10
votes
Accepted
How does 麦 connect 烧麦 (shāomài), a kind of dumpling, with 大麦 (dàmài), 小麦 (xiǎomài), and 燕麦 (yànmài), which are types of grains?
It's nothing to do with 麦 (grains).
From wikipedia,
烧卖，又称稍麦、烧麦、捎卖、稍美、干蒸、烧梅、肖米、鬼蓬头。
烧卖及其他与之谐音的名称的来由有多种说法，没有定论。
It's explained a little in the English version.
The name was given "捎卖", ...
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10
votes
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How was 辣 used before the Columbian Exchange?
in ancient time, "辛" was used, in lieu of 辣. e.g. in 洪範:
潤下作鹹﹒炎上作苦﹒曲直作酸﹒從革作辛﹒稼穡作甘
http://ctext.org/shang-shu/great-plan/zh?searchu=潤下作鹹，炎上作苦，曲直作酸，從革作辛，稼穡作甘%E3%80%82&searchmode=showall#result
...
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8
votes
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Why is 肯德基 (Kěndéjī) = Kentucky Fried Chicken not called 肯德鸡 (Kěndéjī) when it's pronounced the same and 鸡 means "chicken"?
The full Chinese name of KFC is 肯德基炸鸡, but it was shorten to 肯德基 currently. The word Kentucky, was translated into 肯德基 in Chinese intentionally, in order to distinguish with Kentucky State, while 肯德基 ...
- 1,382
8
votes
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How to understand "乒乓大方卜"?
「乒乓大方卜」 refers to a biscuit-product-line name cap ping pong (Malay for ping-pong brand, forming the 「乒乓」 part) and large square thin crackers (「大方薄餅乾」; 「餅乾」 is omitted and 「卜」 is a phonetic ...
- 22.2k
7
votes
Is there a word for "kosher"?
The 2010 book "Jews and Judaism in Modern China", by M. Avrum Ehrlich, translates kosher as jieshi.
Both the Pleco and KTdict iOS apps also offer 洁食（＊jieshi*) as a translation for kosher.
- 71
7
votes
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What does 马大碗 (mǎdàwǎn) = "horse big bowl" mean in 马大碗拉面?
马 means 马氏, the family name.
大碗 - big bowl; large quantity.
(马氏)(大碗拉面)
The company was established in 1993.
It registered the name 马师傅马大碗.
- 1,328
7
votes
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Why is a Big Mac called 巨无霸 (jùwúbà)?
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E5%B7%A8%E6%97%A0%E9%9C%B8/1226195
巨无霸 (巨毋霸) was a historical character who was famous for being a giant. Later people commonly use '巨无霸' as a nickname for something ...
- 77.1k
6
votes
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How should I reply to 吃完了 (chīwánle = "finished eating") after I've finished eating?
You don't really have to give a formal reply.
Similar scenario: A Chinese arrives home and sits on his own sofa. His wife may see him and asks "回来了?". It's like "hi" in a specific context.
So next ...
- 86
6
votes
How was 辣 used before the Columbian Exchange?
'辣' is not a accurate word for the taste that we mean. For example, as the answers above, garlic (大蒜) tastes '辣', ginger (生姜) tastes '辣', and mustard (芥末) also tastes '辣'. These three ones are the ...
- 272
6
votes
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Does the word 肉 always mean pork (unless preceded by another word which means a different animal) in Chinese menus?
I worked in restaurants for many years. As I understand it, '肉' in Chinese menus only refers to pork unless it is specifically stated what kind of meat it is.
For example:
時菜炒（豬）肉片 = in-season ...
- 77.1k
5
votes
Accepted
What's the etymology and significance of yuenyeung (鴛鴦)?
鴛鴦 is actually the name of a bird; more specifically, the mandarin duck.
Here's an image:
(Look at how cute they are!)
In Chinese culture, the mandarin duck is a symbol of lovers, much like ...
- 250
5
votes
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Etymology of 'go dutch'
《懶蟲簡明英漢詞典》
go Dutch
verb
各人付自己的帳
Usually, we simply say 各付各的 or 各出各的 in both TC and SC.
Others:
各付各的帳
各付一半帳
各付一半賬
各付帳
各人付自己的帳
各人自付錢
各人自己付錢
各自付錢
各自付帳
...
- 1,463
4
votes
Is there a distinction between 肉夹馍 (ròujiāmó) and 馍夹肉 (mójiāròu)?
The second is just right-to-left writing. See Horizontal_and_vertical_writing_in_East_Asian_scripts .
Historically, Chinese was written in vertical columns, with columns progressing from right to ...
- 3,283
4
votes
Why do some overseas Chinese restaurants translate broccoli as "芥蘭"?
I'm from Taiwan. And just for the record, I'm not exactly a botanist nor a experienced cook. But as far as I know:
We call and 芥藍(蘭)菜.
While we call and 花椰菜/花菜/青花菜.
We don't really use the term ...
- 186
4
votes
Why do some overseas Chinese restaurants translate broccoli as "芥蘭"?
Apparently they categorise 芥蘭 and 西蘭花 as the same species… of different cultivar groups… although they do not at all taste in any way similar. For Chinese 芥蘭 and 西蘭花 are two completely different ...
- 301
4
votes
Accepted
Are 根 (gēn) and 条 (tiáo) both measure words for 油条 (yóutiáo)?
I think the main reason is that 油条 already includes the character 条, so to avoid double use, we say 一根油条.
This is the same as we say 一根面条，一根薯条，一根木条，...
- 24k
4
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What is a polite way to ask to 打包 (dǎbāo) "take away" my meal? Is 我想打包 acceptable?
You could say any of the following:
麻煩打包，謝謝。
我要打包，麻煩（你）幫我拿盒子，謝謝。
Usually I get asked whether I will be packing the leftovers.
Me: (indicate I’m ready for the bill)
Waiter: 好的，要打包嗎？
Me: 要，謝謝。
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votes
Does the word 肉 always mean pork (unless preceded by another word which means a different animal) in Chinese menus?
In Standard Chinese, 肉 means any kinds of meat, while 猪肉 means pork. This is technically correct in the standard expression.
However, in colloquial Chinese, unprefixed 肉 usually means pork, except in ...
- 1,867
4
votes
Why is "marshmallow" and "cotton candy" both 棉花糖?
Yes, 棉花糖 refers to both marshmallow and cotton candy.
Marshmallow is like a cotton boll or a cotton pad while cotton candy is like a loosen cotton boll. Both are cotton-like candies.
It is nothing ...
- 1,994
4
votes
Accepted
How do you translate "美容的" for food?
美容：make oneself more beautiful
美容的食物：beauty foods, beauty-enhancing foods
I even found this:
营养美容: nutritional cosmetology
关键是将有助于美容的食物放在手边”，他说。
He said, "The key is having beauty-enhancing ...
- 17.4k
3
votes
"醡" and "炸" in "醡醬麵" and "炸醬麵"
I'd like to say something different. 炸醬麵 is the only correct word.
We need to clarify why Zhajiangmian is called so. Zhajiangmian originated from Shandong Province, and the core of it is the sauce, ...
- 2,020
3
votes
麻油Q米血 on a menu in Taipei
There are already several good answers and one has been accepted, but last week in the October 4, 2018 New York Times' "Taiwan Dispatch" In Italy, ‘Al Dente’ Is Prized. In Taiwan, It’s All ...
- 393
3
votes
Are these greens 苦木？
I don't cook much.
This looks like 油麦菜.
It is a variation of lettuce (Lactuca sativa). From a search on the web (wikipedia), I don't think there is a specific English name for it.
百度百科 gives a ...
- 8,725
3
votes
Accepted
Why is 果子 in 煎饼果子 (jiānbǐng guǒzi)?
"果子" is a regional name for "糖果糕點" - any sugar, rice or wheat flour-based food that is not a staple food. This broad category includes sweet and savoury items, cakes and candy.
The 果子 in 煎饼果子 refers ...
- 8,547
3
votes
Are 根 (gēn) and 条 (tiáo) both measure words for 油条 (yóutiáo)?
I'd say that 根 is the most common unit word for long, straight objects, such as 一根葱 (spring onion), while 条 is used for things that may be long and wiggly, such as 一条河, 一条路, or 一条鱼.
Overall, though, ...
- 41
3
votes
Accepted
Is 猪肉饭 the actual name of a specific Chinese dish or is it merely a description of any pork-and-rice meal?
There is no such word, at least few people say it, in Taiwan. However, we might call a bowl of rice and some slices of roasted pork as "燒(roasted)肉飯"、"燒肉丼(a kind of Japanese famous dishes)".
- 46
3
votes
Is 猪肉饭 the actual name of a specific Chinese dish or is it merely a description of any pork-and-rice meal?
Actually, it might by the only chance you can hear this word from cabin group of airplane.
In some situation, the choose of food is very limited -- like in economy class of airplane, you may only have ...
- 508
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