一年一度网友辩论：汤圆和元宵到底有什么区别？

火树银花合

星桥铁锁开

今天是农历正月十五元宵节

（Lantern Festival）

中国日报外籍记者吟古诗、闹元宵！

汤圆vs元宵

元宵和汤圆是正月十五必吃的食品，每年元宵节，南北方的小伙伴就要开启一场辩论。那么，汤圆和元宵究竟有何区别？

为了方便理解，元宵（yuanxiao）和汤圆（tangyuan）皆可意译为sweet glutinous rice balls。但二者的外表虽然类似，制作工艺上却有很大区别。

北方的元宵是在糯米粉中“摇”出来的。

'Roll' the Yuanxiao
Yuanxiao is popular in the northern area of China and is more complicated to make than Tangyuan. The filling needs to be cut into little cubes, dipped into water and put in a shallow basket with sticky rice powder. Then comes the physical work of rolling the cubes until they become balls.
北方元宵制作较为复杂。元宵是“摇”出来的，把馅料切成小方块放入糯米粉的簸箕里摇，边摇边洒水，直至成型。

图源：新华社

而南方的汤圆，则是把馅儿放在糯米片上“包”成的。

Making Tangyuan as dumplings
The process of making Tangyuan is pretty much like making dumplings: Wrap pieces of sticky rice around the filling and make it into a ball with your hands.
做汤圆的过程更像是包饺子：用糯米包馅，再用手将其搓成球形。