How to Get Some Names of Chinese Dishes

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China is a country famous for poems and many Chinese dishes are given poetic names that evoke emotions and visions. In this way Chinese cuisine is an exalted form of art. So sometimes it is difficult to guess what is it from the names of the dishes. Therefore, it is always a tough job to translate foreigners some Chinese dishes.

Let’s take a look at some of them.

宫保鸡丁（gōng bǎo jī dīng ）Gongbao Chicken Cubes

There are some mystiques that surround the origin of certain recipe names. Comparatively, it is a clear name for one can grasp the main stuffe- chicken cubes from its name. It's common knowledge that this dish is named after an official; however, from there it all gets rather murky. It is the most popular dish among foreigners, most of whom likes the crisp peanut.

叫化鸡（jiào huà jī）Begger’s Chicken

It is also known as 富贵鸡（fù guì jī）for southern businessmen don’t like its inauspicious name despite of its delicious taste, for they are afraid that it may make them lose money with the bad luck brought by beggers. It also has a legend or folklore on its origination. homeless, starving beggar is wandering along a road when he catches sight of a chicken. Desperate for food, he kills the chicken by wringing its neck. Lacking a stove, he covers the chicken in mud, makes a fire and bakes it. (One version has him plucking the feathers off the chicken as he eats).

At this point an Emperor passes by with his entourage. Attracted by the aroma of the baked chicken, he stops and dines with the beggar, demanding to know how he created such a delicious meal. "Beggar's chicken" is subsequently added to the list of dishes served at the Imperial court.

狮子头（shī zǐ tóu ）Lions-Head Shaped Meat Ball

Shizitou? A worse translation is the heads of lions. What is it like when it is served on tables? OK. It’s not horrible at all, on the contrary, it is tantalizing. Anyway, ask which kind of meat is the ball made of, pork, beef or others? There are usually two kinds of ways to make it, 红烧（hongshao）and 清蒸（Qingzheng）, the former is also known as the braised on, and the latter the steamed on.

蚂蚁上树（ mǎ yǐ shàng shù ）Ants Creeping up a Tree

Only ghost know what is it unless one ask for detail. It is a novelty name and has fooled many people’s expectation before they saw the dish served on table. Yes, the morsels of ground black beef or pork are supposed to represent "ants", which are climbing onto pale yellow vermicelli noodles making up the "tree." In any event, this recipe has an advantage over the others in that it doesn't require a great deal of preparation.

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