Easy， Festive Dishes for Chinese New Year at Home
在家过春节的简单节日菜肴
By Genevieve Ko
In Hong Kong， you can find wonton soup in high-end dining rooms or， more commonly， slung casually as a quick meal， as it is in Chinatowns around the world. Its ubiquity may be why it isn't often served for the special feasts of Chinese New Year， which this year falls on Jan. 22 and ushers in the Year of the Rabbit.
在香港，云吞不仅可以在高级餐厅吃到，更多的时候，人们还会在街边把它当作快餐随手买来吃，在世界各地的唐人街也都是如此。这种食物实在是太常见了，也许这就是为什么人们不会把它当作是为春节特别准备的节日大餐。今年的春节是在1月22日，那一天也意味着兔年的正式开启。
To my mind， wontons are ideal for a new year party precisely because they're an everyday comfort food. For someone like me， born on the other side of the world but tied to the culture， they're a tangible connection to family and homeland. And for anyone who loves wontons ， the process of making them from scratch is as much a celebration as eating them.
不过对我而言，正是因为馄饨是家常菜，能给人带来慰藉，所以很适合在新年聚会的时候享用。我出生在世界的另一端，但在情感上与故土文化紧密相连，对于与我背景相似的人来说，馄饨把我们自己与家人、故乡真切地联系在一起。而对于馄饨爱好者来说，从头开始包馄饨的过程也是节日活动的一部分，不亚于享用馄饨的过程。
To clarify， wontons are dumplings， but not all dumplings are wontons. And not all wontons are Cantonese— there are thicker-skinned versions in northern China and spicy ones from Sichuan in the southwest， among others— but the Hong Kong style， distinguished by silky wrappers and shrimp in the stuffing， is arguably the best.
需要澄清的是，馄饨的确就是饺子，但不是所有饺子都是馄饨。当然，也不是所有馄饨都是粤式；除此之外，中国北方地区也有馄饨，一般皮儿更厚，西南地区的四川抄手则更辣。而港式云吞的特色是薄皮儿、鲜虾馅儿，可谓一绝。
A hallmark of Cantonese cuisine is highlighting ingredients' inherent flavors， so I season my filling simply— with just a few sauces， scallions and ginger. Some cooks add diced fresh water chestnuts for more crunch and rehydrated dried shiitakes or wood ear mushrooms for chew.
粤菜的一个特点是突出食材的天然风味，所以我一般给馅料的调味很简单——只加一点酱汁、葱和姜。有些厨师还会添加新鲜的荸荠丁，让馅料的口感更爽脆，再加入泡发的干香菇或黑木耳来增加嚼劲儿。
In Cantonese，“wonton“ translates to “swallowing a cloud，“ and these look and taste that ethereal. Add long， wiry wonton noodles to the bowl and you have a complete meal， along with the promise of longevity for the new year.
“馄饨”在粤语里被叫做“云吞”，因为它们的品相和味道都有一种轻盈飘逸的感觉。在碗里再加入细长的云吞面，就可以美美吃上一餐，顺便还能许下一个健康长寿的新年愿望。
美国诗人Ella Wilcox的诗《The Year》（这一年）节选：
What can be said in New Year rhymes
That's not been said a thousand times?
又一年来到，该吟诵些什么？
除了那重复千百遍的，陈词旧歌
We rise up laughing with the light
We lie down weeping with the night.
我们曾站在光里，欢笑过
也曾于黑夜入眠，哭泣过
We laugh， we weep， we hope， we fear
我们笑了，我们哭了，我们怀揣着希望，也恐惧着
And that's the burden of a year.
这便是沉甸甸的一年，我们背负过