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royal dish/宫廷菜肴/ (ɡōnɡtínɡ càiyáo)

A: Having been in China for so long, have you eaten any rare or uncommon dishes?

来中国这么久,你吃过什么珍稀或少见的佳肴吗？

(lái zhōnɡɡuó zhèmejiǔ, nǐ chīɡuò shenme zhēnxī huò shǎojiàn de jiāyáo ma?)

B: Not yet, but I once read about a dish called stuffed bean sprouts that really surprised me.

目前还没有,但是我曾经在书上读到过一道菜叫做银丝酿肉,让我很惊讶。

(mùqián hái méiyǒu, dànshì wǒ cénɡjīnɡ zài shūshànɡ dúdào ɡuò yīdào cài jiàozuò yínsī niànɡròu, rànɡwǒ hěn jīnɡyà.)

A: Really? Tell me about it. 

是吗？那你说说看。

(shìma？nà nǐ shuōshuō kàn.)

B: I heard that it involves taking fish meat and mashing it up and mixing it together with pork filling, then stuffing it inside bean sprouts. Sprouts are very thin, so it is hard to imagine how difficult it is to make this dish. 

听说是将细腻的鱼肉剁成泥和猪肉馅混合,然后再塞进豆芽里面。豆芽这么细,做这道菜的工艺复杂程度很难想象。

(jiānɡ xìnì de yúròu duòchénɡ ní hé zhūròu xiàn hùnhé, ránhòu zài sāijìn dòuyá lǐmiàn.dòuyá zhème xì, zuò zhèdào cài de ɡōnɡyì fùzá chénɡdù hěnnán xiǎnɡxiànɡ.)

 A: Yes. I remember it. It is also called fermented bean sprouts. It was Empress Dowager Cixi's favorite royal dish.

是的,我有印象。这道菜还叫酿豆芽。慈禧太后最喜欢的宫廷菜肴。

(shìde, wǒyǒu yìnxiànɡ.zhèdào cài háijiào niànɡ dòuyá.cíxǐ tàihòu zuì xǐhuān de ɡōnɡtínɡ càiyáo.)

B: Chinese have a lot of natural ability when it comes to food. They really good at cooking too. 

中国人对于美食是十分有天赋的,也很会烹饪。

(zhōnɡɡuórén duìyú měishí shì shífēn yǒu tiānfù de, yě hěnhuì pēnɡrèn.)

Illustrations: Liu Xidan/GT