In Italy, ‘al dente’ is prized. In Taiwan, it’s all about food that’s ‘Q.’

al dente adj. 有嚼劲，有弹性
在意大利，“有嚼劲”被视为珍宝；在台湾，它与一切“Q”的食物有关

As dusk falls at Lehua Night Market, the fluorescent lights flicker on and the hungry customers start trickling in, anxious for a taste of the local delicacies that give this island its reputation as one of Asia’s finest culinary capitals.

dusk n.黄昏
fluorescent adj. 荧光的
flicker v. （灯光等）闪烁，摇曳，忽隐忽现
trickling in/into （人）缓慢地移动，三三两两地进入
delicacy n. 美食，珍馐，佳肴
reputation n. 名声，名誉；声望
culinary adj. 烹饪的，食物的

随着夜幕降临，乐华夜市的荧光灯渐渐亮起，饥肠辘辘的顾客们陆陆续续地来到这里，急切渴望着品尝到当地的美食，因为这些美食使得这座岛屿被誉为亚洲美食胜地之一。

Neatly arranged pyramids of plump fish balls. Bowls brimming with tapioca balls bathed in lightly sweetened syrup. Take a bite of any of these dishes and you’ll discover a unique texture. But how exactly do you describe that perfectly calibrated “mouth feel”? Slippery? Chewy? Globby? Not exactly the most flattering adjectives in the culinary world.

Neatly adv. 整齐地
arranged pyramids 排列着金字塔状的
plump adj. 较丰满的
brim with 装满，充满
tapioca 木薯淀粉
syrup n. 糖浆
texture n. 口感
calibrated adj. （工具或仪器）校准的
Slippery adj. 滑溜的，湿滑的
chewy adj. 耐嚼的，需要多嚼的
globby adj. 黏糊糊的
flattering adj. 奉承的，讨好的

整齐排列成金字塔状的饱满鱼丸。一碗碗浸润在微甜糖水中的粉圆。从这些小吃里随便尝一口，你都会发现一种独特的口感。但你该如何描述那种经过精心调配的“口感”呢？滑溜？有嚼劲？黏糊糊？这些可算不上是烹饪界最讨人喜欢的形容词。

Luckily, the Taiwanese have a word for this texture. Well, actually, it’s not a word, it’s a letter—one that even non-Chinese speakers can pronounce. It’s “Q.”

幸运的是，台湾人有一个词来形容这种口感。事实上，它也不是一个词，而是一个字母——就连不讲中文的人也能说出它。那就是“Q”。

“It’s difficult to explain what Q means exactly,” said Liu Yen-ling, a manager at Chun Shui Tang, a popular teahouse chain that claims to have invented tapioca milk tea in Taiwan. “Basically it means springy, soft, elastic.”

springy adj. 有弹性的，有活力的
elastic adj. 有弹力的，可伸缩的

人气连锁茶饮店春水堂号称是台湾珍珠奶茶的发明者。该店的经理刘彦伶表示，“很难解释‘Q’到底是什么意思，基本上，它意味着有弹性，软糯，可伸缩的。”

Q texture is to Taiwanese what umami is to Japanese and al dente is to Italians—that is, cherished and essential. The texture is found in both savory and sweet foods, and is most often used to describe foods that contain some kind of starchlike noodles, tapioca pearls and fish balls. If something is really chewy or extra Q, then it could be called QQ.

umami n. 鲜味
savory adj. 可口的；风味极佳的；味美的

Q 的口感之于台湾人，犹如鲜味之于日本人，有嚼劲之于意大利人——既备受珍视，也必不可少。这种口感在非甜食和甜食中都能找到，并且它最常被用来描述含有淀粉的食物，比如面条、木薯珍珠和鱼丸。如果某样东西真的很耐嚼或特别的 Q，那么它就可以被称为 QQ。

Among Taiwanese, the appreciation for Q texture starts at a young age. Asked why Q texture was so appealing to Taiwanese, Lu Wei-chen, the owner of the stand, smiled and said, “It’s simple. When you eat it, you will be in a good mood.”

appreciation n.喜爱
appealing to 某物对某人有吸引力的
stand n.摊位

台湾人对 Q 这种口感的喜爱从年幼时就开始了，当被问到 Q 的口感为什么对台湾人有如此大的吸引力时，小摊老板路伟晨微笑着说，“很简单，当你吃到它时，你的心情会很好。”

文章来源 / 纽约时报/流利阅读