不过单凭辣味并不足以使它区别于湘菜、黔菜等其他辛辣菜系。川菜真正特别之处在于使用花椒，它会让人的舌头和口腔产生麻感。除花椒外，川菜还常用辣椒等香辛料，并借助豆瓣酱和一整套独特烹饪方法。如今川菜享誉世界，广受欢迎；近年来也出现了更多专营川菜的知名餐馆，如谭鱼头。
Guangdong Province is located in southern China, with a moderate climate and abundant produce all year round. As one of the earliest ports open to foreign trade, the province has developed a culinary culture with its own characteristics that has exerted a far-reaching influence on other parts of China as well as throughout the world where it is the most commonly available Chinese cuisine. Guangdong cuisine is famous for its seafood as well as for its originality and refined cooking processes. Various soups in this cuisine are loved by people all over the country.
广东位于中国南部，气候温和，全年物产丰富。作为最早对外通商的地区之一，广东形成了独具特色的饮食文化，对中国其他地区乃至世界产生了深远影响；在海外，粤菜也是最常见的中国菜系。粤菜以海鲜、独创性和精细的烹饪工艺著称，其中各式汤品深受全国人民喜爱。
Zhejiang cuisine is light and exquisite, and is typical of food from along the lower Yangtze River. One famous dish is West Lake Vinegar Fish, which looks pretty and has the delicate refreshing flavors of nature. Many Chinese restaurants in China, as well as in other parts of the world, serve this dish, but often the flavor is less authentic compared to that found in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province, which has unique access to the fish and water of West Lake.
浙菜清淡精致，是长江下游饮食的代表。名菜西湖醋鱼色泽美观，味道细腻清新，富有自然风味。中国乃至世界许多中餐馆都供应这道菜，但往往不如浙江省会杭州的味道正宗，因为杭州得以独享西湖的鱼和水。
Every Dish Has a Story. The names of Chinese dishes are diverse, but behind each of the famous dishes is an interesting story explaining why it is popular. A good name can make the dish more interesting; however, some names are so eccentric that they may confuse people, both Chinese and foreigners. If you only translate the names literally with no explanation, you could make a fool of yourself.
每道菜都有故事。中国菜名多种多样，每一道名菜背后通常都有一个解释其走红缘由的有趣故事。好名字能让菜肴更有吸引力，但有些名字十分奇特，会让中国人和外国人都感到困惑。如果只按字面翻译而不加说明，就可能闹出笑话。
Take Goubuli steamed buns in the city of Tianjin for example. These popular buns are all of the same size and handmade. When served in neat rows on a tray, they look like budding chrysanthemum flowers. The wrapping is thin, the fillings are juicy, the meat tender and the taste delicious and not at all greasy. Then, why the name?
以天津的狗不理包子为例。这种广受欢迎的包子全部手工制作，大小一致，在托盘里整齐排列时犹如含苞待放的菊花。它皮薄、馅多汁、肉质鲜嫩，味美而不腻。那么，它为什么叫这个名字呢？
There is an interesting story behind it. Goubuli steamed buns were first sold in Tianjin about 150 years ago. A local man by the name of Gouzi (Dog) worked as an apprentice in a shop selling baozi (steamed buns). After three years, he set up his own baozi shop. Because his buns were so delicious, he soon had a thriving business with more and more people coming to buy his buns. As hardworking as Gouzi was, he could not keep up with demand, so his customers often had to wait a long time to be served. Impatient, some people would call out to urge him on, but as he was so busy preparing the buns, he didn't answer. People therefore came to call his buns Goubuli, meaning "Gouzi pays no attention." This eccentric name, however, has had very good promotional effects, and has been used ever since. Goubuli is now a time-cherished brand name in Tianjin.
这个名字背后有一段趣事。大约150年前，天津开始出售狗不理包子。当地一个名叫狗子的人曾在包子铺当学徒，三年后开了自己的店。他做的包子非常好吃，生意很快兴隆，顾客越来越多。狗子虽然勤快，却仍供不应求，顾客常常要等很久。有人等得不耐烦便大声催促，但狗子忙着做包子，无暇回答。于是人们把他的包子叫作“狗不理”，意思是“狗子不理人”。这个奇特的名字反而产生了很好的宣传效果，沿用至今。如今，狗不理已成为天津的老字号。
In Zhejiang cuisine, there is a well-known dish called Dongpo Meat. This dish of streaky pork is prepared over a slow fire where the big chunks of pork are braised with green onion, ginger, cooking wine, soy sauce, and sugar. The finished dish is bright red in color and the meat is tender and juicy and, like the Goubuli buns, not at all greasy. This dish was named after Su Dongpo (1037–1101), a great poet of the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127), who created it when he was an official in Hangzhou. It is said that, when he was in charge of the drainage work for the West Lake, Su Dongpo rewarded workers with stewed pork in soy sauce, and people later named it Dongpo Meat, to commemorate this gifted and generous poet.
浙菜中有一道名菜叫东坡肉。它选用五花肉切成大块，配以葱、姜、料酒、酱油和糖，用文火焖制。成菜色泽红亮，肉质软嫩多汁，与狗不理包子一样肥而不腻。这道菜以北宋（960—1127）大诗人苏东坡（1037—1101）命名，相传是他在杭州任官时创制的。据说苏东坡主持疏浚西湖时，曾用酱汁炖肉犒劳工人，后来人们把它称为东坡肉，以纪念这位才华横溢、慷慨大方的诗人。
Fujian cuisine boasts a famous dish called Buddha Jumping over the Wall, the number one dish of the province. This dish is prepared with more than 20 main ingredients, including chicken, duck, sea cucumber, dried scallop, tendon, shark lip, fish maw, and ham. All these ingredients are placed into a ceramic pot, with cooking wine and chicken broth, and then cooked over a slow fire until the meat is tender and juicy and the soup becomes smooth and thick. Then it is served with more than a dozen garnishes such as mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots and pigeon eggs. It is famous for leaving a lingering aftertaste in the mouth. The story behind the name of the specialty goes as follows:
闽菜有一道名菜“佛跳墙”，号称福建第一菜。它以二十多种主料烹制，包括鸡、鸭、海参、干贝、蹄筋、鲨鱼唇、鱼肚和火腿等。所有原料与料酒、鸡汤一同放入陶罐，以文火煨至肉质软嫩多汁、汤汁醇厚顺滑，再配上香菇、冬笋、鸽蛋等十多种辅料。此菜以余味悠长闻名。关于它的名字，有这样一个故事：
Buddha Jumping over the Wall was created in a restaurant called Gathering Spring Garden in Fuzhou, Fujian, during the reign of the Qing Emperor, Guangxu (1875–1908). It was first named Eight Treasures Stewed in a Pot and the name was later changed to Blessing and Longevity. One day, several scholars came to Gathering Spring Garden for a meal. When the dish was served, one of the scholars improvised a poem: "Fragrance spreads to the neighborhood once the lid lifts, / One whiff and the Buddha jumps the wall, abandoning the Zen precepts." Hence the name of the dish!
佛跳墙创制于清光绪年间（1875—1908）福建福州的聚春园饭店。它最初名为“八宝焖锅”，后来改称“福寿全”。一天，几位文人到聚春园用餐。菜一上桌，其中一人即兴赋诗：“坛启荤香飘四邻，佛闻弃禅跳墙来。”这道菜便由此得名。
Warmth and Hospitality Expressed by Food. In the eyes of Chinese, what is important about eating, especially at festivals, is to eat in a warm atmosphere. Often the young and old still sit in order of seniority, and the elders select food for the young while the young make toasts to the elders. Chinese people like to create a lively, warm, and harmonious atmosphere during meals.
食物传递热情与好客。在中国人看来，吃饭尤其是过节吃饭，重要的是营造热烈的气氛。老少常按长幼次序入座，长辈为晚辈夹菜，晚辈向长辈敬酒。中国人喜欢在用餐时创造热闹、温暖、和谐的氛围。
A hostess or host in China will apportion the best parts of the dishes to guests. Using a pair of serving chopsticks, she or he places the best part of a steamed fish or the most tender piece of meat on the plate of the most important guest. Such a custom is still popular, especially among the elder generation, as a way of expressing respect, concern and hospitality.
中国的主人会把菜肴中最好的部分分给客人。他或她用公筷把清蒸鱼最好的部位或最嫩的一块肉夹到最重要客人的盘中。这种习俗至今仍很流行，尤其受到老一辈人的重视，用来表达尊敬、关怀与好客。
Such culinary customs have had a certain influence on the character of the Chinese people. In a sense, it has strengthened the collective spirit of the nation. At a party or a banquet, everyone first takes into consideration the needs of the group, with the eating process also being a time to show humility and concern for others.
这些饮食习俗在一定程度上影响了中国人的性格。可以说，它们增强了中华民族的集体精神。在聚会或宴席上，每个人首先考虑集体需要，进餐过程也成为表达谦让和关心他人的时刻。
In China, food eaten during festivals is particularly important. At different festivals, people partake of different fare. For example, on the eve of the Spring Festival, people in the north always eat jiaozi, meat and vegetable dumplings, at family reunions. This is a way of bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the New Year. The Lantern Festival is a day of celebration, and on this day people like to eat yuanxiao, sweet dumplings made of glutinous rice flour, to symbolize family reunion and perfection. At the Duanwu Festival, people eat zongzi, glutinous rice wrapped in triangular shape in reed leaves, to commemorate the beloved poet Qu Yuan (c. 339–c. 278 BC), who drowned himself in the Miluo River after being politically wronged. Legend has it that people at the time threw zongzi into the river in the hope that the water dragon would not take him away. This later gradually developed into a custom of making and eating zongzi during the Duanwu Festival.
在中国，节日期间所吃的食物尤其重要，不同节日有不同食品。例如除夕时，北方人全家团聚总要吃肉菜馅的饺子，以辞旧迎新。元宵节是欢庆的日子，人们喜欢吃用糯米粉制成的甜元宵，象征家庭团圆、圆满。端午节时，人们吃用苇叶包成三角形的糯米粽子，以纪念深受爱戴的诗人屈原（约公元前339—约公元前278）。屈原遭受政治冤屈后投汨罗江自尽。传说当时人们把粽子投入江中，希望水中的蛟龙不要带走他，后来逐渐发展成端午制作和食用粽子的习俗。