3 replies to this topic

[chinafoodman]

Can anyone tell me the original Chinese for this phrase? I know there are meaning equivalents like 光說不練 but I want to know if there is an actual idiom that includes the words 'cook' and 'rice' or 'food.'
Cheers.

[chinafoodman]

Can anyone tell me the original Chinese for this phrase? I know there are meaning equivalents like 光說不練 but I want to know if there is an actual idiom that includes the words 'cook' and 'rice' or 'food.'
Cheers.

I think it is this phrase:
空談燒不出飯菜 kōng tán shāo bù chū fàn cài

More literal translation would be, 'Empty talk doesn't produce food." Not as pity as Talk doesn't cook rice.

[hpyp]

I think it is this phrase:
空談燒不出飯菜 kōng tán shāo bù chū fàn cài

More literal translation would be, 'Empty talk doesn't produce food." Not as pity as Talk doesn't cook rice.

Can you cite any Chinese source for that saying? The version I see on some Chinese web sites is 空谈烧不好饭菜 ("talk doesn't cook food well"), which sounds a bit odd. And they all seem to have been translated from English. It makes me wonder whether it is really a Chinese proverb. Frankly, it is the first time I heard about either version.

[hljhljhlj]

I don't think 空談燒不出飯菜 is a good answer