There is a certain amount of nationalism associated with the traditional food of every culture. People overlook the journey taken by their favorite food before it gets to their tables.
每个文化的传统饮食都带有某些民族特征。但人们对最自己喜爱的食物在端上餐桌前的经历往往知之甚少。
Lois Ellen Frank and Walter Whitewater, chefs at a Native American catering and food company called Red Mesa Cuisine in Santa Fe, New Mexico, consider it their mission to educate people about the sometimes surprising origins of ingredients.
洛伊丝•埃伦•弗兰克(Lois Ellen Frank)与沃尔特•怀特沃特(Walter Whitewater)是新墨西哥州圣菲市(Santa Fe)一家名叫“红色梅萨美食”(Red Mesa Cuisine)的美国原住民餐饮及食品公司厨师。他们把让众人了解有时堪称惊奇的食材来源视为己任。
“Foods have traveled the world and changed all of us, and I think we can celebrate where they came from and share in the commonality that we all have in our respective ethnicities and places, ” Frank said.
弗兰克说，“食材走遍世界并改变了我们所有人，我认为我们应当弘扬它们源自何处，并分享我们所有人在各自民族及地区中具有的共性。”
Frank, of the Kiowa tribe from Anadarko, Oklahoma, and Whitewater, of the Diné (Navajo) tribe in Pinon, Arizona, left their business for 10 days earlier in 2013 to travel to Ukraine. The chefs met with eager audiences to discuss ingredients, especially those indigenous to America and popular in European cuisine.
来自俄克拉荷马州阿纳达科(Anadarko)基奥瓦(Kiowa)部落的弗兰克和来自亚利桑那州皮尼翁(Pinon)戴恩(Diné)(又称纳瓦霍(Navajo))部落的怀特沃特在2013年初停业10天，前往乌克兰。两位厨师在那里与兴致勃勃的观众见面，讨论各种原料，特别是在欧洲烹调中广泛采用的美国本土原料。
Only some Italians know that the tomato didn’t originate in Italy, and only some Irish know the potato was grown in America before being planted in Ireland. “A lot of people are surprised about the [American] origins of some of their most common foods, ” said Richard Hetzler, executive chef at Mitsitam Native Foods Café at the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington. He believes that what people eat today around the world would be very different had it not been for the Native American contribution of ingredients such as corn, beans, squash, chili pepper, sunflower seeds and tomatoes to menus.
知道西红柿并非源自意大利的意大利人不多，了解土豆在被种植于爱尔兰以前生长在美洲的爱尔兰人也有限。据华盛顿国立美洲印第安人博物馆(National Museum of the American Indian)米奇塔姆印第安特色餐厅(Mitsitam Native Foods Café)总厨理查德•赫茨勒(Richard Hetzler)说：“许多人对一些他们最常见食物的(美洲)起源感到惊讶。”他认为，如果没有美洲原住民把诸如玉米、豆类、南瓜、红辣椒、葵花籽和西红柿等引入菜谱，今天全世界人的饮食内容会非常不同。
Likewise, the United States is a country built on diversity, and traditional American dishes have been inspired and shaped by contributions from elsewhere in the world.
同样，由于美国是一个多元国家，美式传统佳肴也受到世界其他地方美食的启发与影响。
Sharing Ingredients
交流食材
Hetzler regrets that Americans have moved further away from the days of community-based local growing, because a disconnect has developed between the food people eat and the place where it was grown. Typically, U.S. consumers go to their local supermarket and find even out-of-season produce readily available.
令赫茨勒感到遗憾的是，美国人已与基于社区的本地种植时代渐行渐远，人们所吃食物与食物的生长地已经没有关联。美国消费者通常去超市购买食品，即便非时令蔬果也随时可见。
Earlier, Hetzler said, “Native Americans formed a culture around food as life.” He wants people around the world to know the origins of their food and recognize the effect that these foods have had on their cultural identity.
赫茨勒说，当初，“美国原住民形成了以饮食为生活中心的文化”。他希望全世界人都了解自己食物的来源，并且意识到它们对其自身文化特征的影响。
The test kitchen and catering business that Whitewater and Frank run in New Mexico offers a “Culture and Cuisine” program in which patrons prepare and share a meal together using traditional Southwest techniques and ingredients, many of which are sourced from local Native American tribal nations. Frank gives a background lecture to the group to teach everyone about the ingredients’ importance to Native American history and culture. Frank said that when she leads these workshops, she tells students that understanding food facilitates understanding who they are.
怀特沃特与弗兰克在新墨西哥州经营的尝试厨房和餐饮业务包含一个“文化与烹饪”(Culture and Cuisine)项目。参与者可以运用西南地区的传统烹调方式和原料来烹制并分享一餐，其中很多食材购自当地原住民部落。弗兰克给参加项目的人举行背景知识讲座，让每个人了解他们使用的原料在美国原住民的历史与文化中的重要意义。弗兰克说，她在这些讲习班上告诉学生，了解食物有助于了解自身。
Food is culturally ingrained in everything that a society does, she believes. It is the “common element we all share regardless of language, religion, race, ethnicity, ” she said, but it also is a way in which we can define a unique identity.
她认为，从文化角度而言，饮食体现在社会的方方面面。她说，这是“不分语言、宗教、种族或民族的我们所有人共享的元素”，但它同时也是让我们能够界定自身独特性的一种方式。
Mesa Squash Fry with Sunflower Seeds
葵花籽炒梅萨南瓜
by Lois Ellen Frank
洛伊丝•埃伦•弗兰克
This colorful squash fry is sometimes called calabacitas. There are several different variations, but this one is my favorite.
这道色彩鲜艳的南瓜小炒有时候也被称为“calabacitas”。它有几种不同的做法，以下是我最喜爱的一种。
1 green New Mexico or Anaheim chile
1个绿新墨西哥或阿纳海姆(Anaheim)辣椒
30 milliliters sunflower oil
2 汤匙葵花籽油
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 瓣蒜，剁碎
A pinch (about 2 grams) salt
1/2 茶匙盐
A pinch (about 2 grams) black pepper
1/2 茶匙黑胡椒
4 carrots, cut into 2-inch-long julienne
4 根胡萝卜，切成约5厘米长细丝
4 small zucchini, cut into 2-inch-long julienne
4 根夏南瓜(又称：密生西葫芦)，切成约5厘米长细丝
4 yellow squash, cut into 2-inch-long julienne
4个黄色小南瓜，切成约5厘米长细丝
1 red bell pepper, diced
1个红柿子椒，切成小丁
60 grams shelled sunflower seeds (raw or toasted)
1/4量杯去壳葵花籽(生或炒熟皆可)
1. Roast the chile on an open flame. Then peel, seed and coarsely chop it.
1. 将辣椒用明火烘烤。然后剥皮，去籽，切碎。
2. In a sauté pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the garlic, chile, salt and black pepper. Cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly, to allow the flavors to blend.
2.用平底煎锅在中火上将油烧热。当油变热但尚不至冒烟时，加入蒜、辣椒、盐和黑胡椒。不断翻搅1-2分钟，使味道渗透。
3. Add the carrots, zucchini, squash and red pepper. Reduce the heat and allow vegetables to simmer about 10 minutes, until they are tender. Add the sunflower seeds and simmer another 5 minutes. Serve hot as a vegetable side dish.
3. 加入胡萝卜、夏南关、小南瓜以及红辣椒。关小火，将蔬菜慢煨大约10分钟，直到变软。加入葵花籽，再煨5分钟。然后作为蔬菜配菜趁热上桌。
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