新年幸運大餐

文、譯/孫曄

新年幸運大餐

Time for New Year Lucky Food

文、譯/孫曄

無論上一年我們做得怎么樣，我們都希望來年能有好運氣，有更多的財富收獲。與其等待命運的安排，倒不如在享受一頓大餐的同時增加自己的運氣。據說有很多食物都會帶來幸運，也會增強你的優勢讓你來年變得更好。

幸運的食物有時是基于外觀的。例如：在中國新年期間吃全雞象征著家庭完整;面條代表著長壽(舊時迷信切斷面條會帶來壞運氣);而春卷則象征著財富，因為它的形狀和金條相似。

另一方面，食物或許因為它的名字聽起來幸運而變得重要。例如，粵語中“生菜”和“生財”發音相近，因此，在奉上其他幸運食物的同時，生菜也往往一并出場。橘子和橙子也有好的寓意，因為它們的名字聽起來分別像“吉”和“財”。柚子是葡萄柚的祖先，代表著富足，因為它的漢語發音聽起來像動詞“有”。

魚在歡度佳節中也起著很大的作用，魚的漢語發音聽起來有點像“欲”和“裕”，所以就有了“愿望”和“富足”的寓意。所以，除夕夜團圓飯結束前，人們通常會端上一條代表著來年富足愿望的魚。另外，飯桌上的魚一般來說都是帶著魚頭和魚尾的整條魚，這象征著新年會有一個美好的開端和結尾。

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”.

根據中國新年傳統，人們會拜訪親朋好友。在拜訪親友時，主人家通常都會給客人們獻上熱茶，還有一個圓的或者八角形的、裝滿多樣的堅果和糖果等小吃的盒子。這就是我們所謂的“全盒”，代表著和睦與和諧。

傳統的全盒是木質的，里面有八個瓷盤，但現在很多人選擇用塑料制成的全盒。在全盒里面，每個小格都裝有特別的有象征意義的食物。

那么，在全盒里究竟有什么呢?你會在里面找到：瓜子(財富、幸福)、糖蓮子 (年生貴子)、糖冬瓜(健康成長)、糖椰子(友誼永固)、花生(長命百歲)、油角(錢包飽脹)、荔枝干(家庭團結)、龍眼干(子孫滿堂)。

在中國，不同的地區有不同的幸運食物。

餃子在春節期間是必吃的幸運食物。在中國北方有著這樣的傳統，每家每戶在除夕會相聚一堂，一起做餃子，然后在午夜時把它們吃掉。據說餃子在中國最初出現于1600年以前，它既形似古代的金銀元寶，又形同新月，故而代表著對來年豐收富足的希望。

盡管餃子在北方受歡迎，在南方最受歡迎的卻是“年糕”。在漢語里，“糕”的諧音是“高”。年糕象征著在工作和生活中能夠“年年高升”。年糕是由米粉和糖制作而成的，是一種既甜又黏的長方形棕色糯米糕。可以蒸，也可以裹上蛋液下鍋炸，甚至還可以涼著吃，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.

在中國的圍屋則誕生了一道稱為“盆菜”的美食。當你看到食材時，你就會知道它充滿了各種美好的愿望和歡欣。這是道豐盛的菜肴，通常有豬肉、雞、牛肉、鴨、大蝦、豆腐、鮑魚和干蘑菇，它們一層一層地摞起來，燉成一鍋，裝在木質的大盆里，以便所有人都能一起分享這些食物。吃“盆菜”是一個公共活動，對維系家庭關系非常重要。

在西班牙，人們在除夕夜守歲時會吃12顆葡萄，教堂的鐘聲每小時敲一次，葡萄也是每小時吃一顆。每顆葡萄代表一個月，如果你吃的第三顆葡萄是酸的話，很有可能你在三月份要倒霉了。大多數人都會在12點之前把12顆葡萄都吃完，但是秘魯人卻堅持要吃13顆，畢竟人們都想有更多的好運。

無論是哪個國家，卷心菜、甘藍和甜菜等等這些蔬菜都是新年的必備菜肴，原因很簡單——它們綠色的葉子看上去好像折疊的錢，因此蔬菜也是財富的象征。荷蘭人還會在燉甘藍上撒上糖和肉桂，德國人則喜歡吃卷心菜，而在美國南部，羽衣甘藍才是當地人的最愛。

黃豆、豌豆、扁豆等等這些豆類也是財富的象征。當你把豆子放在鍋里炸聽到它們發出噼里啪啦的響聲時，難道你不會覺得是一鍋硬幣在打轉嗎?

新年吃豬肉的傳統源于這樣的一種說法：豬是進步的象征。另外，意大利和美國人也吃豬肉，據說是因為豬脂肪豐富，象征財源滾滾。

除了幸運食物之外，還有一些食物是要避諱的。

龍蝦就不是個好的選擇，因為它們是向后走的，這就意味著你也要向后退了。有翅膀的家禽，據說吃了好運可能會飛走。另外，雞最好也不要吃，因為雞是向后拍翅膀的，你可能會留下遺憾或者不能放下過去的事。

多吃點幸運食物吧，但不要太貪吃喔，否則你新年過后第一個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!