Newsletter No. 439

4 No. 439, 4.6.2014 An Anthropological Angle on Foodways 舌尖上的人類學 We Are What We Eat —– 1 825年，法國美食評論始祖 布里 亞-薩瓦蘭 發出豪言壯語：「告訴 我你平時吃甚麼，我就知道你是怎樣 一個人。」二百年後的今天，不少「炫 食族」都急不及待將自己一日三餐都 攝進鏡頭，上傳社交網站，將每趟口 腹之旅公諸於世。這個所謂「相機先 吃」的現象，在人類學家看來不足為 奇。專研飲食文化的中大人類學系系 主任 張展鴻 教授分析：「飲食肩負着 增進人與人之間感情的社交功能。有 了互聯網後，交流對象超出了同桌的 人，遠在加拿大的朋友也可透過上傳 的照片，分享你進食的喜悅。所以現 代人熱衷攝食、炫食是正常的，因為 可藉此強化溝通、擴大社交圈子。」 透過飲食研究人類與文化，似乎是賞 心樂事。張教授說，早期的人類學者 踏足新部落，言語不通，要明白原住 民的生活，最直接的切入點是觀察他們的飲食——吃甚 麼、誰負責烹煮、誰有權先吃。「飲食包含烹飪傳統、飲食 習慣和口味趨勢，都是現代人類學關心的問題。」 香港以「美食天堂」見稱，要了解香港的飲食文化，張教 授認為必須全面考慮生態、地理和社會政治三個層次。香 港位處珠三角下游，是候鳥飛行航道中途站，候鳥飛往東 亞地區路經此地，被馴化成今天的家禽，因此燒鴨燒鵝成 為家常菜。傳統廣東菜有淡水魚、野味和蛇，也證明華南 的生態條件決定飲食習慣。其次，華人遍布亞洲的商業網 絡促使了香港飲食的多元豐足。十九世紀中葉，泰國華商 創立南北行，把東南亞各式乾貨、參茸海味進口到香港， 這個傳統商業模式在今天的上環依然可見。成就美食天 堂的第三個因素是移民潮，大江南北的移民攜家帶眷一路 向南，連同自家菜式和私房食譜在香港落地生根，新式餐 館隨之而起，例如上海移民不僅為香港帶來濃油赤醬，更 傳來了西洋和俄國菜式。 小龍蝦及其在中國的社會經濟影響也是張教授獨有的研 究視角。小龍蝦學名克氏原螯蝦，起源於美國路易斯安那 州，後由日本人於1930年前後引入中國江蘇。這種淡水螯 蝦生命力強得足以在骯髒的排水溝傳宗接代，因此初時被 認為不宜食用。直至上世紀九十年代，螯蝦被刻意包裝成 「南京小龍蝦」，跟龍蝦這種高級食材掛上鈎，成功轉型 為大街小巷的美食佳餚。 I n 1825, the French epicure and gastronome Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin famously stated, ‘Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are.’ Today, people simply cannot wait to reveal themselves to the world by photographing every meal and posting each appetizing experience online. The so-called ‘first camera, then fork’ phenomenon does not surprise anthropologists. ‘Eating always carries social functions such as enhancing human relationships. By means of the Internet, the communication extends far beyond the dining table. Now your friends in Canada can get vicarious pleasure from watching you eat,’ said Prof. Sidney Cheung , chairperson of the Department of Anthropology. Professor Cheung specializes in ‘foodways’—the cultural, social and economic practices relating to the production and consumption of food. ‘It makes sense that people would want to capture and show off what they eat as a way to strengthen and expand social networks,’ he remarked. Studying people and culture through food sounds like a delicious endeavour. Professor Cheung said when early anthropological researchers set foot on a new place whose language they did not understand, one of the most direct approaches to understanding the indigenous people was to observe their eating and drinking habits—what they ate, who took the role of cooking, and who had the privilege to take the first bite. ‘Food, as it involves culinary traditions, dietary rules and trends in consumption, clearly fits into contemporary anthropological concerns,’ he said. When one thinks about what makes Hong Kong different from other cities in the world, the old reputation, ‘Gourmets’ Paradise’ may come to mind. To understand foodways in Hong Kong society, Professor Cheung said we must take the city’s ecology, geography and socio- political developments into account. Hong Kong is located in the lower basin of the Pearl River Delta, a stopover point along the bird migration route. Migrating birds pass through here on their way south and were eventually domesticated. Hence, roast goose and duck are common local dishes. The eating of freshwater fish, game meat and snake by the Cantonese is another example of how the ecology of Southern China determines its culinary traditions. Second, the varieties in Hong Kong foodways are attributed to the Asia-wide network of the Chinese population. Since the mid-19th century, through the network of the Chinese diaspora in Thailand, Nam Pak Hong (meaning companies for southern and northern goods) was established to facilitate the importation of dried food products into Hong Kong. This traditional business practice is still visible in Sheung Wan today. A third and very significant factor that determines the diversity of Hong Kong foodways is immigration. Immigrants from different parts of China brought with them both new cooking styles and restaurants. For example, the arrival of Shanghainese migrants brought not only Shanghainese culinary and dietary habits, but also western and Russian cuisines. Crayfish and its socio-economic implications in China is another of Professor Cheung’s research interests. Red swamp crayfish ( Procambarus clarkii ), which originated in Louisiana of the US, was brought to Jiangsu, China by the Japanese in the 1930s. As the hardy crayfish was able to grow even in drainage ditches, it was considered not edible until the early 1990s, when it was repackaged as ‘Nanjing little lobster’. Since then, it has been celebrated as a popular delicacy in China. Xuyi, a county not far from Nanjing, went with the tide and began to farm crayfish on a large scale. The farming of these aquatic creatures and the supporting industries have become the county’s major source of revenue. To advertise the county as ‘the crayfish city’, the government established a Xuyi Crayfish Museum and an outdoor stadium with a capacity of 50,000 for holding the annual International Crayfish Festival. The imported species not only changed the eating and cooking practices of their host country, but also brought fame and fortune to a developing area. When asked about what would the trends in food consumption be, Professor Cheung said the industriali- zation and globalization of food has resulted in the standardization of taste and this destroys flavours and varieties. The Slow Food Movement initiated in Italy is an alternative to fast food and a fast life. It is a throwback to the good old days, when people would grow their own food or buy locally cultivated food, prepare it with care and patience, and consume it at a speed that allowed for love and appreciation. 距離南京不遠的小縣城盱眙，乘 着熱潮順勢而上，開始大規模養 殖克氏原螯蝦，令這種不足五吋 的水產品及其衍生產業成為全 縣的主要收入來源。為打造盱眙 為「龍蝦之都」，縣政府更大興 土木建造盱眙龍蝦博物館，以 及一座可容納五萬人的戶外場 館，用於舉辦一年一度的國際 龍蝦節。外來物種不但為新環 境帶來新飲食文化，更提攜一 個三線城市名利雙收。 談及未來的飲食趨勢，張教授表 示，食物生產的工業化和全球化 令大眾口味趨向標準一致，破壞 飲食多樣性和地區特色風味。源 自意大利的「慢嚐運動」，正是 以「慢」抵抗快餐文化和快板生 活，估計愈來愈多人會選擇反璞 歸真的生活方式，注重食物要本地栽種、本地購買、用心 慢製，令每一口都值得細味品嚐。