五花腩
ng⁵ faa¹ naam⁵
In Cantonese, pork belly is said as 五花腩 (ng⁵ faa¹ naam⁵). Wiktionary also lists 豬腩肉 / 猪腩肉 (zyu¹ naam⁵ juk⁶).
Meaning: boneless cut of fatty meat (noun)
Ways to say it
| Cantonese | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 五花腩 | ng⁵ faa¹ naam⁵ |
| 豬腩肉 / 猪腩肉 | zyu¹ naam⁵ juk⁶ |
The term refers to a boneless cut of fatty meat.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 五花腩 literally translates to 'five-flower belly', referring to the five distinct layers of fat and meat visible in a cross-section.
Which one should you use?
五花腩 is the more specific culinary term used to describe the high-quality, layered cut of pork belly, whereas 豬腩肉 is a more general term for pork belly or pork fat/belly meat.
How do you pronounce it?
ng⁵ faa¹ naam⁵
Did you know?
- The concept of 'flower' 花 in 五花腩 is used in Cantonese to describe any beautiful, marbled, or variegated pattern in food, not just in pork.
- In some Cantonese dialects, the 'five flowers' are referred to as 'three layers' 三層, showing a regional difference in how people visually categorize the fat and meat.
- In Hong Kong, you will often see 五花腩 listed on menus as 'siu yuk' (roasted pork), but the term 五花腩 specifically describes the raw ingredient before the roasting process.
Examples in context
- 我想買五花腩。ngo5 soeng2 maai5 ng5 faa1 naam2.I want to buy pork belly.
- 五花腩用嚟燜炆。ng5 faa1 naam2 jung6 lai4 maan1 wan1.Pork belly is used for braising.
Example conversation
Ka Yan and Ka Ming are grocery shopping together.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan家明，你要買五花腩嗎？gaa1 ming4, nei5 jiu3 maai5 ng5 faa1 naam4 maa3?Ka Ming, do you want to buy pork belly?
- 家明 Ka Ming要，我想煮燒肉。jau3, ngo5 soeng2 zu2 siu1 juk6Yes, I want to cook roasted pork.
- 嘉欣 Ka Yan呢塊五花腩睇落好鮮。ni1 faai3 ng5 faa1 naam4 tai2 lok6 hou2 sin1This piece of pork belly looks very fresh.
- 家明 Ka Ming好，就買呢塊啦。hou2, zau6 maai5 ni1 faai3 laa1Okay, let's buy this piece.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “pork belly” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
