<blockquote>
  <p>我知道你们没有放盐，但是可能因为肉是腌过的，所以对我来说还是太咸了。这不是你们的错，我仍然非常感谢你们对我的照顾（帮助）。</p>
</blockquote>

<p>This translates into:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>I know you did not add salt, but, possibly because the meat was pickled, it was still too salty for me. This is not your fault. I still thank you very much for the care you have shown me.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Hence, this is a polite and considerate way of addressing the issue.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-08-07T11:15:51.987Z
@Maroon I attempted to provide a corresponding edit, which is pending.
Ludi
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-08-07T20:32:56.200Z
Thank you @Ludi for your help editing the original answer to make it more clear
Alex.Bai
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-12-27T17:09:18.353Z
For a quick conversation in a restaurant, is this perhaps too formal, even to the point where it seems passive-aggressive? Something like, “我知道你们没加盐，但这肉是不是本来就有点咸啊？“ doesn't seem too mean.
explicitEllipticGroupAction
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T18:04:45.810Z
2016-08-07T20:30:53.103Z
2016-08-07T20:30:53.103Z
Alex.Bai
<p>I think you can say:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>肉本身的味道就已經很鹹了</p>
<p>The taste of the meat itself was already very salty</p>
</blockquote>
<p>or more politely</p>
<blockquote>
<p>可能是肉本身的鹹味對我來說就已經太重了</p>
<p>Maybe the taste of the meat itself was too salty for me</p>
</blockquote>
<p>or if you want to emphasize it's not her fault</p>
<blockquote>
<p>可能是肉在調味前的鹹味就已經很重了</p>
<p>Maybe the taste of the meat was already very salty before seasoning</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T06:04:25.430Z
2016-07-06T06:04:25.430Z
2020-06-17T09:50:11.587Z
Nier
<p>Do you want to say "The bean is okay but the meat is salty" ?</p>

<p>How about "豆很棒, 肉太咸" / "豆很棒, 可是肉有點咸" / "豆很棒, 可是肉的咸味重了點(兒)" ?</p>

<p>When you tell them the difference between the two main ingredients, they will know how to improve the dish for you.  ^__^</p>

<p>Edit:  Also, it is more polite to express your feeling on the dish, than to comment on their preparation process.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T03:40:45.650Z
The woman understood that I had a special need for low salt and so she happily discussed beforehand how the dish would be prepared. And when it came she was happy to say "he did not add salt."  I wanted to say I knew that he did not, and I appreciated that, but still there was a lot of salt because it was already in the meat.
Colin McLarty
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T03:49:33.877Z
"會不會是腌肉的佐料咸味偏重了"?
Henry HO
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T03:52:40.990Z
It was not a question.  The dish was very salty.  And i certainly  did not want to imply that she was wrong to say no salt was added.
Colin McLarty
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T04:53:00.253Z
It sounds more polite when asked as a question.  Also, it may be the preserved vegetables or the sauce (which meat absorbs more) being salty.  You just can't be 100% certain.
Henry HO
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T02:17:02.450Z
2016-07-06T03:41:11.603Z
2016-07-06T03:41:11.603Z
Henry HO
<p>It seems more about courtesy than translation. I know you don't want to give her the impression that you are blaming her for something you didn't declared in advance. If you plan to go back to the same restaurant, I suggest you discuss with her beforehand how the dish would be prepared <em>in more details</em>. You can ask her "Is the meat preserved in salt?(这肉是用盐腌的吗？)", "Is the hot peppers preserved in salt?(辣椒是用盐腌的吗？)", "Does the seasoning itself contain salt? (调料里有盐吗？)" and so on. If she answered "yes", you can say "Oh, I want something less salty. Do you have fresh meat not preserved in salt?". Dicussing this <em>before</em> the dish was cooked is not offensive. You are just telling her your special need.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T05:16:27.143Z
2016-07-06T05:28:39.490Z
2016-07-06T05:28:39.490Z
ltux
<p>In a restaurant I asked for dry fried green beans (干煸豆角) with no salt.  The woman was very kind and asked if hot peppers are okay (yes) and when she told the cook I heard her say don’t add salt.  When they came though they had very much salt.  Delicious but I should not eat that.  She said they had not added salt, which was true in a way.  But of course the cook had made up the peppers-and-meat seasoning at the start of the day.  It had a lot of salt in it.  </p>

<p>I fear I did not explain the problem very well to her, because that past-perfect construction was beyond me.  How can I say “there was already a lot of salt in the meat”?</p>

<p>The people were so kind I want to go back.  But I have to be able to explain this to them.</p>

<p>Henry HO and user6065 give good ideas of what I should have said yesterday in the first place.  And I will use those suggestions in the future at other restaurants. </p>

<p>But when it happened, the woman was very concerned to say "He did not add any salt."  And I tried to agree "Yes, I know he did not add any.  The meat was already salty."  She really wanted to help me and I wanted to explain that I appreciated that even though the result was too salty for me to eat.</p>

<p>I can easily say I know he did not add any.  The second part is harder for me.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-08-09T08:12:26.463Z
A side note. If it's in the marinade, the salty bit may well be an essential part that makes the dish delicious.
jf328
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T02:15:28.757Z
问题在于肉
（作调料的辣椒和肉）里放盐得太多了
user6065
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-06T13:08:26.050Z
"Yes, I know he did not add any. The meat was already salty." 肉本来很咸
Mou某
<translation>
How can I say “there was already a lot of salt in the meat”?
# How can I say “there was already a lot of salt in the meat”?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-07-06)

In a restaurant I asked for dry fried green beans (干煸豆角) with no salt. The woman was very kind and asked if hot peppers are okay (yes) and when she told the cook I heard her say don’t add salt. When they came though they had very much salt. Delicious but I should not eat that. She said they had not added salt, which was true in a way. But of course the cook had made up the peppers-and-meat seasoning at the start of the day. It had a lot of salt in it.

I fear I did not explain the problem very well to her, because that past-perfect construction was beyond me. How can I say “there was already a lot of salt in the meat”?

The people were so kind I want to go back. But I have to be able to explain this to them.

username_8 and username_2 give good ideas of what I should have said yesterday in the first place. And I will use those suggestions in the future at other restaurants.

But when it happened, the woman was very concerned to say "He did not add any salt." And I tried to agree "Yes, I know he did not add any. The meat was already salty." She really wanted to help me and I wanted to explain that I appreciated that even though the result was too salty for me to eat.

I can easily say I know he did not add any. The second part is harder for me.

**Tags:** translation

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: 问题在于肉 （作调料的辣椒和肉）里放盐得太多了  
> **username_3**: "Yes, I know he did not add any. The meat was already salty." 肉本来很咸  
> **username_1**: A side note. If it's in the marinade, the salty bit may well be an essential part that makes the dish delicious.  

---

## 4 answers

### Answer by username_4 on 2016-07-06. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

> 我知道你们没有放盐，但是可能因为肉是腌过的，所以对我来说还是太咸了。这不是你们的错，我仍然非常感谢你们对我的照顾（帮助）。

This translates into:

> I know you did not add salt, but, possibly because the meat was pickled, it was still too salty for me. This is not your fault. I still thank you very much for the care you have shown me.

Hence, this is a polite and considerate way of addressing the issue.

> **Comments:**
> **username_5**: @Maroon I attempted to provide a corresponding edit, which is pending.  
> **username_4**: Thank you @username_5 for your help editing the original answer to make it more clear  
> **username_6**: For a quick conversation in a restaurant, is this perhaps too formal, even to the point where it seems passive-aggressive? Something like, “我知道你们没加盐，但这肉是不是本来就有点咸啊？“ doesn't seem too mean.  

---

### Answer by username_7 on 2016-07-06. Score: 1

I think you can say:

> 肉本身的味道就已經很鹹了
>
> The taste of the meat itself was already very salty

or more politely

> 可能是肉本身的鹹味對我來說就已經太重了
>
> Maybe the taste of the meat itself was too salty for me

or if you want to emphasize it's not her fault

> 可能是肉在調味前的鹹味就已經很重了
>
> Maybe the taste of the meat was already very salty before seasoning


---

### Answer by username_8 on 2016-07-06. Score: 0

Do you want to say "The bean is okay but the meat is salty" ?

How about "豆很棒, 肉太咸" / "豆很棒, 可是肉有點咸" / "豆很棒, 可是肉的咸味重了點(兒)" ?

When you tell them the difference between the two main ingredients, they will know how to improve the dish for you. ^\_\_^

Edit: Also, it is more polite to express your feeling on the dish, than to comment on their preparation process.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: The woman understood that I had a special need for low salt and so she happily discussed beforehand how the dish would be prepared. And when it came she was happy to say "he did not add salt."  I wanted to say I knew that he did not, and I appreciated that, but still there was a lot of salt because it was already in the meat.  
> **username_8**: "會不會是腌肉的佐料咸味偏重了"?  
> **username_0**: It was not a question.  The dish was very salty.  And i certainly  did not want to imply that she was wrong to say no salt was added.  
> **username_8**: It sounds more polite when asked as a question.  Also, it may be the preserved vegetables or the sauce (which meat absorbs more) being salty.  You just can't be 100% certain.  

---

### Answer by username_9 on 2016-07-06. Score: 0

It seems more about courtesy than translation. I know you don't want to give her the impression that you are blaming her for something you didn't declared in advance. If you plan to go back to the same restaurant, I suggest you discuss with her beforehand how the dish would be prepared *in more details*. You can ask her "Is the meat preserved in salt?(这肉是用盐腌的吗？)", "Is the hot peppers preserved in salt?(辣椒是用盐腌的吗？)", "Does the seasoning itself contain salt? (调料里有盐吗？)" and so on. If she answered "yes", you can say "Oh, I want something less salty. Do you have fresh meat not preserved in salt?". Dicussing this *before* the dish was cooked is not offensive. You are just telling her your special need.


---

