HSK 5 · Article · 554 characters · Listen: mandarinthewild.com/library/read/who-invented-tofu

豆腐是谁发明的?

Who invented tofu? The legend of Liu An

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想象xiǎngxiàng一下yíxià:两千多liǎngqiānduō年nián前qián,一yí座zuò山shān上shàng烟雾yānwù缭绕liáorào,一yí位wèi王爷wángye正zhèng和hé一yì群qún人rén围wéi着zhe火炉huǒlú忙来忙去mánglái-mángqù。他们tāmen不是búshì在zài做饭zuòfàn,而是érshì在zài做zuò一yì种zhǒng药yào:吃chī了le就jiù能néng长生不老chángshēng-bùlǎo的de药yào。

这zhè位wèi王爷wángye叫jiào刘安liú’ān,是shì汉朝hàncháo的de淮南huáinán王wáng。传说chuánshuō他tā非常fēicháng喜欢xǐhuān研究yánjiū长生不老chángshēng-bùlǎo,在zài淮南huáinán的de八公山上shàng请qǐng了le很hěn多duō人rén帮bāng他tā炼丹liàndān。有yǒu一次yícì,一yì锅guō热rè豆浆dòujiāng不bù小心xiǎoxīn碰到pèngdào了le盐卤yánlǔ,有yǒu的de说shuō是shì石膏shígāo,结果jiéguǒ慢慢mànmàn变成biànchéng了le很hěn多duō白白嫩嫩báibái-nènnèn的de小xiǎo块kuài。大家dàjiā尝cháng了le尝cháng,又yòu香xiāng又yòu好吃hǎochī。这zhè就是jiùshì豆腐dòufu。

长生不老chángshēng-bùlǎo的de药yào没有méiyǒu做zuò出来chūlai,豆腐dòufu却què留liú了le下来xiàlai。这zhè个gè故事gùshi在zài中国zhōngguó流传liúchuán了le很hěn久jiǔ。明朝míngcháo的de李时珍lǐshízhēn在zài《本草纲目béncǎo-gāngmù》里li写道xiědào:做zuò豆腐dòufu的de方法fāngfǎ,是shì从cóng汉朝hàncháo的de刘安liú’ān开始kāishǐ的de。比bǐ他tā早zǎo几百jíbǎi年nián,宋朝sòngcháo的de朱熹zhūxī在zài一yì首shǒu诗shī里也yě开玩笑kāiwánxiào说shuō:早知道zǎozhīdào淮南huáinán王wáng的de办法bànfǎ,就jiù可以kéyǐ坐zuò在zài家里jiālǐ赚钱zhuànqián了le。

可是kěshì,刘安liú’ān真的zhēnde发明fāmíng了le豆腐dòufu吗ma?问题wèntí是shì,汉朝hàncháo留下liúxià的de书shū里,几乎jīhū找不到zhǎobudào“豆腐dòufu”这zhè两liǎng个gè字zì。现在xiànzài能néng找到zhǎodào的de最zuì早zǎo的de记载jìzǎi,在zài一千多yìqiānduō年nián前qián的de一yì本běn书shū《清异录》里li。书shū里说shuō,有yǒu个gè当官dāngguān的de人rén很hěn清廉qīnglián,买不起mǎibuqǐ肉ròu,每天měitiān只zhǐ买mǎi几jǐ块kuài豆腐dòufu。当地人dāngdìrén就jiù开玩笑kāiwánxiào,把bǎ豆腐dòufu叫作jiàozuò“小宰羊”,好像hǎoxiàng豆腐dòufu就是jiùshì他tā的de羊肉yángròu。

1960年nián,人们rénmen在zài河南hénán的de一yí座zuò汉朝hàncháo古墓gǔmù里发现fāxiàn了le一yì幅fú石头shítou上shàng的de画huà。有的yǒude专家zhuānjiā认为rènwéi,画huà里li的de人rén正在zhèngzài做zuò豆腐dòufu;也yě有yǒu专家zhuānjiā觉得juéde,就算jiùsuàn那nà时候shíhou已经yǐjīng有yǒu了le豆腐dòufu,也yě跟gēn今天jīntiān的de豆腐dòufu很hěn不bù一样yíyàng。还有háiyǒu人rén认为rènwéi,豆腐dòufu可能kěnéng是shì有人yǒurén不bù小心xiǎoxīn把bǎ海盐hǎiyán放进fàngjìn了le豆浆dòujiāng里,偶然ǒurán做zuò出来chūlái的de。

所以suóyǐ,豆腐dòufu到底dàodǐ是shì谁shéi发明fāmíng的de,现在xiànzài谁shéi也yě说不清楚shuōbuqīngchu。刘安liú’ān的de故事gùshi,也许yéxǔ只是zhǐshì一个yígè好听hǎotīng的de传说chuánshuō。不过búguò,如果rúguǒ这zhè个gè传说chuánshuō是shì真的zhēnde,那nà就jiù有意思yǒuyìsi了le:刘安liú’ān想xiǎng让ràng自己zìjǐ永远yóngyuǎn活下去huóxiàqù,没有méiyǒu成功chénggōng;可是kěshì他tā“不bù小心xiǎoxīn”做zuò出来chūlái的de豆腐dòufu,两千liǎngqiān年nián后hòu还hái天天tiāntiān出现chūxiàn在zài我们wǒmen的de饭桌fànzhuō上shàng。

Key words

WordPinyinMeaning
座zuòconstellation; zodiac sign (as in 巨蟹座)
研究yánjiūresearch; to study; to research
结果jiéguǒas a result; in the end; result; outcome
香xiāngfragrant; sweet-smelling
首shǒufirst (as in 首次)
开玩笑kāiwánxiàoto joke; to kid
留下liúxiàto leave behind
叫作jiàozuòto be called; to be known as
幅fúwidth (of cloth); size (as in 幅度)
也许yéxǔperhaps; maybe; probably
永远yóngyuǎnforever; always; eternally
成功chénggōngsuccess; to succeed; successful

English (for the teacher)

Picture it: more than two thousand years ago, smoke hangs over a mountain, and a prince and a crowd of helpers are bustling around a furnace. They aren't cooking dinner; they're making a medicine: one that lets you live forever.

The prince was Liu An, Prince of Huainan in the Han dynasty. Legend says he was fascinated by the idea of living forever and invited many people to make elixirs for him on Bagong Mountain in Huainan. One day a pot of hot soy milk accidentally met some brine (some say gypsum), and slowly it turned into lots of soft, white little pieces. Everyone tasted it: fragrant and delicious. That was tofu.

The medicine for eternal life never came out right, but tofu stayed. The story was passed down in China for a long time. In the Ming dynasty, Li Shizhen wrote in his Compendium of Materia Medica that the way of making tofu began with Liu An of the Han. Centuries before him, Zhu Xi of the Song dynasty joked in a poem that if he had known the Prince of Huainan's trick, he could have sat at home and made money.

But did Liu An really invent tofu? The trouble is, the books left from the Han dynasty hardly ever mention the word “tofu”. The earliest record we can find today is in a book from more than a thousand years ago, the Qing Yi Lu. It tells of an official who was so honest he couldn't afford meat and bought only a few pieces of tofu each day. The locals joked about it and called tofu “little mutton”, as if tofu were his mutton.

In 1960, people found a picture carved in stone in a Han dynasty tomb in Henan. Some experts think the people in the picture are making tofu; others feel that even if tofu existed then, it was very different from tofu today. Still others think tofu may have been made by accident, when someone dropped sea salt into soy milk.

So who really invented tofu, nobody can say for sure today. The Liu An story may be nothing more than a good legend. But if it were true, it would be a nice twist: Liu An wanted to live forever and failed, yet the tofu he made “by accident” is still on our dinner tables every day, two thousand years later.