台湾夜市的琳琅美食迈向国际化

Taiwan has long been known for its night markets.

台湾夜市闻名已久。

According to the island's tourism bureau, night markets attract more than 70% of foreign visitors. The popularity of these nightly bazaars even prompted the bureau to come up with an app in which players can be virtual street hawkers in the markets.

据台湾观光局透露，夜市吸引了70%以上的外国游客。由于这些夜间市集的人气高涨，台湾观光局还推出了一个应用，让用户可以成为这些市场的虚拟小贩。

But as Taiwan becomes more globalized, so too has the selection at the night markets.

但随着台湾的进一步全球化，夜市提供的选择也更具国际特色。

Visitors to Taipei's famed Raohe Night Market can still get their fill of Taiwanese standbys like stinky tofu, pork intestine soup and pig's blood rice cakes smothered with peanut powder. But those in the mood for something a little different can now also find Italian pizza cones, French crepes and Thai banana roti.

在台北有名的饶河街夜市，游客仍然可以吃到臭豆腐、猪肠汤、铺着花生碎的猪血糕等台湾美食。但如果想吃点不同的风味，现在游客还可以找到意大利手握披萨、法式可丽饼和泰式香蕉煎饼。

For Kao Tzu-fang, the best way to enjoy India without leaving Taiwan is a visit to her neighborhood night market.

对于Kao Tzu-fang来说，能够一尝印度美食又不用离开台湾的最好办法就是逛一逛她家附近的夜市。

'I love the Indian milk tea here. I don't need a visa or a plane ticket, ' she said, while fixing her eyes on the Taiwanese man showing off his 'pull tea' skill--a common Southeast Asian trick involving pouring a mixture of sweet, condensed milk and black tea back and forth repeatedly between two pitchers from a distance.

她说，她喜欢这里的印度奶茶；她都不需要办理签证，也不用买飞机票。她目不转睛地看着眼前这个台湾本地人表演他的“拉茶”技术。拉茶是一种在东南亚很普遍的做茶技术，即将糖、炼乳和红茶的混合物在两个距离较远的容器内不断地倒来倒去。

Although Ms. Kao, a Taipei resident, has never been to India and admitted she doesn't know what real Indian masala tea tastes like, she is happy with the Taiwanese version. She said she and many of her friends rely on the night markets when craving something exotic and different.

作为一个台北本地人，Kao从没去过印度，也承认自己并不知道真正的印度玛莎拉茶到底什么味道，不过她对台湾夜市版的拉茶很满意。她说，自己和许多朋友想要尝试异国风味时都会去夜市。

Wearing a sweat-soaked black tank top with a towel around his neck, Tu Ming-hsiu stands in front of a smoldering hot grill each night at the Shilin Night Market, hoping the cumin-infused aroma from his Chinese Xinjiang meat skewers will appeal to passersby, especially those from the mainland, where it's a popular street snack.

Tu Ming-hsiu穿着被汗水湿透的黑色背心，脖子上搭着一条毛巾，站在自己位于士林夜市内的烤肉摊前，每天晚上如此。他希望自己新疆烤肉摊的孜然香味能够吸引到来来往往的食客，尤其是来自于中国大陆的游客。新疆烤肉是大陆流行的街边小吃。

'Taiwan receives lots of Chinese tourists and many of them probably would like to have a taste of home,' the Taiwan native said, noting his business is doing 'better than ever.'

这个台湾本地人说，来台湾旅游的大陆游客很多，他们中很多人可能很想在台湾尝一尝大陆的食物。他还称，自己的生意从来没有像现在这么好。

Some foreign vendors are also seeking to feast upon Taiwan's craze for exotic food. Halit Toprak, has been selling Turkish ice cream, or dondurma, in various night markets for the five years. He said selling a beloved dessert from his home country is his way of sharing his culture with Taiwanese people.

一些外国商贩也瞄准了台湾人对于外来美食的痴迷，准备大赚一笔。托普拉克(Halit Toprak)在各色夜市贩卖土耳其冰淇淋(dondurma)已有五年之久，他说，他通过兜售祖国受欢迎的甜品来跟台湾人民分享土耳其文化。

'I want my Taiwanese customers to experience the original taste, so I even get my salep [a type of flour] from Turkey,' he said, but he admits he has to dial down the levels of sugar to cater to Taiwanese taste buds.

托普拉克称，他希望台湾客人们品尝到原汁原味，所以他连做甜品用的兰茎粉（一种面粉）都从土耳其运来。不过他也承认，为了迎合台湾人的味蕾，他少放了糖。

While the globalization of street snacks is giving night market shoppers more options, not everyone embraces the foreign influence. Some fear the influx of cheesy fries, Japanese moichi and Indian chapati is spoiling the essence of something so quintessential Taiwan.

虽然街头小吃的国际化给了夜市游客提供了更多选择，但并非每个人都欢迎这种外来影响。一些人担心，奶酪薯条、日本麻 、印度面饼等小吃破坏了台湾风味的精髓。

'When I was in America, I missed Taiwan's night market food so much. But now there is all this Western food here, and it isn't even good or authentic,' said Michael Shih, a 28-year-old manager at a startup. 'People who want burgers should just go to McDonald's or a food court, but leave my night market alone.'

现年28岁的某初创公司经理Michael Shih称，他在美国的时候特别想念台湾夜市的小吃，但现在的夜市充斥着西方食品，既不好吃，也不正宗。他表示，想吃汉堡的人应该去麦当劳(McDonald's)或美食街，而不要来夜市。

Mr. Shih said one of his favorite memories growing up in Taipei was grabbing a plate of stinky tofu with a heap of pickled cabbage after an intense basketball game.

Shih说，他是在台北长大的，记忆中最美妙的事情之一就是在打完一场激烈的篮球赛后，就着腌白菜吃一盘臭豆腐。

'It was dirty, cheap, and messy, but that's what made it so good and so Taiwan,' he recalled.

他回忆道：（这样的吃法）确实不卫生、廉价而又杂乱，但那种感觉特别棒，才是原汁原味的台湾风味。

Second-generation street vendor Huang Ying-tong said the invasion of foreign food in Shilin Night Market, where his family has been selling an array of barbecued grub for 30 years, doesn't bother him at all. In fact, he said he feels it's something Taiwan should be proud of.

第二代街头小贩Huang Ying-tong称，他家在台北士林夜市上经营烧烤大排档已经有30年了，外来小吃的入侵对他而言一点都不构成困扰。他表示，事实上台湾应该为此而骄傲。

'Taiwan is small island but it is a giant melting pot,' Mr. Huang said. 'The constant changing selections of night market food proves just that.'

他说，台湾只是个小小岛屿，但同时又是个巨大的熔炉。他认为，夜市小吃不断推陈出新，恰恰佐证了这一点。