新年幸运大餐

文、译/孙晔

新年幸运大餐

Time for New Year Lucky Food

文、译/孙晔

无论上一年我们做得怎么样，我们都希望来年能有好运气，有更多的财富收获。与其等待命运的安排，倒不如在享受一顿大餐的同时增加自己的运气。据说有很多食物都会带来幸运，也会增强你的优势让你来年变得更好。

幸运的食物有时是基于外观的。例如：在中国新年期间吃全鸡象征着家庭完整;面条代表着长寿(旧时迷信切断面条会带来坏运气);而春卷则象征着财富，因为它的形状和金条相似。

另一方面，食物或许因为它的名字听起来幸运而变得重要。例如，粤语中“生菜”和“生财”发音相近，因此，在奉上其他幸运食物的同时，生菜也往往一并出场。橘子和橙子也有好的寓意，因为它们的名字听起来分别像“吉”和“财”。柚子是葡萄柚的祖先，代表着富足，因为它的汉语发音听起来像动词“有”。

鱼在欢度佳节中也起着很大的作用，鱼的汉语发音听起来有点像“欲”和“裕”，所以就有了“愿望”和“富足”的寓意。所以，除夕夜团圆饭结束前，人们通常会端上一条代表着来年富足愿望的鱼。另外，饭桌上的鱼一般来说都是带着鱼头和鱼尾的整条鱼，这象征着新年会有一个美好的开端和结尾。

No matter how we did last year, all of us want to have good luck and make more fortune for the coming year. Instead of leaving everything up to fate, why not enjoy a meal to increase your good fortune? There are a variety of foods that are believed to be lucky and to improve the odds that next year will be a great one.

“Lucky food” sometimes is based on appearance. For example, serving a whole chicken during the Chinese New Year season symbolizes family integrity. Noodles represent a long life (an old superstition says that it is bad luck to cut them). And spring rolls symbolize wealth because their shape is similar to gold bars.

On the other hand, food may be significant because of its name that sounds. For example, the Cantonese word for“lettuce” is similar to the word meaning “rising fortune”, so it is very common to serve lettuce leaves flled with other“lucky food”. Tangerines and oranges are also having good meaning, which their names sound like “luck” and “wealth”respectively. Pomelo, the large ancestor of the grapefruit, signifes abundance because the Chinese word for it sounds like the verb “to have”.

根据中国新年传统，人们会拜访亲朋好友。在拜访亲友时，主人家通常都会给客人们献上热茶，还有一个圆的或者八角形的、装满多样的坚果和糖果等小吃的盒子。这就是我们所谓的“全盒”，代表着和睦与和谐。

传统的全盒是木质的，里面有八个瓷盘，但现在很多人选择用塑料制成的全盒。在全盒里面，每个小格都装有特别的有象征意义的食物。

那么，在全盒里究竟有什么呢?你会在里面找到：瓜子(财富、幸福)、糖莲子 (年生贵子)、糖冬瓜(健康成长)、糖椰子(友谊永固)、花生(长命百岁)、油角(钱包饱胀)、荔枝干(家庭团结)、龙眼干(子孙满堂)。

在中国，不同的地区有不同的幸运食物。

饺子在春节期间是必吃的幸运食物。在中国北方有着这样的传统，每家每户在除夕会相聚一堂，一起做饺子，然后在午夜时把它们吃掉。据说饺子在中国最初出现于1600年以前，它既形似古代的金银元宝，又形同新月，故而代表着对来年丰收富足的希望。

尽管饺子在北方受欢迎，在南方最受欢迎的却是“年糕”。在汉语里，“糕”的谐音是“高”。年糕象征着在工作和生活中能够“年年高升”。年糕是由米粉和糖制作而成的，是一种既甜又黏的长方形棕色糯米糕。可以蒸，也可以裹上蛋液下锅炸，甚至还可以凉着吃，很是美味。

Fish also play a large role in the festive celebrations. The Chinese word for “fsh” sounds like the words for both “wish” and “abundance”. As a result, on Chinese New Year’s Eve it is customary to serve a fsh at the end of the dinner, symbolizing a wish for abundance during the coming year. For added symbolism, the fish is served whole, with head and tail attached, symbolizing a good beginning and end for the coming year.

Chinese New Year tradition calls for people to pay visits to family and friends. When visiting relatives, it’s customary for the host to offer guests tea, along with a round or octagonal tray filled with a variety of treats, from nuts to sweets. This is known as “chyuhn haap”, or the Tray of Togetherness, representing peace and harmony. By the way, eight is a considered to be a lucky number because the Chinese word for eight sounds like “fortune.”

Traditionally, the tray is made of wood, with eight interior dishes of porcelain, but nowadays many people opt for plastic. Inside, each compartment is flled with a special symbolic food.

So, what are in the tray of togetherness? In such a tray you might find∶ Melon seeds (wealth and happiness), Lotus root seeds (have many children), Candied melon (good health and growth), Candied Coconut (friendship and unity), Peanuts (long life), Jau gok (wealth), Lychee nut (strong family ties), Longan (many good sons).

In China, different regions have different special “lucky food”.

Jiaozi (a kind of dumpling) is the must-try “lucky food” during Spring Festival. In northern China families traditionally spend New Year’s Eve together preparing the dumplings, which are eaten at midnight. It is said that dumplings were frst known in China some 1,600 years ago. The shape of jiaozi resembles that of ancient gold and silver ingots or a crescent moon, and it symbolizes the hope for a year of plenty.

While jiaozi is popular in the north, a rice pudding called niangao (New Year Cakes or Sticky Cake) is among the foods most popular in the south. In Chinese, “gao” is a homonym for“high”. The food symbolizing progress and promotion at work and life year by year, is a sweet, sticky, brown cake made from rice four and sugar, a kind of glutinous cake in the shape of rectangle. It is delicious when steamed, fried with eggs or even eaten cold.

In walled village communities of China, a fabulous meal called “poon choi” is created. This particularly appeals to Will and Guy as you can see when you read the ingredients. It is a hearty feast, often consisting of∶ pork, chicken, beef, duck, prawns, tofu, abalone, dried mushrooms, layered on top of one another and usu

ally braised and presented in a wooden bowl from which all can share the food. The eating of “poon choi” is a communal activity and is considered important for family relations.

在中国的围屋则诞生了一道称为“盆菜”的美食。当你看到食材时，你就会知道它充满了各种美好的愿望和欢欣。这是道丰盛的菜肴，通常有猪肉、鸡、牛肉、鸭、大虾、豆腐、鲍鱼和干蘑菇，它们一层一层地摞起来，炖成一锅，装在木质的大盆里，以便所有人都能一起分享这些食物。吃“盆菜”是一个公共活动，对维系家庭关系非常重要。

在西班牙，人们在除夕夜守岁时会吃12颗葡萄，教堂的钟声每小时敲一次，葡萄也是每小时吃一颗。每颗葡萄代表一个月，如果你吃的第三颗葡萄是酸的话，很有可能你在三月份要倒霉了。大多数人都会在12点之前把12颗葡萄都吃完，但是秘鲁人却坚持要吃13颗，毕竟人们都想有更多的好运。

无论是哪个国家，卷心菜、甘蓝和甜菜等等这些蔬菜都是新年的必备菜肴，原因很简单——它们绿色的叶子看上去好像折叠的钱，因此蔬菜也是财富的象征。荷兰人还会在炖甘蓝上撒上糖和肉桂，德国人则喜欢吃卷心菜，而在美国南部，羽衣甘蓝才是当地人的最爱。

黄豆、豌豆、扁豆等等这些豆类也是财富的象征。当你把豆子放在锅里炸听到它们发出噼里啪啦的响声时，难道你不会觉得是一锅硬币在打转吗?

新年吃猪肉的传统源于这样的一种说法：猪是进步的象征。另外，意大利和美国人也吃猪肉，据说是因为猪脂肪丰富，象征财源滚滚。

除了幸运食物之外，还有一些食物是要避讳的。

龙虾就不是个好的选择，因为它们是向后走的，这就意味着你也要向后退了。有翅膀的家禽，据说吃了好运可能会飞走。另外，鸡最好也不要吃，因为鸡是向后拍翅膀的，你可能会留下遗憾或者不能放下过去的事。

多吃点幸运食物吧，但不要太贪吃喔，否则你新年过后第一个要去的地方就是健身房了!

New Year’s revelers in Spain consume twelve grapes at midnight—one grape for each stroke of the clock. Each grape represents a different month, so if for instance the third grape is a bit sour, March might be a rocky month. For most, the goal is to swallow all the grapes before the last stroke of midnight, but Peruvians insist on taking in a 13th grape for good measure.

Cooked greens, including cabbage, collards, kale, and chard, are consumed at New Year’ in different countries for a simple reason—their green leaves look like folded money, and are thus symbolic of economic fortune. The Danish eat stewed kale sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon, the Germans consume sauerkraut (cabbage) while in the southern United States, collards are the green of choice.

Legumes including beans, peas, and lentils are also symbolic of money. Their small, seed-like appearance resembles coins that swell when cooked so they are consumed with fnancial rewards in mind.

The custom of eating pork on New Year’ is based on the idea that pigs symbolize progress. In addition, pork is also consumed in Italy and the United States, where thanks to its rich fat content, it signifes wealth and prosperity.

In addition to the aforementioned lucky foods, there are also a few to avoid.

Lobster, is a bad idea because they move backwards and could therefore lead to setbacks. Winged fowl , which is said that eating any of them means good luck could fly away. In addition, chicken is also discouraged because the bird scratches backwards, which could cause regret or dwelling on the past.

Eat as much lucky food as you can, just don’t get too greedy—or the frst place you’ll be going in the new year is the gym!