Let's 家常菜 · Chinese Home Cooking
红烧、清蒸、炒、炖——几种家里最常见的做法的英文说法。
Red-braised, steamed, stir-fried, stewed — the words you need to explain a dish from your family kitchen.
一句话版：中餐家常菜不是餐厅那种大菜，是每天饭桌上的家常味——几道菜、一碗汤、一锅米饭，大家一起吃。
核心做法的英文Core methods in English
- 炒 — stir-fry（中餐的灵魂做法）
- 红烧 — red-braise / braise in soy sauce
- 清蒸 — steamed（鱼、蛋、蔬菜都可以）
- 炖 — stew / slow-simmer
- 煎 — pan-fry · 炸 — deep-fry · 煮 — boil
- 凉拌 — cold tossed salad（凉拌黄瓜 smashed cucumber）
讲错了不好意思的地方Easy mistakes
- "Chinese food" 在美国往往指橘子鸡、宫保鸡丁这些美式中餐；家常菜是 "Chinese home cooking" 或 "how we cook at home"。
- "Stir-fry" 不只是 "fry"，要强调大火快炒。
- "Red-braised" 不是红色食用色素，是酱油+糖焦化上色。
In one sentence: Chinese home cooking isn't the takeout you see in the U.S. — it's the daily food on a Chinese family table: a few shared dishes, a bowl of soup, and rice for everyone, all built around a few core techniques.
What it is是什么
In Chinese, jiā cháng cài (家常菜) literally means "home-regular dishes" — the everyday food your mom or grandma makes. A typical weeknight dinner is one meat dish, one or two vegetables, a soup, and rice, all served family-style in the middle of the table. No appetizer-main-dessert order. Everyone shares.
American-style Chinese takeout (orange chicken, General Tso's, beef and broccoli in glossy sauce) is a different thing. Real Chinese home food is usually lighter, less sweet, and much more about the vegetables.
The core techniques核心做法
| Chinese | English | What it actually is |
|---|---|---|
| 炒 (chǎo) | stir-fry | High heat, a wok, quick tossing. The ingredients stay crisp and the flavor stays bright. This is the heart of Chinese cooking. |
| 红烧 (hóng shāo) | red-braise | Sear meat, then simmer slowly in soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, and aromatics. The sugar caramelizes and turns the sauce a deep reddish-brown. Hence "red-braised." |
| 清蒸 (qīng zhēng) | steamed (clear-steamed) | Pure steam with almost no seasoning until the end. Used for fresh fish, tofu, eggs, and vegetables — the point is to taste the ingredient itself. |
| 炖 (dùn) | stew / slow-simmer | Long, gentle cooking in a pot of liquid. Used for oxtail, pork ribs, chicken soup, lotus root, and winter dishes. |
| 煎 (jiān) | pan-fry | A smaller amount of oil than deep-frying, flipping food in the pan. Potstickers (guō tiē) are pan-fried jiaozi. |
| 凉拌 (liáng bàn) | cold-tossed / cold salad | Raw or blanched vegetables tossed with a light dressing of soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, and garlic. Smashed cucumber is the famous example. |
How to describe your family dish in English英文怎么说
A useful template:
[method] + [main ingredient] + with [key flavor or aromatic].
"It's a red-braised pork belly — pork slowly simmered in soy sauce, sugar, and Shaoxing wine until it's dark and tender."
"It's a steamed fish with ginger and scallion — just fish and steam, finished with hot oil poured over the top."
"It's stir-fried green beans with minced pork — high heat, a little soy sauce, and a touch of chili."
"It's a slow-simmered tomato and egg soup — the ultimate Chinese home dish. Every family makes it a little differently."
"It's not spicy — Chinese home cooking usually isn't. Only Sichuan and Hunan cooking are."
Common English mistakes常见的讲错
- Don't call everything "fried." Stir-frying, pan-frying, and deep-frying are very different. Most home cooking is stir-fried, with surprisingly little oil.
- Don't say "red-braised" means it's spicy or made with chili. The "red" is caramelized sugar and soy sauce, not heat.
- Don't describe your home cooking as "Chinese food" without a qualifier — your American friend will picture orange chicken. Say "Chinese home cooking" or "the way we cook at home."
- Don't forget the soup. A Chinese meal almost always includes a bowl of clear soup on the side. It isn't a starter; it goes with the rice and dishes.
If they ask more如果他们还想知道
Q: What are the essential ingredients in a Chinese kitchen?
Soy sauce (light and dark), Shaoxing wine (rice cooking wine), sesame oil, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, scallions, dried chilies, star anise, and Sichuan peppercorns for numbing flavor. If you have those, you can make most home dishes.
Q: Why is everything cut so small?
Because Chinese food is eaten with chopsticks, not a knife and fork. The chef cuts the meat and vegetables bite-size in the kitchen, so diners never have to cut at the table. It also makes stir-frying fast and even.
Q: Is there a difference between northern and southern cooking?
Yes — big one. The north eats more wheat (noodles, dumplings, bread) and bolder salty-savory flavors. The south eats more rice, fish, and lighter, sweeter sauces. Sichuan cooking is famously spicy and numbing; Cantonese cooking is famously clean and fresh. "Chinese food" is not one cuisine.