HSK 4 · Lesson 15好吃是好吃，就是有点儿咸 Tasty, but a bit salty

Cooking and taste: at a restaurant and at home. 稍 / 稍微 “a little”, 够…的 “really quite”, …X是X，就是 / 不过… “it’s X all right, but…”, tastes and weights.

Speed:Male voice:

Dialogues

At the restaurant

A
服务员，这道菜辣不辣？
Fúwùyuán, zhè dào cài là bu là?
Waiter, is this dish spicy?
B
稍微有点儿辣，不过很香。
Shāowēi yǒudiǎnr là, búguò hěn xiāng.
A little spicy, but very fragrant.
A
我不太能吃辣的，能做得不那么辣吗？
Wǒ bú tài néng chī là de, néng zuò de bú nàme là ma?
I can’t really eat spicy food — could you make it less hot?
B
没问题。我们的厨师专门做中餐，您想吃什么样的，他都能做。
Méi wèntí. Wǒmen de chúshī zhuānmén zuò zhōngcān, nín xiǎng chī shénmeyàng de, tā dōu néng zuò.
No problem. Our chef specialises in Chinese food and can make it however you like.
A
再来一个西红柿鸡蛋汤，二两米饭。
Zài lái yí ge xīhóngshì jīdàn tāng, èr liǎng mǐfàn.
And a tomato and egg soup, and a hundred grams of rice.
B
好的，马上就来。
Hǎo de, mǎshàng jiù lái.
Right, coming up.

Cooking at home

A
你闻闻，香不香？
Nǐ wénwen, xiāng bu xiāng?
Smell this — doesn’t it smell good?
B
香是香，就是汤有点儿咸。你放了多少盐？
Xiāng shì xiāng, jiùshì tāng yǒudiǎnr xián. Nǐ fàngle duōshao yán?
It smells good all right, but the soup’s a bit salty. How much salt did you put in?
A
不多，十克左右。
Bù duō, shí kè zuǒyòu.
Not much, about ten grams.
B
这块肉还是生的，再烤一会儿吧。
Zhè kuài ròu hái shì shēng de, zài kǎo yíhuìr ba.
This meat is still raw — roast it a bit longer.
A
好，烤熟了我们就吃。
Hǎo, kǎoshú le wǒmen jiù chī.
OK, we’ll eat as soon as it’s done.
B
你做的菜真够好吃的！比快餐好多了。
Nǐ zuò de cài zhēn gòu hǎochī de! Bǐ kuàicān hǎo duō le.
Your cooking is really delicious! Much better than fast food.

New words

📝 Worksheet for this lesson

Grammar

1. 稍 / 稍微 “a little, slightly”

稍微 + adj. / verb + 一点儿 / 一下 / 有点儿

稍微 “slightly” almost always comes with 一点儿, 一下 or 有点儿: 稍微有点儿辣 “a little spicy”, 请稍微等一下 “please wait a moment”, 稍微便宜一点儿 “a little cheaper”. 稍 is the short formal form: 请稍等 “one moment, please”.

请稍微等一下。
Qǐng shāowēi děng yíxià.
Please wait a moment.
能稍微便宜一点儿吗？
Néng shāowēi piányi yìdiǎnr ma?
Could it be a little cheaper?

2. 够…的 “really quite”

够 + adj. + 的

In speech 够 + adjective + 的 means “really, quite” (often admiring or complaining): 这个菜够辣的 “this dish is really hot”, 你做的菜真够好吃的. 够 on its own is “enough”: 钱够了 “there’s enough money”, 菜够不够？

今天够冷的！
Jīntiān gòu lěng de!
It’s really cold today!
菜够了，别再点了。
Cài gòu le, bié zài diǎn le.
That’s enough food — don’t order any more.

3. …X是X，就是 / 不过… “it’s X all right, but…”

X 是 X，就是 / 不过 + reservation

We agree with the first point but add a “but”: 好吃是好吃，就是太贵了 “it’s tasty all right, but too expensive”, 香是香，就是有点儿咸 “it smells good, but it’s a bit salty”. The same word is repeated.

好吃是好吃，就是太贵了。
Hǎochī shì hǎochī, jiùshì tài guì le.
It’s tasty all right, but too expensive.
这件衣服漂亮是漂亮，不过有点儿大。
Zhè jiàn yīfu piàoliang shì piàoliang, búguò yǒudiǎnr dà.
These clothes are pretty, but a bit big.

4. Tastes and weights

The five tastes: 酸 “sour”, 甜 “sweet”, 苦 “bitter”, 辣 “spicy”, 咸 “salty”. 香 is “fragrant, smells good”, 鲜 “fresh; savoury, umami”. 生 is “raw”, 熟 “cooked, done” (and “ripe”). Weights: 克 “gram”, 千克 = 公斤 “kilogram”, 斤 = 500 g, 两 = 50 g — in canteens rice and noodles are often ordered by the liang: 二两米饭 “100 g of rice”. Measure words: 一道菜 “a dish”, 一片面包 “a slice of bread”.

这些葡萄有点儿酸。
Zhèxiē pútao yǒudiǎnr suān.
These grapes are a bit sour.
一千克是两斤。
Yì qiānkè shì liǎng jīn.
One kilogram is two jin.
我早上只吃了一片面包。
Wǒ zǎoshang zhǐ chīle yí piàn miànbāo.
I only had a slice of bread this morning.

Exercises

1. Listen and choose the translation

  1. Answer
    这个菜够辣的！ Zhège cài gòu là de! — This dish is really hot!

  2. Answer
    这块肉还是生的。 Zhè kuài ròu hái shì shēng de. — This meat is still raw.

  3. Answer
    我们去吃北京小吃吧。 Wǒmen qù chī Běijīng xiǎochī ba. — Let’s go and eat Beijing street food.

  4. Answer
    这种药很苦。 Zhè zhǒng yào hěn kǔ. — This medicine is very bitter.

2. Choose the correct option

  1. “Wait a moment”

    Answer
    请稍微等一下。
  2. “Tasty, but expensive”

    Answer
    好吃是好吃，就是太贵了。
  3. How many grams is 二两?

    Answer
    100 grams
  4. 汤太___了，你放了多少盐？

    Answer
    咸

3. Build the sentence

  1. This dish is a little spicy.

    Answer
    这道菜稍微有点儿辣。 Zhè dào cài shāowēi yǒudiǎnr là.
  2. Our chef specialises in Chinese food.

    Answer
    我们的厨师专门做中餐。 Wǒmen de chúshī zhuānmén zuò zhōngcān.
  3. Smell this — doesn’t it smell good?

    Answer
    你闻闻，香不香？ Nǐ wénwen, xiāng bu xiāng?
  4. It’s really cold today!

    Answer
    今天够冷的！ Jīntiān gòu lěng de!

4. Dialogue: answer as the speaker

You are speaker B. Pick the right reply and the conversation goes on.

A
你尝尝我做的汤，味道怎么样？
Nǐ chángchang wǒ zuò de tāng, wèidào zěnmeyàng?
Try my soup — how does it taste?
B
好喝是好喝，就是有点儿咸。
Hǎohē shì hǎohē, jiùshì yǒudiǎnr xián.
It’s good, but a bit salty.
A
那我再加点儿水。
Nà wǒ zài jiā diǎnr shuǐ.
Then I’ll add some more water.
B
好，稍微加一点儿就行了。
Hǎo, shāowēi jiā yìdiǎnr jiù xíng le.
OK, just a little will do.
A
肉烤好了，你吃吧。
Ròu kǎohǎo le, nǐ chī ba.
The meat’s done — eat up.
B
真香！你做的菜够好吃的。
Zhēn xiāng! Nǐ zuò de cài gòu hǎochī de.
Smells wonderful! Your cooking is really good.

5. Translate into Chinese

  1. Could you make it a little less spicy?
    Answer
    能做得稍微不那么辣吗？
  2. It’s pretty all right, but too expensive.
    Answer
    漂亮是漂亮，就是太贵了。
  3. It’s really hot today!
    Answer
    今天够热的！

💡 Did you know?: Spicy, sweet, salty

Chinese cuisine is very varied. Sichuan and Hunan are famous for spicy dishes — Sichuan cooking combines chilli with numbing Sichuan pepper, a taste called 麻辣 málà. Cantonese food is delicate and prizes freshness, 鲜. The north eats more wheat — noodles, dumplings, steamed buns, 馒头 — and its dishes are saltier. Shanghai and neighbouring provinces like a sweetish taste.

Phrase audio — Microsoft speech synthesis (voices Xiaoxiao, Yunyang, Yunxi); syllables and some words — native recordings (audio-cmn, CC BY-SA).