新年快樂！xīn nián kuài lè 圍爐慶團圓（wéi lú qìng tuán yuán）

傳統中國新年在圍爐時，桌上會出現的幾道菜色，想必大家都不陌生。但，我們要怎麼跟外國人介紹這些傳統年菜的英文與典故呢？

透過以下圖文並茂的示意圖，想必您也一目了然了！

傳統上，年菜多在除夕祭祖後食用，又稱「年夜飯」、「團圓飯」或「圍爐」。 目的是在過年前，一家團聚並共度農曆新年。

Traditionally, nián cài will be enjoyed after jì zǔ (Ancestors Worship) on the Lunar New Year’s Eve, also called nián yè fàn (Dinner on the Eve), tuán yuan fàn (Get-together Dinner), or wéi lú (Around the Pot/Table).  Having dinner on the Eve is to get family members come home before New Year and spend time together on the Lunar New Year.

拼盤

拼盤是年菜常用的方式，一次可吃到多種菜色。

Pīn Pán

a popular way to present one type of nián cài, tasting an assortment of foods at once

菜色

烏魚子、海蜇 皮、醉雞等都是大家喜愛選用的品項。

Cài Sè

wū yú zǐ (Fish Eggs), hǎi zhé pí (Jellyfish), zuì jī (Wined Chicken) etc are favorite options of pīn pán

什麼是長年菜呢？

過年除了大魚大肉之外，一定 會有一道長年菜。一般長年菜指的是「芥菜」，在每年年終歲末時，剛好是芥菜收成的時間，而芥菜吃起來最初有點苦味，但越煮越甘，也象徵苦盡甘來。

What is Cháng Nián Cài?

Besides heavy meals during New Year’s days, cháng nián cài is a must-have dish.

cháng nián cài (Longevity Greens), referring to jiè cài (Mustard Greens), is just one of the seasonal vegetables freshly-harvested at the end of the year.

jiè cài tastes a bit bitter at the beginning, whereas it tastes sweet and delightful when cooked longer. It symbolizes kǔ jìn gān lái (After the bitter comes the sweet)

除夕應景物 chú xì yìng jǐng wù

過年多會吃與吉祥話相關諧音的食物，藉此祈求來年平安順遂。

During the Lunar New Year, foods are often consumed related to its name with the blessing words, which are pronounced the same or similar, but meant differently, in the hope of obtaining a safe and smooth new year.

火鍋

大家圍在一起吃火鍋，取其團圓之意。

Huǒ Guō (Hot Pot)：Everyone enjoys hot pot around the table, meaning tuán yuan (Reunion).

魚

年年有餘，這道菜當天一定不能吃完。

Yú (Fish)：nián nián yǒu yú (Surplus every year), so that this dish cannot be finished on the Eve dinner.

蘿蔔糕

又稱菜頭糕，有好彩頭與步步高升之意。

Luó Bo Gāo (Radish Cake)：Also called cài tóu gāo, meaning hǎo cǎi tóu (Good luck and getting  promoted step by step)

糖果

俗話說：「吃甜甜，好過年。」糖果是新年必備品。

Táng Guǒ (Candy)：An old saying, “chī tián tián, hǎo guò nián.” Candy is a must-have on the Lunar New Year.

年糕

過年必吃的應景食品，年年高升之意。

Nián Gāo (Sticky Rice Cake)：A must-eat dessert on the Lunar New Year, meaning getting promoted year by year.

餃子

又稱元寶，財源滾滾、招財進寶之意。

Jiǎo Zi (Dumblings)：Also called yuán bǎo (ancient money), meaning cái yuan gǔn gǔn  (money rolling in) or zhāo cái jìn bǎo (fortune and valuables attraction)

水果

橘代表吉利、蘋果代表平安、鳳梨代表旺來。

Shuǐ Guǒ (Fruit)：jú zi (Oranges) means jí lì (Good luck)；píng guǒ (Apples) means píng ān (Being safe)；fèng lí (Pineapples) means wàng lái (Pineapple’s pronunciation in Taiwanese) (Prosperity comes)

丸子

取丸和圓字的諧音，有事事圓滿的意思。

Wán Zi (Meat/Fish Balls)：“yuán” pronounces “wán” in Taiwanese, so having meat/fish balls means shì shì yuán mǎn (Everything comes perfect at the end.)

雞

雞台語同「家」，可以的話吃全雞最好。

Jī Ròu (Chicken)：“jī” pronounces “gei” in Taiwanese, meaning “jia” (home). It’s better to have a “whole chicken.”

韭菜

長長久久，吃得時候越慢才能越長久。

Jiǔ Cài (Chinese Leek)：cháng cháng jiǔ jiǔ (Good luck can last long.) Good fortune and blessings last long, only when you eat it slowly.

長年菜

即芥菜，本來很苦但越煮越甘，象徵苦盡甘來。

Cháng Nián Cài (Mustard Greens)：It refers to jiè cài. It tastes bitter at the beginning, whereas it becomes sweet aftering long cooking, meaning “after suffering comes sweet reward.”

髮菜

發音同發財，目前是保育食材，已禁採。

Fǎ Cài (Fat Choy/Black Moss)：It sounds similar as “fā cái” (fortune making). Currently it has been an environmentally-protected plant, forbidden to harvest.

最後，要跟大家介紹，這個過年必備，也是最重要的，就是：

假笑面具

過年面對親戚煩人的圍攻，戴上即可解圍。

Jiǎ Xiào Miàn Jù (Fake Smiling Mask)：To escape from relatives' overwhelming inquiries, putting it on may be a good solution.

你們閉嘴我就新年快樂了啦！呵呵！

I will be having a “Happy New Year” only if you close your mouth. Ha Ha~

——臉書「10秒鐘教室-10 Seconds Class 」同意授權圖像刊登 （更多內容，請搜尋臉書「10秒鐘教室-10 Seconds Class 」）◇