I’ve read in the posts somewhere sometime ago names of Chinese dishes translated into comical English in the restaurant menus in China. When the names of Chinese dishes are translated word for word into English, it doesn’t mean anything – like ‘ants climbing up a tree’. The Chinese government is doing something about it now.

So, the authorities, in preparation for the Olympic Games, have released a road map of English translations to avoid spooking or confusing thousands of tourists coming to the country.

A list of 2,000 menu items, built over the last 2 years serves as a guide to restaurateurs not only just in China, but in US too. Here are some re-christened dishes:

“happy family” to assorted stewed delicacies
“red-roasted lion’s head” to stewed pork ball in brown sauce
“husband-and-wife lung slices” to pork lungs in chilli sauce
“fish-fragrant eggplant” to yu-shiang eggplant
“pock-marked old lady’s tofu” to mapo tofu
“squirrel Mandarin fish” to sweet and sour Mandarin fish
“three fresh things from the ground” to sautéed potato, green pepper & eggplant
“three-colour shredded beef” to stir-fried shredded beef with vegetables
“saliva chicken” to steamed chicken with chilli sauce
“strange flavoured shredded chicken” to special flavoured shredded chicken

The quirkiness of translation goes both ways:
- Cocktail has become chicken tail alcohol
- Hotdog has become a warm canine

Source: Business Time, Thursday June 26, 2008

Chinese words are very descriptive, I guess and sometimes they can be very comical if word for word translation is in place. You should see the number of established Chinese restaurants in the US that have names that are a mouthful and rather comical. But recent mainlanders are clever enough to just call their eateries "China One" or "Panda One", etc.

Western tourists to China should really venture to try the many wonderful dishes of each provinces of that great country. For goodness sake avoid Mac, KFC's, Starbucks for you can get them when you return home.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-08/31/content_6637696.htm

Quote:

The names of Chinese dishes have combined cultural and artistic elements in them, some with historical, geographical and political background, some with origins from Chinese fairy tales and folk tales. Often the dishes are named with stories understood only by people who know their culture well. Translators have divided the dish names into four catalogues: named by materials, by cooking method, by tastes, by name of a person or a place. Translation of the first type is done simply by linking the name of each material [ingredients] with a hyphen. For instance, "Mushroom-Duck's Foot" and "Ament Juice-Balsam Pear", which helps foreign guests to recognize the materials and content of the dish. The second type is translated according to cooking methods. Some Chinese cooking methods are unique and do not exist in other countries, like stew, quick-fry or saute, braise, and chilioil-boil. The translators now put the method in the beginning, followed by the material, forming a verb-noun phrase. For instance, "Stewed Diced Pork and Sweet Potatoes" and "Fish Filets in Hot Chilioil". The third type begins with the taste or texture of the food. For example, "Crispy Chicken". The last type is named after either its creator or the place it originates from. Such examples include "Mapo Tofu", which is a kind of Tofu invented by Mapo, name of a Chinese woman. The committee also plans to launch a training program to equip waiters and waitresses with knowledge of the dish names in case customers demand explanations.

New Name ----------------------------------Former Name ----------------------- Chinese name -----------------

Stewed pork ball in brown sauce .......... red-roasted/burnt lion’s head ....... 红烧狮子头



http://www.chinesesession.com/blog/2008/06/19/official-tranlation-of-chinese-dishes/

Steamed Spring Chicken (pullet)...................chicken without a sex life ............... 清蒸童子鸡

Sautéed Vermicelli with Spicy Minced Pork .. ants climb up the tree ................. 蚂蚁上树

http://olympics.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/06/20/chinese-food-translations-sweet-sour-and-downright-odd/

The menu also shows that Western beverages have clearly made it into the Chinese ingredient list.
可乐芸豆: French Beans in Coca-Cola
啤酒鸡: Stewed Chicken in Beer
可乐凤中翼: Pan-Fried Chicken Wings in Coca-Cola Sauce

* Trust me, meat with cola tastes good.

Some bloggers speculated how the name sweet and sour “Squirrel Mandarin fish” was derived. One said that the fish is scored and when deep fried, it curls up like a squirrel's bushy tail. Another believed that pinenuts (松 song) in the dish is the same word as squirrel (松鼠 song shu). Your guess is as good as mine.



The new comprehensive list of dishes is indeed a serious attempt to bridge the cultural gap and correct misunderstandings and hopefully put an end to sniggers. Acknowledgement and thanks go to the translators, chefs, literary experts, linguists, officials, representatives from tourism, etc, who have taken pains to go through names of over 2,000 dishes and coming up with the most acceptable terms to showcase Chinese cuisine. It is by no means completed task and would probably be improved over time, post Olympic games.

And for the moment, there will be some who think the official list is unsatisfactory. One step at a time.

Quote:

One Chinese netizen was not amused : "I don't like this new naming method, it's abandoning Chinese tradition," one Internet comment declared. "There are many stories in the names of these dishes."

-- Reuters.

I’ve found my earlier post Jan 15, 2008.

Look at some of the outlandish-sounding dishes in English on the menu in China restaurants.

http://oneworldtalk.freeforums.org/beijing-olympics-t446.html#2188