1. Information page | 有关信息
This page provides the language information that you need in a Chinese restaurant.
Reading a menu (看菜单kàn càidān V-O)
There are usually many dishes on a menu. Although some may have elaborate names such as “dragon fights tiger”, most names are easy to work out. Normally the cooking method appears in the first part of the name, with the style of cutting sometimes appearing at the end of the name, as in 炒肉片. The first word here means "stir-fry", the last word means "thin slices", and the middle word means "meat” (肉ròu). “Meat" normally means pork, in Chinese menus. Other kinds of meat have the name of the animal in front of the word meat 肉 e.g. 牛肉 beef (lit: “ox/cow meat”).
Basic cooking ingredients
酱油 | jiàngyóu | soy sauce |
醋 | cù | vinegar |
盐 | yán | salt |
糖 | táng | sugar |
油 | yóu | oil |
胡椒 | hújiāo | (black or white) pepper |
辣椒 | làjiāo | chilli |
蒜 | suàn | garlic |
生姜 | shēngjiāng | ginger |
葱 | cōng | spring onion |
香菜 | xiāngcài | coriander |
The following words are often seen in Chinese menus.
The cooking methods
Character | Pinyin | English | Example |
炒 | chăo | stir-fry | 炒虾仁stir-fried shelled prawns |
烧 | shāo | stew after frying | 烧茄子stewed aubergine |
红烧 | hóngshāo | stew in soy sauce | 红烧排骨spare ribs in soy sauce |
炖 | dùn | pot-roast | 东北乱炖; 炖牛肉pot-roasted beef |
炸 | zhá | deep-fry | 炸糕deep-fried cake |
爆 | bào | quick-fry | 宫爆鸡丁quick -fried diced chicken |
烤 | kăo | roast | 烤鸭Peking Duck |
焖 | mēn | braise | 红焖牛肉braised beef in tomato sauce |
蒸 | zhēng | steam | 清蒸鱼steamed fish |
煮 | zhŭ | boil | 煮鸡蛋boiled egg |
煎 | Jiān | shallow fry | 煎鸡蛋fried egg |
糖醋 | Tángcù | sweet and sour (sugar and vinegar) | 糖醋鱼sweet and sour fish |
酸辣 | Suānlà | sour and hot (spicy) | 酸辣汤sour and hot soup |
Style of cutting
丝 | Sī | shred | 炒土豆丝stir-fried shred potatoes |
片 | Piàn | thin slice | 鸡丝肉片汤shred chicken and sliced pork soup |
丁 | Dīng | small dice | 酱爆肉丁diced pork in soy sauce |
块 | Kuài | large dice deep | 炸鸡块fried chicken pieces |
仁 | Rén | shelled | 果仁煎饼fried pancake with shelled nuts |
条 | Tiáo | twig, piece, bar | 炸土豆条potato chips |
Translate the above names of the dishes in “Example” into English
Utensils
筷子 | kuàizi | chopsticks |
勺子 | sháozi | spoon |
叉子 | chāzi | fork |
碗 | wǎn | bowl |
杯子 | bēizi | cup / glass |
碟子 | diézi |
|
盘子 | pánzi | big plate |
茶壶 | cháhú | teapot |
餐巾纸 | cānjīnzhǐ | paper napkin |
碟子 | diézi | small plate |
Menu
凉菜liáng cài cold dishes
小葱拌豆腐 xiǎocōng bàn dòufu spring onion with bean curd | 糖拌西红柿 tángbàn xīhóngshì sweet tomato | 拍黄瓜 pāi huáng guā cucumber | 煮花生米 zhǔ huāshēngmǐ cooked peanut |
素菜 sùcài vegetarian dishes
炒西兰花 chǎo xīlánhuā stir-fried broccoli | 家常豆腐 jiācháng dòufu home-cooked style bean curd | 炒素 chăosù mixed stir-fried vegetables | 香菇菜心 xiānggū càixīn Chinese mushrooms with green |
荤菜hūncài non-vegetarian dishes
京酱肉丝 jīngjiàng ròusī shredded pork in yellow bean sauce | 鱼香肉丝 yúxiāng ròusī shredded pork | 铁板牛肉 tiěbǎnniúròu sizzling beef | 孜然羊肉 zīrán yángròu cumin lamb |
汤tāng soup
酸辣汤 suān là tāng hot and sour soup | 西红柿鸡蛋汤 xīhóngshì jīdàn tāng tomato and egg soup | 三鲜汤 sānxiān tāng three-meat soup | 粟米羹 sùmǐ gēng sweet-corn soup |
主食zhǔshí rice and noodles
米饭 mǐfàn plain rice | 馒头 mántou steamed buns | 面条 miàntiáo noodles | 炒饭 chǎofàn fired rice |
饮料yǐnliào beverage
绿茶/菊花茶 lǜchá/júhuā chá green tea / chrysanthemum tea | 果汁儿 guǒzhīr fruit juice | 可口可乐 kěkǒukělè coca cola | 雪碧 xuěbì Sprite |