《舌尖上的中國》不只說美味

佚名

There are many TV programs on Chinese cuisine, but few are like A Bite of China. The seven-part high-definition documentary offers insights into the geographical, historical and cultural dimensions of what Chinese eat.

“How to create dishes is only one aspect of food culture,” the director Chen Xiaoqing says. “The program tries to bring something new by presenting more cultural elements related to dishes, such as eating habits and the ethics of eating.”

Each episode lasts 50 minutes. Themes range from ingredients to preserved food.

One episode, for example, centers on the staple foods. It recounts Chinas history of paddy cultivation to explain why rice is the mainstay of the southern Chinese diet, while wheat flour is the foundation of the northern diet. But it goes further to break down every staple food into its various styles, such as the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Regions naan (flat bread) and Jiangsu Provinces Huangqiao sesame cakes, both of which fall under the wheat category.

The bonus is, the show is not only about dishes. “As a saying goes, ‘you are what you eat,” Chen says. “Behind the documentarys eye-popping and mouth-watering images are personal stories that reflect peoples living situations and attitudes.”

An episode about pickles, for instance, revolves around a white-collar woman in Beijing, who returns to her hometown in Jilin Province and makes pickles for the first time for her lonely mother. Another episode captures joyful moments of sons and daughters making New Year cakes (rice pudding) after they return home from various metropolises to celebrate with their parents, who have been staying in their hometown in Zhejiang Province.

A Bite of China captures social transformations while presenting food cultures, such as showing the dispersion of extended families that leave the elderly in their hometowns while other members work outside—cases in which food serves as reminders of happy times and centerpieces of reunions.

于中國美食的電視節目數不勝數，但很少有像《舌尖上的中國》這樣的節目。這部七集的高清紀錄片，從地域、歷史以及文化這幾個方面深入探討了中國人的飲食。

“如何做菜只是我們飲食文化中的一方面。”導演陳曉卿說，“我們的節目試圖呈現出更多有關菜肴的文化元素，如飲食習慣和飲食道德。”

該片每集時長50分鐘，主題涵蓋了從食材到腌制品等各個方面。

舉例來說，有一集就主要講述了主食。這一集通過追溯水稻種植的歷史，解釋了為何南方人的主食是米飯，而北方人的則是面食。所有的主食又被進一步細分為不同類別，比如新疆的馕和江蘇的黃橋燒餅都被歸入面食類。

這部紀錄片帶給我們的額外驚喜是，它并不僅僅展現美食?！八自捳f，‘人如其食?！标悤郧湔f，“紀錄片里那些生動鮮活、令人垂涎的影像背后，是反映了人們生活環境和生活態度的親身經歷。”

例如，在講述腌制食品的一集中，故事圍繞一位北京白領女性展開。女孩回到吉林老家，第一次為孤單的母親腌制泡菜。另一集則記錄了子女們紛紛從各大城市返回浙江老家，同父母一起過年、制作年糕的美好時刻。

《舌尖上的中國》在展現美食文化的同時，也捕捉到了社會的變革，例如大家庭中成員分散在各處，大家都在外工作，留下空巢老人在家鄉生活。這種情況下，美食可以提醒人們去追憶美好時光，也成為家庭團聚時的餐桌佳品。

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