中国日报外籍专家的“抗疫”故事 III

As the novelcoronavirus epidemic has swept across China, deeply affecting the lives of allof us who live here, it has also spurred many of us to rediscover the pleasuresof cooking as a delicious way to pass time and become a little moreself-sufficient.

因为疫情大家都无法出门，反而使很多人重新发现了烹饪的乐趣，既能打发时间，又能自给自足。

Just before theepidemic exploded, with news of human-to-human transmission, I had justreceived my latest kitchen gadget — an electric pressure cooker.

疫情爆发前，我正好新添置了一个电动高压锅。

This purchase wasintended to satisfy my yearning for a faster and more convenient way to cooksoybeans, which normally required several hours of care on the stovetop aftersoaking overnight.

我买它是为了更有效率地处理黄豆，不然就要在灶台盯上几个小时。

I had visions ofturning the two large bags of organic soybeans I had bought from thesupermarket into a variety of soups and stews I craved during the winter.

我之前买了两袋黄豆，想在冬天熬汤和炖豆子。

The pressurecooker indeed helped me make a bean stew spiced with an aromatic Indian masalafor Chines New Year's Eve dinner. But during the extended holiday, whenauthorities warned people to stay in as much as possible and we had run out oftofu, we used that pressure cooker almost daily to make a batch of soybeansthat could serve as a high-protein substitute, with delectable results.

今年的年夜饭，我就用高压锅做了印度炖豆子。不过随后因为疫情不能出门，家里就没有豆腐了，我们就用高压锅做了一堆豆子补充蛋白质。

For example, weused to always use tofu when we made our spicy Korean-style fried rice. But thesoybeans actually tasted just as good, if not better, in the dish, and filledus up even more.

之前做韩式炒饭的时候需要豆腐，不过现在用黄豆代替豆腐也很好吃，我们的饱腹感更强了。

A couple of times,we also used the pressure cooked soybeans to create a version of one of myfavorite dishes from childhood — baked beans, made with onions, ketchup, brown sugar,soy sauce, a little vinegar and a dash of garlic powder.

我们也用高压锅做了很多次我最爱吃的烤豆子，配料有洋葱、番茄酱、红糖、酱油、醋和大蒜粉。

Even my husbandthought the dish rivaled some of the best canned versions we had enjoyed on ourmany camping trips in the US.

连我老公都觉得这味道可以媲美在美国露营时吃的最好的烤豆子罐头。

I had always usedmy bread machine at least once a week, but relied on it even more in the firstfew weeks of that epidemic. My two favorite breads — a multigrain made withwhole wheat flour, oatmeal, sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds, and a whole wheatwith raisins and walnuts — paired perfectly with a makeshift pesto made fromsome leftover cilantro, walnuts, garlic and olive oil I had thrown into thefood processor.

我一周要用一次面包机，不过疫情爆发的那几周我用得更多了。

Once we opted fora new take on that American classic of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches,slathering warm bread still hot from the machine with pure sesame butter andblueberry preserves.

有一次我们没吃花生酱三明治，而是给面包抹上了芝麻酱和蓝莓。

Things that hadlong sat in the back of our shelves suddenly turned into precious finds thatcould yield wonderful dinner options. Sheets of nori seaweed I had purchasedmonths ago were torn into bite-sized pieces to add extra nutrition to a dinnerof fried rice. The fusilli Italian noodles in the cupboard were boiled and thentossed in an aglio e olio sauce, that classic pairing of garlic and olive oil.

橱柜里长期闲置的物品突然成了宝贝。我几个月前买的海苔可以搭配炒饭吃；意式螺旋面配上橄榄油香蒜酱料也不错。

Because of ourcreative efforts in the kitchen, making full use of the resources we had athand, we were able to go through 12 days without doing any grocery shopping — arecord in our home.

由于我们充分利用了现有材料，居然创纪录地做到了12天都没有采购。

The kitchen hasalways felt like a place of refuge for me, where I can engage in thetherapeutic and nourishing joys of preparing food, and it has taken on evenmore importance during this outbreak. Eating well can have a hugely positiveimpact on our health and psychological well-being, both critical amid thisepidemic. And using what we already have on hand as much as possible helpsreduce the pressure on supplies.

我一直觉得厨房是一方圣土，让我享受烹饪的乐趣，这一点在目前的阶段尤其重要。吃得好可以增强体质，也能让精神愉悦。充分利用现有材料也能减少供货压力。

We will win thiswar eventually, powered by one good, creative meal after another.

在每一顿有创意的饭菜之后，我们最终会赢得战斗的胜利。