The Story of Knife-Peeled Noodles 刀削面的传说

山西人爱吃面，举世人皆知。自古以来，晋人主食乃面食，以花样多、品质好、影响大而颇为出名，故海内外早有“世界面食在中国，中国面食在山西”的说法。东到娘子关，西到黄河边，南到风陵渡，北到雁门关，一般家庭妇女都能以面食为原料加工数种面食；许多山西汉子有时在客人面前也会显露一手面食“绝”活。
Shanxi people’s love for noodles is known around the world. Ever since ancient times, flour-based food has been the staple food of Shanxi people. The staple food of Shanxi is famous for its diversity, quality and influence. As it is said, “The best flour food around the world is in China, the best flour food in China is in Shanxi”. From the Yellow River in the west to Niangzi Pass in the east, from Yanmen Pass in the north to Fengling Ferry in the south, almost all the housewives can cook different kinds of flour-based food; even men will sometimes show off their culinary skills for guests.
刀削面是山西最有代表性的面条，堪称天下一绝，已有数百年的历史。
Knife-peeled noodles are the most representative noodles of Shanxi, enjoying widespread fame and a history of hundreds of years.
传说，蒙古鞑靼侵占中原后，建立元朝。为防止“汉人”造反起义，将家家户户的金属全部没收，并规定十户用厨刀一把，切菜做饭轮流使用，用后再交回鞑靼保管。
Mongolian people established the Yuan Dynasty after seizing control of the central region of China. To pre-empt an uprising of the Han people, Mongolian rulers confiscated all the metal articles in households and stated that a cooking knife would be shared by ten households, who used it in turn and then returned it to Mongolian rulers.
一天中午，一位老婆婆将棒子、高粱面和成面团，让老汉取刀。结果刀被别人取走，老汉只好返回，在出鞑靼的大门时，脚被一块薄铁皮碰了一下，他顺手拣起来揣在怀里。回家后，锅开得直响，全家人等刀切面条吃。可是刀没取回来，老汉急得团团转，忽然想起怀里的铁皮，就取出来说：就用这个铁皮切面吧！老婆一看，铁皮薄而软，嘟喃着说：这样软的东西怎能切面条。老汉气愤地说：“切”不动就“砍”。“砍”字提醒了老婆，她把面团放在一块木板上，左手端起，右手持铁片，站在开水锅边“砍”面，一片片面片落入锅内，煮熟后捞到碗里，浇上卤汁让老汉先吃，老汉边吃边说：“好得很，好得很，以后不用再去取厨刀切面了。”这样一传十，十传百，传遍了晋中大地。至今，晋中的平遥、介休、汾阳、孝义等县，不论男女都会削面。
One day, a granny was preparing dough for lunch with corn and sorghum flour and asked her husband to bring the knife. However, the knife had already been taken by another; the old man had no choice but to return home. On crossing the threshold of Mongolian government, he was tripped by a thin iron sheet and took it with him. When he came back home, the whole family was waiting for the knife to cook noodles and the water was boiling. Anxiety overtook him. Suddenly it occurred to him that he took back an iron sheet, and then the man passed the sheet to his wife, saying “Try this”. “It is too thin and soft to cut”, complained his wife. “Then slice it.” The man’s words inspired his wife, who put the dough on a wooden board, holding it with her left hand, and shoved the noodles right into the boiling water. Later, the granny first served the noodle with sauce to her husband, who marveled, “It tastes great! We don’t need the knife any more.” Their experience has since spread across Shanxi; now, all men and women in Pingyao, Jiexiu, Fenyang and Xiaoyi County know how to peel noodles.
这种“砍面”流传于社会小摊贩，又经过多次改革，演变为现在的刀削面。刀削面柔中有硬，软中有韧，浇卤、或炒或凉拌，均有独特风味，如略加山西老陈醋食之尤妙。
The “sliced noodles” were first made popular by roadside restaurant stalls. Then many reforms have brought it to the present shape. Knife-peeled noodles are soft yet chewy: whether served cold, fried, or with sauce, they taste very special, and are even more delicious if eaten with Shanxi Vinegar.
传统操作方法是一手托面，一手拿刀，直接削到开水锅里，其要诀是：“刀不离面，面不离刀，胳膊直硬手平，手端一条线，一棱赶一棱，平刀是扁条，弯刀是三棱。”
The traditional cooking method is to hold the dough in one hand, and a knife in the other, slicing noodles right into the boiling water. The secret in preparation is to “keep the knife close to the dough; straighten your arm; level your hand; slice piece by piece; a regular knife makes flat pieces, curved knife will make triangular ones”.