There have been many controversies¹ over differences in diet between the North and the South in China. For example, a northern Chinese may wonder why their southern fellows must have stir-fried vegetables as the last dish for a meal, while the southerner may be surprised to know that people from north always hoard² cabbages before winter.

南北方之间的饮食差异已经被讨论过很多次了。例如南方人不懂北方人囤百斤大白菜过冬，北方人不懂南方人点菜最后一道菜为什么一定是炒青菜。

Recently, different understandings of ying dishes caused another round discussion on the internet.

最近，“硬菜”这一话题又引起了南北大讨论。

Chinese Name:Ying dish

中文名：硬菜

Function: To satisfy a craving³ for delicious food

功效：比较解馋的

Attributes: Meat in large chunks⁴ and ingredients in bulk⁵

属性：大块的肉类炒菜

Cooking Requirements: Mom's cooking / Highly rated restaurant's cooking

制作要求：妈妈做的菜、好评餐厅

Eating Methods: To gobble and devour⁶

食用方法：狼吞虎咽

Applicable Environments: Necessary to northern Chinese

适应场合：北方人点餐必备

In northern China, ying dishes refer to those which are distinctive⁷ and delicious enough to show your sincerity⁸ when you entertain guests.

在北方，硬菜通常指特色、美味、能看出诚意的菜。

Dishes with abundant meat and varieties of fish are often considered as ying dishes which are usually served in basins rather than plates.

北方的硬菜一定要有大鱼大肉，并且通常用盆装。

Some said that ying dishes are quite common in the North, which are usually made of purely⁹ beef, lamb and pork and other kinds of meat, and must look amazing in terms of presentation.

在北方人的生活里硬菜十分常见，通常是全荤的，用牛羊肉或者猪肉制成，一端上来就让人直呼过瘾。

For most southern Chinese, however, ying dishes are quite unfamiliar¹⁰. Seven out of eight styles of Chinese cuisine¹¹ originate from southern parts of China, which are eye-dazzling with various kinds of cooking methods.

南方的朋友可能对硬菜并不十分熟悉。南方聚集了“八大菜系”中七大名菜系，各式各样的烹调方法让人眼花缭乱。

Ying dishes in South China are not only numerous in variety, but also in perfect combination of colors, smells and tastes.

因此，南方的硬菜不仅品种多样，还色香味俱全。

In Guangdong province for example, soup are usually stewed¹² for several hours with chunks of vegetables or seafood¹³ rather than chunks of meat, is often considered as the ying dish and attached great importance.

在广东，汤就是重头菜。与北方的大多数硬菜不同，广东的汤通常使用蔬菜或者海鲜熬制多个小时而成。

It is said that soup should always be served first on the table with great expectations and people will comment after trying. A restaurant which is unable to provide satisfactory soup is often considered a failure.

通常汤要第一个隆重登场，喝完的人都要点评下味道。一个饭店如果连汤都煲不好，那就是失败中的失败。

Except for the heated discussion, people from different provinces also willingly and proudly shared the ying dishes in their hometown.

网友们也在讨论之余分享起了各自家乡的传统硬菜。