Ask about the foods that have conquered the world and you're likely to hear about Coca-Cola and McDonald's Big Macs. But think again, because the most successful industrial food ever produced flies far under the radar— it's cup noodles.
当被问及哪种食品征服了世界时，你很可能会听人说出可口可乐和麦当劳巨无霸这样的答案。但仔细想想，要说目前为止影响最广泛的、也最低调的食品非碗装方便面莫属。
A new book, The Noodle Narratives, written by three US anthropologists 55 years after the birth of instant noodles in Japan, reveals that there were more than 100 billion servings of instant noodles worldwide in 2012— that's about 14 servings for every single person on Earth. As for noodles themselves, they emerged more than 2,000 years ago to become a worldwide staple.
在方便面于日本诞生 55年之后，美国的 3位人类学家撰写了一本名为《面条的故事》的书。书中指出， 2012年全球方便面销量突破千亿大关，相当于，全球人均消费 14包左右。面条起源于两千多年前，如今已成为全球人的主食。
Given the fact that many instant noodles are MSG-enhanced junk food, not to mention the health risks associated with the paper cartons they're served in, let's talk about these strands of dough in terms of a culture you may not know.
鉴于许多方便面都是含有大量味精的垃圾食品，更不用说其包装纸的健康隐患问题了，下面我们就来谈谈一些你可能有所不知的面条文化吧！
Earliest noodles
面条始祖
The oldest historical mention of noodles according to Jen Lin-Liu, a columnist for The New York Times and author of the book On the Noodle Road: From Beijing to Rome, with Love and Pasta, appears in a dictionary from the third century AD in China. The earliest Chinese noodles, however, did not appear in strands as they do today. They were little pieces of bread dough thrown into a wok of boiling water. These kind of noodles, called mianpian, are still eaten in China.
《纽约时报》专栏作家、《面条之路：北京到罗马，爱与意面同在》一书的作者林留清怡表示，公元三世纪的中国，历史上第一次提到面条，出自一本字典。然而，最早的中式面条与如今的形状截然不同。那时的面条是扔进锅中用沸水煮的小面片。这种面条叫面片，目前在中国人们还在食用。
Another early mention of noodles has been traced back to the fifth century AD in Jerusalem, when they were referred to as itrium. Several centuries later, a string-like pasta called itrium, made of semolina and dried before cooking, was described by Syrian physicians.
另一个早期提到面条的地方可以追溯回公元五世纪的耶路撒冷，当时这种面被称作“ itrium”。几个世纪以后，一位叙利亚医师描述道：一种由粗面粉做的串状面食也被称作 itrium，这种面条在烹调之前需要晒干。
Of course, these documented mentions of noodles only came after noodles had already been developed— and unlike other inventions, like the telephone for example, it's rather difficult to pinpoint exactly when and where noodles came from, given that they relied on the innovation of cooks.
当然，这些提到面条的文献要滞后于面条真正诞生的时间。与电话等发明不同，由于面条的发展依赖于厨艺创新，所以很难准确指出面条发明在何时何地。
Humanitarian food
人道主义食品
Invented by Momofuku Ando in Japan in 1958, few people know that instant noodles play an important role in hunger and disaster relief. While not exactly nutritious, instant noodles are a" hunger killer", as US anthropologist Sidney Mintz would say.
方便面诞生于 1958年，由日本人安腾百福发明，很少有人知道它在赈饥与救灾方面发挥着多么重要的作用。正如美国人类学家悉尼·明茨所说的那样，方便面虽然没什么营养，却能“遏制饥饿”。
According to the NPR, a US-based online news outlet, the fat in instant noodles, which are made with wheat flour fried in palm oil, combined with the soup, keeps one feeling full for longer. And that helps explain why ramen, as they are called in Japanese, have become a staple in the world's humanitarian food aid packages.
美国网络新闻媒体——美国国家公共电台 NPR报道称，方便面由面粉经棕榈油炸制而成，它的油脂再加上汤，容易让人有持久的饱腹感。这就不难理解，为何拉面（日本人称其为“ ramen”）能够成为世界人道主义食品援助中的主食了。
