红烧 (hóng shāo) — braise in soy sauce (a Chinese cooking method using soy sauce, sugar, and aromatics to give a rich red-brown color)

Definition

verb
braise in soy sauce (a Chinese cooking method using soy sauce, sugar, and aromatics to give a rich red-brown color)

Examples

  • 红烧。
    Wǒ mā ma zuò de hóng shāo ròu tè bié hǎo chī.
    The braised pork my mom makes is especially delicious.
  • 红烧。
    Zhè dào hóng shāo yú xū yào màn dùn sì shí fēn zhōng.
    This braised fish needs to be simmered for forty minutes.
  • 红烧，。
    Tā jīn tiān dì yī cì cháng shì zuò hóng shāo pái gǔ, wèi dào bú cuò.
    Today he tried cooking braised spare ribs for the first time, and they tasted pretty good.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

红hóngred
烧shāocook

红 (red) and 烧 (cook) combine to describe cooking that gives a rich red-brown color.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 紅; 红 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
糸糸mìsilk
Sound part声符shēngfú
工
工gōng紅hóng
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 紅 puts 糸 (silk) next to 工, which gives the sound; the simplified 红 is a later shorthand.

Open 红 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 燒; 烧 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
火火huǒfire
Sound part声符shēngfú
堯
堯yáo燒shāo
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 燒 pairs 火 (fire) with 堯, which supplies the sound; the simplified 烧 is a shorthand.

Open 烧 →

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