Home ❯ How-To ❯ Chinese Lesson: China’s Favorite Animal

Chinese Lesson: China’s Favorite Animal

by:

Posted: 6/12/2013

They’re cute. They’re cuddly. They sneeze and over 160 million people flock to YouTube to watch it happen. They’re the most spoiled animals at every Chinese zoo.

熊猫

Pinyin (i.e. the transcription of the Chinese words into Latin script): xiong2 mao1

(the numbers indicate what tone the words are said in.)

Pronunciation: “shee-ong” (say it all like it’s one syllable) “mow” (rhymes with “now”).

Translation: Literally, “bear cat.” Better known as the panda (but you knew that).

About

Sarah

Sarah Leung is the eldest daughter in The Woks of Life family, working alongside younger sister Kaitlin and parents Bill and Judy. You could say this multigenerational recipe blog was born out of two things: 1) her realization in college that she had no idea how to make her mom’s Braised Pork Belly and 2) that she couldn’t find a job after graduation. With the rest of the family on board, she laid the groundwork for the blog in 2013. By 2015, it had become one of the internet’s most trusted resources for Chinese cooking. Creator of quick and easy recipes for harried home cooks and official Woks of Life photographer, Sarah loves creating accessible recipes that chase down familiar nostalgic flavors while adapting to the needs of modern home cooks. Alongside her family, Sarah has become a New York Times Bestselling author with their cookbook, The Woks of Life: Recipes to Know and Love from a Chinese American Family, as well as a James Beard Award nominee and IACP Award finalist.