（《植物學(xué)雜志和開花植物名錄》中刊載的辣椒，1838 年，約瑟夫·帕克斯頓爵士）

Curry Before Columbus

（題）哥倫布之前的咖喱
（作者）美國作家尼尚特·巴沙，印度移民后代

I have a confession to make: I can’t eat spicy food.

我有件事情要坦白：我吃不了辛辣的食物。

As a person of South Asian descent, it’s incongruous, I know. I’m left adrift with the certain type of person who orders food Indian spicy. While my dining companions make an effort to signal their identity as capsaicin-consuming, I wonder if I should order my food white-guy mild. It’s not like I don’t enjoy the stinging heat or the bleary-eyed trip of something made extra hot—it’s just that I can’t digest it.

我知道，作為一個(gè)南亞裔，這樣會(huì)顯得格格不入。我和那種會(huì)點(diǎn)印度辣味菜肴的人在一起時(shí)，會(huì)感到茫然無措。雖然和我一起用餐的伙伴已經(jīng)很努力地在表明自己嗜辣星人的身份了，我還是會(huì)猶疑該不該點(diǎn)供應(yīng)給白人的不辣版食物。我也不是不喜歡針刺般的辣感，或是重辣菜肴導(dǎo)致的視線模糊，我只是無法消化這類東西。

I blame dysentery. A bout of it when I was three left two lasting effects on my life: it introduced me to my oldest friendship through a circuitous game of chance (a story for another time), and it rendered my digestive system subject to pains that feel like someone is reaching into me to wring out my guts like wet laundry.

我會(huì)把它歸咎于痢疾。我三歲時(shí)的一次發(fā)病對(duì)我的生活產(chǎn)生了兩個(gè)持久的影響：它通過一個(gè)賭運(yùn)氣的迂回游戲讓我收獲了一段持續(xù)時(shí)間最長的友誼（這是另一個(gè)故事了），它還讓我的消化系統(tǒng)在痛苦中煎熬，那種痛感覺就像是一個(gè)人把手伸進(jìn)了我體內(nèi)，像絞干濕衣服那樣絞干我的內(nèi)臟。

I’m often told by well-meaning people how much they love Indian food, and then asked if I cook it at home. I never know quite how to respond. But their question isn’t an interrogation of the narrowness of national cuisines. Their question isn’t a question at all—it’s a chance to share. The woman who loves her corner Indian restaurant. The man who just took an Indian-cooking class through adult education. The reasons are usually the same: they love the heat, the fieriness, the spice.

有些人經(jīng)常會(huì)出于善意告訴我他們有多喜歡印度菜，然后就會(huì)問我是否會(huì)在家做飯。我向來都不知道該如何回答。但他們的問題不在于詰難民族美食的狹隘。他們的問題根本就不成其為問題，這是一個(gè)分享的機(jī)會(huì)。那個(gè)喜歡街角印度餐廳的女人。那個(gè)剛剛通過成人教育去上印度菜烹飪課的男人。個(gè)中原因通常都是一樣的：他們喜歡的就是這種辣、這種猛火屬性以及那些香料。

All the things I’m doomed to avoid.

全都是我必須避開的東西。
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This all had me wondering: what’s Indian food without the heat? The historian in me has an answer: spiciness is historically contingent. In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue and the entire world changed: slavery, war, disease, colonization, and an immense transfer of wealth to Europe. And with that wealth too came New World nightshades—potatoes, tomatoes, tobacco, peppers of all kinds. It took some time for these fruits and vegetables to plant themselves into European cuisine. The tomato, for example, wasn’t widely used in Italian cuisine until the eighteenth century.1 But what about food further out from Europe? What about India?

這一切讓我心生疑惑：不辣的印度食物是什么呢？我的歷史學(xué)家分身給出了一個(gè)答案：在歷史上，辣不辣是依情況而定的。1492 年，哥倫布漂過藍(lán)色的大海，整個(gè)世界為之大變：奴隸制、戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)、疾病、殖民化以及巨量的財(cái)富向歐洲轉(zhuǎn)移。伴隨著這些財(cái)富而來的還有來自新世界的茄屬植物：土豆、西紅柿、煙草、各種各樣的辣椒。這些水果和蔬菜需要一段時(shí)間才能融入歐洲菜系。比如說，西紅柿一直到十八世紀(jì)才被廣泛用于意大利菜。但是遠(yuǎn)離歐洲的食物呢？印度的情況又如何呢？
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Soon after Columbus’ first expedition, the treaties of Tordesillas and Saragossa divided the oceans of the newly-known world. The Portuguese effectively took the Atlantic and Indian oceans, while the Spanish took the Pacific. With that, the Portuguese established forts and trading posts along India’s Malabar coast. In time, aloo (potato), tamātar (tomato), and mirchī (chilies) were available on the western coast of the Indian subcontinent. Later, the English set up their first trading posts in India in the eastern Gangetic plain, bringing these same staples into North India.2

在哥倫布第一次遠(yuǎn)征后不久，《托德西利亞斯條約》和《薩拉戈薩條約》將新世界的海洋作了分割。葡萄牙人實(shí)質(zhì)上占領(lǐng)了大西洋和印度洋，而西班牙人則占領(lǐng)了太平洋。于是葡萄牙人就沿著印度馬拉巴爾海岸建立了堡壘和貿(mào)易站。隨著時(shí)間推移，在印度次大陸的西海岸也能找到aloo（土豆）、tamātar（西紅柿）和 mirchī（辣椒）了。后來，英國人在恒河平原東部建立了他們?cè)谟《鹊牡谝慌Q(mào)易站，將這幾種食物引入了北印度。

So what was curry like before Columbus? Well, curry didn’t exist.

那么在哥倫布之前，咖喱是什么樣子的呢？好吧，那時(shí)咖喱還不存在。

In these cases, I find it useful to consult my Hobson-Jobson, the nineteenth-century dictionary of Anglo-Indian loan words. According to that source, curry comes from the Portuguese word karil (caril) via the Tamil word kari (sauce, relish for rice). In the sixteenth century, this was transliterated into English as caril, but by the 1680s entered English as carrees, perhaps from caris, an Anglicized plural form of the Portuguese.3 It’s a circle: I’m back to Tordesillas and Saragossa.

在這些案例中，我發(fā)現(xiàn)查閱我的《霍布森-喬布森：十九世紀(jì)英印外來語詞典》很有用。根據(jù)該信息來源，curry（咖喱）源自葡萄牙語單詞karil (caril)，經(jīng)由泰米爾語單詞kari（醬汁，搭配米飯吃的小菜）變化而來。十六世紀(jì)時(shí)，這個(gè)詞被音譯成了英語詞caril，但到了十七世紀(jì)八十年代，是以carrees的形式進(jìn)入英語詞庫的，這個(gè)詞可能源自caris，是這個(gè)葡萄牙詞的英語化復(fù)數(shù)形式。這樣一圈就又轉(zhuǎn)回來了：我又回到了《托德西利亞斯條約》和《薩拉戈薩條約》。
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It looks like the curry too came after Columbus. And not only that: it’s a meaningless word in the context of daily life. Indian food is cipher, built upon a matrix of regionalism, religion, and caste. A Dalit from Mararashtra’s Marathwada region might mix bovine blood with yesur (a local spice mix) to make lakuti, while a Tamil Brahmin might mix eight spices with tur dāl and onions to make a sambar.4 Beyond the hyper-regionalism is a blunt truth as well: there are actual words for the plethora of regional dishes that can be reduced to a curry.

看起來咖喱也是在哥倫布之后出現(xiàn)的。而且不僅如此：它在日常生活語境中是一個(gè)毫無意義的詞。印度菜是密碼，是在地域性、宗教和種姓的母體之中創(chuàng)生的。來自馬哈拉施特拉邦馬拉特瓦達(dá)地區(qū)的達(dá)利特人（即賤民）可能會(huì)將牛血與yesur（一種當(dāng)?shù)禺a(chǎn)的香料混合物）混合制成lakuti咖喱，而泰米爾人中的婆羅門可能會(huì)將八種香料與木豆還有洋蔥混合制成桑巴湯（即南印度酸豆湯）。除去超級(jí)地域主義，還有一個(gè)直截了當(dāng)?shù)氖聦?shí)：那些數(shù)量過于多的地方菜都有真實(shí)存在的詞可以指稱它們，而這些詞可以被簡稱為咖喱。



（譯注：圖為桑巴湯；lakuti咖喱為達(dá)利特人菜肴，往往以動(dòng)物血為基礎(chǔ)）

Still, curry can be a somewhat useful concept. It’s an outsider’s perspective, a shorthand glossing over an entire subcontinent’s worth of food. It’s the type of concept that takes what it wants from the original, and mixes in whatever else is ready-to-hand.

盡管如此，咖喱還算是個(gè)有點(diǎn)用的概念。這是局外人的觀點(diǎn)，是草草概括整個(gè)次大陸食物的一張速寫。這種類型的概念從原版的事物中汲取了它想要的部分，然后與其他任何方便獲取的東西混在了一起。

I went to the source: the first example of a curry recipe found in a Western cookbook. Hannah Glasse’s 1747 bestseller, The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy, featured a recipe “To make a Currey the Indian way”.

我還作了溯源：也即在西方烹調(diào)書中發(fā)現(xiàn)的第一個(gè)咖喱食譜的例子。出版于1747年的漢娜·格拉斯暢銷書《簡單明了的烹飪藝術(shù)》，其中一個(gè)主打菜譜就是“以印度做法制作咖喱”。

Upon first glance, I can’t tell how this recipe differs from a fricasseed chicken. But it’s there: “an ounce of Turmerick [turmeric], a large spoonful of ginger and beaten pepper.” What makes this curry in an Indian way is not the chicken or the cream, but these three spices taken mixed together and served.

乍一看，我分不出這個(gè)食譜和白汁雞塊有什么不同。但它就是這么說的：“3一盎司姜黃粉，一大勺生姜和胡椒粉?！?在這道咖喱菜中體現(xiàn)印度路數(shù)的不是雞肉或奶油，而是將這三種香料混合在一起，并且吃下去。
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Before spicy came spice: the history of curry before Columbus is a history of spice. And so I wonder: what spices were used? In what quantities?

在辣味到來之前就有香料了：哥倫布之前的咖喱史就是一部香料史。所以我就想知道：用了哪些香料？用量又是多少？

The best spice to help answer these questions might be asafetida (also spelled asafoetida). Known in Hindi as hīng, it’s the dried resin taken from the root of the Ferula herb, and is used throughout Indian cuisine in nearly all Indian regions. When fried in oil, it adds a lovely umami flavor to any dish, one reminiscent of garlic or onions.

能幫助回答這些問題的最理想香料可能是 asafetida（即阿魏，也拼寫為 asafoetida）。它在印地語中稱為hīng，是取自阿魏屬植物根部的干燥樹脂，差不多印度所有地區(qū)的印度菜都會(huì)用到它。拿去油中煎炸時(shí)，它能為任何一道菜增添一種可愛的鮮味，會(huì)讓人聯(lián)想到大蒜或洋蔥。



(圖解：新鮮的阿魏樹脂)
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I’ve also known it as an extremely smelly spice.

我也已經(jīng)知道它是一種極為刺鼻的香料。



（“Ferula assa-foetida”，阿魏植株，威廉·伍德維爾《藥用植物學(xué)》第一卷，1790年）

I had never heard of it until I was an adult. Family lore says that my father hated the smell so much, he told my mother early in their marriage to keep it out of the spice cabinet forever. But it wasn’t just him—the smell has a noxious reputation across the world, going back centuries. The Portuguese physician and naturalist Garcia de Orta wrote in his sixteenth-century Colóquios that “the nastiest smell in the world for me is Assa-fetida [sic].” But he also wrote that “the thing most used throughout India, and in all parts of it, is that Assa-fetida.”6

我在成年之前從來沒有聽說過它。家族里的人傳說我父親痛恨這種氣味，他剛結(jié)婚就囑咐我母親永遠(yuǎn)不要把它放進(jìn)香料柜。但不僅僅是他，這種氣味在世界各地都惡名昭著，這種名聲可以追溯到幾個(gè)世紀(jì)以前。葡萄牙醫(yī)生兼博物學(xué)家加西亞·德·奧爾塔在他寫于十六世紀(jì)的《Colóquios（座談）》中說，“對(duì)我來說，世界上最難聞的氣味就是阿魏了[原文如此]。” 但他也寫道，“在整個(gè)印度的所有地區(qū)，最常用的東西就是阿魏了?！?/b>

This was as true in the twelfth century as it was in the sixteenth. One of the earliest South Asian texts that featured non-medicinal recipes was the Sanskrit Mānasollāsa. Written in 1129 CE by Someshvara III, king of the Western Chalukya Empire in the western Deccan and South India, the book is an encyclopedic treatise on all aspects of life in his kingdom. One of those most common ingredients found in its chapter on the enjoyment of food is asafetida.7

無論是十二世紀(jì)還是十六世紀(jì)，情況都是如此。梵文的《Mānasollāsa》（譯注：意為“悅心”）是以非藥用食譜為特色的南亞最古老文本之一。該書由位于德干高原西部和南印度的西查魯克亞帝國國王薩姆什瓦拉三世于公元 1129 年寫成，是一部談?wù)撈渫鯂罘椒矫婷娴陌倏迫珪街?。在書中談?wù)撓硎苊朗车恼鹿?jié)中，你會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)最高頻出現(xiàn)的成分之一就是阿魏。

Various other recipes, including those for dāl, meat dishes, and fish were also spiced with asafetida. My first inclination when I saw this was to question it: of course a king would spice his food. Spices were a luxury, and it goes without saying that a king could afford to command his kitchen to use whatever spices were available to him.

而其他各種食譜，包括各種豆類、肉菜和魚類的食譜，也加入了阿魏，以此增香。當(dāng)我看到這些時(shí)，生出的第一個(gè)念頭就是去質(zhì)疑它：國王當(dāng)然會(huì)在他的食物加入香料增味。當(dāng)時(shí)，香料是一種奢侈品，而不言而喻的是，國王可以命令他的廚房使用他能得到的任何香料，他也負(fù)擔(dān)得起。
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Asafetida too made an appearance in recipes dating from the Sultanate era. From 1206 to 1526, a succession of Islamic dynasties known as the Delhi Sultanate ruled northern India. Nasir ud-Din Shah, a ruler of the Malwa Sultanate (a breakaway state from one of the Delhi Sultanate dynasties) produced the Ni’matnama (“The Book of Delights”). The book contained some of the recipes loved by his father, the Sultan Ghiyath Shah. Interestingly enough, the book contains a handful of recipes considered rustic or common—food for the common folk.

阿魏也出現(xiàn)在了可追溯到德里蘇丹國時(shí)代的食譜中。從 1206 年到 1526 年，被稱為德里蘇丹國的一系列伊斯蘭王朝統(tǒng)治著印度北部。納賽爾·烏德丁·沙是摩臘婆蘇丹國（從其中一個(gè)德里蘇丹國王朝中分離出來的國家）的統(tǒng)治者，他編著了Ni'matnama（《歡樂之書》）。這本書包含了他父親蘇丹吉亞斯·沙鐘愛的一些食譜。有趣的是，這本書收入了幾個(gè)被認(rèn)為是鄉(xiāng)村/家常的食譜，也就是普通老百姓吃的食物。



（吉亞斯·沙在觀看綠色蔬菜的烹制過程，大英圖書館藏）

One recommends to:
take root vegetables and boil them well, then take them off and fry them in ghee flavoured with sesame and asafetida.
Add lime juice, salt and burned vegetable oil and mix it as explained above. Take some of it, flavor it and cook it.10

其中有一個(gè)的推薦做法是：
-將根菜類蔬菜煮沸，然后取出，并用經(jīng)芝麻和阿魏調(diào)過味的印度酥油煎炸。
-加入酸橙汁、鹽和燒過的植物油，并按照上述說明混合。取出一部分，調(diào)味，然后烹飪之。
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I’m not sure how burned vegetable oil would taste, but I’m sure the asafetida would make up for it. Maybe.

我不確定燒過的植物油是什么味道，但我敢肯定阿魏會(huì)為它添彩。也許吧。

Humble hīng too made an appearance in the royal accounts of the Mughals. The Mughal Emperor Akbar reigned from 1556 to 1605. His court historian, Abu’l-Fazl ‘Allami, dutifully chronicled his reign in Ain-i-Akbari (“Administration of Akbar”). The work remains a quintessential source for the workings of Akbar’s government. It also contains a repertoire of recipes.

低調(diào)的阿魏也出現(xiàn)在了莫臥兒帝國王室的記載中。莫臥兒皇帝阿克巴1556 年至1605 年在位。他的史官阿布·法茲爾·阿拉米盡職盡責(zé)地記錄了他在Ain-i-Akbari（“阿克巴一朝”）的統(tǒng)治。該作品一直都是阿克巴一朝事跡的信息來源。其中也包含了全套的食譜。

The history of curry before Columbus is truly a history of spice. There are, of course, more spices to find in the archives: turmeric, coriander, and cumin come to mind. These are spices that cross region and class, the staples thrown into the pot in meal after meal. But ubiquitous, smelly, resinous hīng gives a chance to take a peek into the flavors of Indian food prior to the Columbian exchange. Perhaps there should be a new way to order something, not Indian spicy, but Indian spiced, with plenty of asafetida. I’ll hold my nose and ask for a generous portion, just like all those food chroniclers over the past millennium.

哥倫布之前的咖喱史真的是一部香料史。當(dāng)然，在檔案中可以找到更多的香料：姜黃、香菜和孜然。這些是跨地域、跨階級(jí)的調(diào)味品，是吃飯時(shí)或飯后扔進(jìn)鍋里的重要產(chǎn)品。但是無處不在的刺鼻的樹脂味阿魏讓我們得以一窺哥倫步大交換之前印度菜的風(fēng)味。也許應(yīng)該出現(xiàn)一種新的點(diǎn)菜方式，不是印式辣味版，而是印式香料版，其中會(huì)加入很多阿魏。我會(huì)捂著鼻子點(diǎn)個(gè)一大份，就像過去的千年中所有那些食物編年史家一樣。
（譯注：哥倫布大交換即東半球與西半球之間生物、農(nóng)作物、人種、文化、傳染病、甚至思想觀念的突發(fā)性交流）



（圖解：塊狀/研磨成分的阿魏）