# vegetarian dish(es)



## yuechu

大家好！

I recently went out to a restaurant with one of my aunts, who is (at least sometimes) vegetarian. How could I ask "Is this dish (on the menu) vegetarian?" in Chinese? Would you use the term "素的", for example?
Thanks!


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## hx1997

yuechu said:


> Would you use the term "素的", for example?


Yes, that's good.




yuechu said:


> How could I ask "Is this dish (on the menu) vegetarian?" in Chinese?


这道菜是素的吗？
这道菜是素菜吗？


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## yuechu

Thanks, hx1997! (and 新年快乐！)


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## hx1997

Happy New Year!


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## SuperXW

素的 is quite colloquial. If you want to be more formal, use 素食 for vegetarian foods.


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## albert_laosong

Yeah, if you want to be very polite, or show others you are very cultured, you say like: 你喜欢吃素食吗？
if you are with your friends or family, it's quite ok to use expressions like: 素的，荤的，肉的, but you may not want to say to the beautiful girl who you are dating for the first time: 你喜欢吃素的，还是吃荤的， it's better to say 你喜欢吃素食吗？


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## individuuuuuu

素的 means not containing meat, as opposed to 荤的 （素菜/荤菜）.
While strictly speaking, for vegetarian food we usually use the term 素食, which sounds more technical.
Note that 素菜 can of course contain animal oil which is sometimes not accepted by vegans.
If your aunt is not a strict vegan, just ask 这个菜是素的吗？/这（个)是素菜吗？


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## andyhu

If you are a strict veggitarian you may ask then if there's any meat or meat broth in it. You can say 这道菜是纯素的吗？里面有没有放肉或者肉汤？


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## yuechu

I do know some people who are vegans or strict vegetarians, so these vocabulary words could come in handy in the future!
Thank you all for your help!


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## 2PieRad

I have a few related questions...

On a recent trip to the Asian grocery store, I happened upon this jar of 芝麻酱 (from 台湾, if it matters), and on its label it said 纯芝麻 and 纯素. Beside it was a jar of something else (I don't remember exactly what it was) with 全素 written on it. 

1) Is there a reason a jar of 芝麻酱 would specify that its contents are 纯素? Doesn't that imply that sometimes, 芝麻酱 is not 纯素? (很难想象芝麻酱里会加猪肉末什么的 )
2) Is there a difference between 纯素 and 全素? Just by comparing 纯 and 全, it feels like the former is a bit more "strict", but in practice, I really don't see a difference. Are there foods that would qualify as one but not the other?
3) Frankly, the exact difference between _vegetarian _and _vegan _still eludes me, but are 素食 and 纯素/全素 truly their Chinese equivalents? I've been under the impression that animal products like eggs and cheese are considered vegetarian, but not vegan. Post #7 mentions 素菜 cooked in animal oils as being "sometimes" non-vegan. I would say that things cooked in animal oils are "always" non-vegan, but I think that most vegetarians would consider them straight up non-vegetarian as well. Also, I think that the "meat broth" mentioned in #8 would not be permissible for your average vegetarian, and not just your "strict vegetarian". Based on that, it almost feels like _vegetarian _equates better to 全素/纯素. 

Any thoughts?
Thanks


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## 2PieRad

So...a tentative definition...
vegetarian: animals were not killed (hence why eggs and dairy are okay, but meat broth is not).
vegan: no animal products at all

I presume Chinese cuisine doesn't make as clear of a distinction between the two and thus the language doesn't reflect it either?

_vegan cake 
纯素蛋糕？
无蛋蛋糕？
糕？_


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## Shazhudao945

I agree, 一般情况下我们说的素菜是vegan，而不是vegetarian。


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## Skatinginbc

Erebos12345 said:


> Is there a reason a jar of 芝麻酱 would specify that its contents are 纯素?


除五辛 (不含蔥、蒜、韭、蕎、興渠等葷菜)  之純植物性食物 才是純素。 非純素的芝麻酱, 如：「豆角芝麻酱」 (含大蒜)


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## 2PieRad

Skatinginbc said:


> 除五辛 (不含蔥、蒜、韭、蕎、興渠等葷菜)  之純植物性食物 才是純素。 非純素的芝麻酱, 如：「豆角芝麻酱」 (含大蒜)


🤔 Interesting. I didn't realize there were such heavy Buddhist connotations. No meat and no 五辛. So in this sense, _vegetarian/vegan _really are not accurate translations.


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