2019年经济学人 成都火锅VS重庆火锅:谁是老大(2)

 

But Sichuan-style broths² are the most commonly savoured in China. In recent years their popularity has been booming. China has around 350,000 hotpot restaurants. About 40,000 of them are said to be in the Chongqing region alone. Hotpot restaurants in China are more profitable than other kinds, according to iiMedia, a consultancy. Haidilao, a well-known Sichuan-based hotpot chain, raised nearly $1bn when it was listed on the Hong Kong exchange in September. The company is taking its hotpot global. It expanded into Canada in December. Branches are set to open in London later this year.

但川味火锅汤在中国最受欢迎。近年来，受欢迎程度一再跃升。中国大约有35万家火锅店。仅重庆地区就有4万家火锅店。根据咨询公司iiMedia的数据，在中国，火锅店比其他类型的餐饮店利润更高。总部位于四川的知名火锅连锁企业海底捞去年9月在香港交易所上市时筹资近10亿美元。海底捞正将火锅带向全世界。去年12月，海底捞在加拿大开了第一家分店。今年晚些时候还将在伦敦开分店。

The more adventurous³ tastes of younger Chinese are fuelling demand. One-third of customers at hotpot restaurants in China are aged⁴ between 25 and 30, iiMedia says. They often have little time to cook at home and are unburdened by child-care duties. They like the social aspects of sharing hotpots. Round-the-clock restaurants are sprouting⁵ up to allow leisurely⁶ feasting.

中国年轻人敢于尝试新口味，这刺激了火锅需求的增加。iiMedia表示，中国火锅店三分之一的顾客年龄在25岁至30岁之间。这些顾客通常很少在家里做饭，也没有照顾孩子的重担。他们喜欢一起吃火锅的社交功能。24小时营业的餐馆如雨后春笋般涌现出来，人们可以悠闲地享用美食。

While younger Chinese are increasingly health-conscious, they seem to brush off regular hotpot-hygiene scandals. A viral video of a pregnant woman fishing a rat from her broth¹ caused a cooling in the shares of Xiabuxiabu, a chain restaurant named after a Japanese style of hotpot, but they heated up again a few days later. Haidilao even won plaudits when it admitted that rats had been found in some kitchens and vowed⁷ to clean up its act. News of other businesses reusing weeks-old oil in the broth is greeted with a shrug⁸. The grubbiest hotpot joints⁹ are usually the best, young people often say with a grin.

中国的年轻人虽然越来越注重健康，但似乎对火锅卫生丑闻不以为意。呷哺呷哺是一家以日式火锅命名的连锁餐厅。近日，一段很火的视频中，一名孕妇在呷哺呷哺的火锅里夹出一只老鼠，此事导致呷哺呷哺股票大幅下跌，但几天后，股价再次回升。海底捞甚至承认在某些店的厨房里发现了老鼠，并承诺要整顿自己的行为，此举赢得称赞。有消息称，其他火锅店在汤里重复使用了几周的老油，人们对此只是耸耸肩。年轻人经常笑着说，最脏的火锅通常是最好吃的。

Not all Chinese warm to hotpot. Some older Sichuanese disown it altogether. They complain that it is causing an escalation¹⁰ of chilli-use in other dishes that drowns out subtle flavours. Chua Lam, a celebrity¹¹ food critic based in Hong Kong, caused a stir in December when he wished hotpot would disappear from the face of the Earth. He dismissed it as “the most uncultured form of cooking”, requiring no real culinary knowledge.

并非所有中国人都喜欢吃火锅。一些上了年纪的四川人声明并不钟情于火锅。他们抱怨火锅的流行导致其他菜肴辣椒的增多，掩盖了原来微妙的味道。去年12月，香港著名美食评论家蔡澜表示自己希望火锅从世上消失，语惊四座。他认为这是“最没有文化的烹饪方式”，不需要真正的烹饪知识。

But Chengdu’s plans for a museum suggest that Sichuan hotpot is not only growing in popularity, but is also becoming iconic. If it can set the West on fire, officials may hope it will become a delicious new source of Chinese soft power. There will be plenty of glory for both Chengdu and Chongqing to bask¹² in if that happens.

但成都的博物馆计划表明，四川火锅不但越来越受欢迎，而且正在成为标志性的东西。如果它能点燃西方味蕾，当局可能希望火锅将成为中国软实力的一个美味新来源。如果能实现这一目标，成都和重庆都将获得无上荣光。

1 broth   

n.原(汁)汤(鱼汤、肉汤、菜汤等)

参考例句：

• Every cook praises his own broth.厨子总是称赞自己做的汤。
• Just a bit of a mouse's dropping will spoil a whole saucepan of broth.一粒老鼠屎败坏一锅汤。

2 broths   

n.肉汤( broth的名词复数 )；厨师多了烧坏汤；人多手杂反坏事；人多添乱

参考例句：

• Other ingredients commonly used to thicken soups and broths include rice, flour and grains. 其它用来使羹汤或高汤变浓的配料通常包括米，面粉和谷物。 来自互联网
• When meat products, especially broths, are cooked, they often have lower oxidation-reduction potentials. 肉制品尤其是当肉汤被蒸煮时，它们经常有较低的氧化还原电势。 来自互联网

3 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。

4 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

5 sprouting   

v.发芽( sprout的现在分词 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出

参考例句：

• new leaves sprouting from the trees 树上长出的新叶
• They were putting fresh earth around sprouting potato stalks. 他们在往绽出新芽的土豆秧周围培新土。 来自名作英译部分

6 leisurely   

adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的

参考例句：

• We walked in a leisurely manner,looking in all the windows.我们慢悠悠地走着，看遍所有的橱窗。
• He had a leisurely breakfast and drove cheerfully to work.他从容的吃了早餐，高兴的开车去工作。

7 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

8 shrug   

v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)

参考例句：

• With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩，走出了房间。
• I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。

9 joints   

接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语）

参考例句：

• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on gas mains. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在煤气的总管道上了。
• Expansion joints of various kinds are fitted on steam pipes. 各种各样的伸缩接头被安装在蒸气管道上了。

10 escalation   

n.扩大，增加

参考例句：

• The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
• Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。 来自辞典例句

11 celebrity   

n.名人，名流；著名，名声，名望

参考例句：

• Tom found himself something of a celebrity. 汤姆意识到自己已小有名气了。
• He haunted famous men, hoping to get celebrity for himself. 他常和名人在一起, 希望借此使自己获得名气。

12 bask   

vt.取暖，晒太阳，沐浴于

参考例句：

• Turtles like to bask in the sun.海龟喜欢曝于阳光中。
• In winter afternoons,he likes to bask in the sun in his courtyard.冬日的午后，他喜欢坐在院子晒太阳。