The Sister-in-law’s Vinegar Fish. 西湖醋鱼

During the Southern Song dynasty, there lived two Song brothers who were intellects. However, they did not want to work for the government choosing to live the simple life of fishermen. An evil local officer who coverted the elder Song brother's beautiful wife, schemed to have him poisoned. When the younger brother went to the government office 衙门 yámen to lodge a complaint, it was not only disregared but he was also beaten up.

He had no choice but to flee Hangzhou for his own safety. Just before he left, his sister-in-law used sugar and vinegar to cook him a parting meal with a fish saying “这菜有酸有甜,望你有出头之日,勿忘今日辛酸” This dish is both sweet and sour. I hope that should you later succeed in Life, that you do not forget the bitterness of this day."

The younger brother later became renowned for helping his country to fight against invaders and was rewarded with a high status. He returned to his hometown to punish the evil doers. However he could not find any traces of his sister-in-law. One day while attending a banquet he tasted the familiar fish dish and discovered his sister-in-law living in incognito 隐姓埋名 yǐnxìng-máimíng and they were reunited.

Henceforth, this dish was known as 西湖醋鱼 Xī Hú cùyú (West Lake Vinegar Fish). It was also sometimes called Sister-in-law's Treasures “叔嫂传珍” shūsǎo chuánzhēn and was passed down as another of Hangzhou's famous dishes.

I dug into the tender meat of the succulent fish without hesitation and liked the mild taste of vinegar rounded off by the sweetness of sugar. There is just a tinge of sourness, enough to touch the soft spot of my heart at the plight of the sister-in-law but not sharp enough to bring out any tears…

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A Dish Named After A Poet. 东坡肉

The first night in Hángzhōu 杭州, we went to its most famous restaurant serving not only authentic Hangzhou dishes but also cooked in the 正宗 zhèngzōng orthodox way. 楼外楼 lóu wài lóu is a 150 plus years old establisment sited in an grand mansion refurbished into a beautifully decorated restaurant. Many felt that it fully deserved its reputation of being the best restaurant south of the Yangtse “江南第一楼” Jiāngnán dì-yī lóu. It was unfortunate that the rooms facing West Lake 西湖 Xī Hú were under renovation or we could be having dinner taking in the lovely lake scene. Still, I was glad to be there that night and was treated to many famous Hangzhou dishes. As promised, below is the most famous dish of them all.

During the reign of the Song 宋 Sòng dynasty 苏东坡 Sū Dōngpō became the regional official of 杭州 Hángzhōu (capital of 浙江 Zhèjiāng province). He organized the people to dredge the West Lake 西湖 Xī Hú and to build dykes to irrigate the field. In the spring of that year, some of the citizens knowing how Sū Dōngpō loved meat, sent him pork and wine. Receiving so much, he felt that he should share it and instructed his household to cook the meat for the labourer working on the dyke.

By accident, his servants added the wine to the meat while they were cooking it resulting in the pork having a most fragrant and appetizing taste. The people copied this distinctive method of cooking and named it after him. Hence, this dish became known as “东坡肉” dōngpōròu and Hangzhou's most famous traditional dish.

I stared at the thick slice of pork, two third of which is fat and hesitated to take a bite though it looked and smell so appetizing. It has a rich reddish brown lustre and an aromatic wine fragrance. My dining companion said that “this is a most sinful dish” and I have to agree. But one bite and I’m in gastronomic heaven. The rich full meaty taste was greatly enhanced by the fragrant wine and yes, the tender succulent fat. To say it was lovely was an understatement… It was more like love…

Going to Hangzhou’s West Lake 苏东坡的西湖

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I’ll be going to Hangzhou 杭州 Hángzhōu tonight and spent a couple of days there before going to Suzhou and Shanghai. It is on company business, unfortunately. But I never fail to pause and smell the flowers along any path I travel. And I’m sure there will be stories to share when I get back.

I’ll of course find my way to the famed West Lake, where the weeping willows framed its bank. It was said that it was governor and poet Sū Dōngpō 苏东坡 who introduced these graceful weeping willows that really bring out its character. And he wrote a famous poem that compared West Lake 西湖 Xī Hú to 西施 Xishi, one of the four most beautiful woman in historical China.

West Lake in Sunshine and Rain.

饮湖上初晴后雨
yǐn hú shàng chū qíng hòu yǔ

水光潋滟晴方好,
shuǐ guāng liànyàn qíng fāng hǎo
山色空蒙雨亦奇。
shānsè kōng méng yǔ yì qí
欲把西湖比西子,
yù bǎ Xī Hú bǐ Xishi
淡妆浓抹总相宜。
dàn zhuāng mā zǒng xiāngyí

Shimmering water on a bright sunny day. or the
marvellous sight of distant rain veiled hills
West Lake is as Xishi, beautiful -
whether plainly dressed or richly adorned.

I will be writing more about Sū Dōngpō 苏东坡 when I get back. Not only is he a good 官 guān official and calligrapher but he also has a famous dish 东坡肉 dōngpōròu named after him. How many poets do you know who can lay claim to that?

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Invitation to Wine - Part II. 将进酒

I am not much of a drinker and my capacity for liquor 酒量 jiǔliàng is not good. I do not enjoy getting drunk because I do not believe one can drown one’s worries in drink 借酒浇愁 jièjiǔ-jiāochóu or forget oneself in one’s cups 酒后失态 jiǔhòushītài.

I do enjoy a drink or two in quiet setting and good conversation. So I do not really “share” the joy of drinking 酒兴 jiǔxìng as brought up in this and other drinking poems. But I can appreciate the beauty and romanticism of release and abandonment from mundane existence and “endless worries” through wine especially in the age of the gentlemen scholar.

Having paused before the wonderful calligraphy, the strong drinkers turned to head towards the bar to continue their 进酒 jìnjiǔ toasts. While we, the group of weaker drinkers already over our head in wine headed the other directions to the safety of our beds and our drunken dreams. I wondered if I will enjoy drinking more if I can hold my liquor better? To be honest, probably. But I being what I am, can only enjoy the poems on drinking more than the drinks itself; maybe more than some famous drinkers...

与君歌一曲, 请君为我侧耳听。
yǔ jūn gē yī qū, qǐng jūn wèi wǒ cè'ěr tīng 。
钟鼓馔玉不足贵, 但愿长醉不愿醒。
zhōng gǔ zhuàn yù bùzú guì, dànyuàn cháng zuì bù yuàn xǐng 。
古来圣贤皆寂寞, 惟有饮者留其名。
gǔlái shèngxián jiē jìmò, wéiyǒu yǐn zhě liú qí míng 。
陈王昔时宴平乐, 斗酒十千恣欢谑。
chén wáng xī shí yàn pínglè, dòu jiǔ shí qiān zì huān xuè 。
主人何为言少钱, 径须沽取对君酌。
zhǔrén hé wèi yán shǎo qián, jìng xū gū qǔ duì jūn zhuó 。
五花马,千金裘, 呼儿将出换美酒,
wǔ huā mǎ, qiān jīn qiú, hū ér jiāng chū huàn měijiǔ,
与尔同销万古愁。
yǔ ěr tóng xiāo wàngǔ chóu。

For you I will sing a tune,
Please do hear me sing.
Bells and drums, delicacies and jades are not that precious,
I only wish I could stay drunk and not wake.
The ancient sages were all lonely,
Only the drinkers leave their names.
King Chen threw a feast in Ping Le,
Ten thousand rounds of toasts and happy banters.
My host, why complain lack of money?
Just buy more drinks for your guests
With my rare horse and expensive fur,
In exchange for more fragrant wine,
To melt away our endless worries.

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Invitation to Wine - Part I 将进酒

It has been some time since I was entertained to a formal dinner in China and things have changed. That night in Dongguan we were seated lucky eighteen to a large table, in one of many round tables. Even before the food arrived, the toasting began. And they were doing it with red wine in elegant wine glasses now.

There were one to one toast, many to one toast and all round toast. In the all round toast where the dinner guests were seated too far apart to clink glasses, we just clink the base of the glass to the large glass Lazy Susan in the centre of the table.

It was a good thing that only a little wine was poured each time but the rounds were endless. Waves and waves of toasting for every conceivable reasons. And it is considered good form to empty your cups. 感情深，一口闷; 感情浅，舔一舔 gǎnqíngshēn, yīkǒumēn; gǎnqíngqiǎn, tiǎnyītiǎn. “If our friendship is deep, drink to the bottom, if shallow, drink a little.” So it is difficult to turn down drinks when they were showing you their empty glasses.

As we unsteadily filed out from the restaurant after the bout to the lobby, there was a huge painting on the wall. It was a poem by the famous poet 李白 lǐbái. My boss paused before it and praised the poem drawing nods from all the ‘famous’ drinkers. This is the first part of the poem - 将进酒 jiāngjìnjiǔ and my translation (I’ll be happy to receive any comments including brickbats).

君不见黄河之水天上来, 奔流到海不复回。
jūn bùjiàn HuángHé zhī shuǐ tiānshàng lái, bēnliú dào hǎi bùfù huí。
君不见高堂明镜悲白发, 朝如青丝暮成雪。
jūn bùjiàn gāotáng míngjìng bēi báifà, zhāo rú qīngsī mù chéng xuě。
人生得意须尽欢, 莫使金樽空对月。
rénshēng déyì xū jìn huān, mò shǐ jīn zūn kōng duì yuè 。
天生我材必有用, 千金散尽还复来。
tiānshēng wǒ cái bì yǒuyòng, qiānjīn sàn jìn hái fù lái
烹羊宰牛且为乐, 会须一饮三百杯。
pēng yáng zǎi niú qiě wèi lè, huì xū yī yǐn sān bǎi bēi。
岑夫子,丹丘生, 将进酒,君莫停。
cén fūzǐ, dānqiū shēng, jiāngjìnjiǔ, jūn mò tíng。

Do you not see the yellow river descending from Heaven,
Rushing out to sea, never to return?
Do you not see in the hall’s mirror your sad white hair,
Silken black in the morning, snow white by night?
Life is to be enjoyed while it is good,
Tip not an empty cup to the moon.
The talent Heaven gifted should be used,
For what gold spent to return.
Cook a goat, slaughter a cow for a feast,
And drink up three hundred cups!
Master Cen, young Danqiu,
Bring in the wine, let it never stop.

(The second part of this poem will continue in the next post…)

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