尋味全球：盤點世界最棒的 10 大經典麵包
World's Best Breads Around the Globe

什麼是麵包？你可能不需思索太久，不論你想的是一片酸種麵包還是墨西哥薄餅，你的答案都透露了你來自何方。但麵包雖然容易想像，卻難以下定義。

What is bread? You likely don’t have to think for long, and whether you’re hungry for a slice of sourdough or craving tortillas, what you imagine says a lot about where you’re from.

麵包歷史學家威廉·魯貝爾（William Rubel）認為，為麵包定義一個嚴格的範圍是不必要、甚至適得其反的。他說：「麵包基本上就是你的文化所認定的東西，它不需要用任何特定的麵粉製成。」

Bread historian William Rubel argues that creating a strict definition of bread is unnecessary, even counterproductive. “Bread is basically what your culture says it is,” says Rubel, the author of “Bread: A Global History.” “It doesn’t need to be made with any particular kind of flour.”

相反地，他更看重麵包的功能：它將小麥、黑麥或玉米等主要糧食轉化為便於攜帶、耐儲存的食物，可以帶到田間、餵養軍隊，或是儲存過冬。

Instead, he likes to focus on what bread does: It turns staple grains such as wheat, rye or corn into durable foods that can be carried into the fields, used to feed an army or stored for winter.

如今，這些早期麵包的後代展示了世界上極其豐富的飲食傳統。這份名單反映了這種多元性。除了令人難忘的風味外，這些精選的麵包也因其獨特的原料、經典的地位和吃法而入選，它們是一場帶領我們穿梭全球舒適美食靈魂的旅程。

Today, the descendants of those early breads showcase the remarkable breadth of our world’s food traditions. This list reflects that diversity. Along with memorable flavor, these breads are chosen for their unique ingredients, iconic status and the sheer, homey pleasure of eating them. They’re a journey through the essence of global comfort food.

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🥖 全球十大經典麵包巡禮
Ten Masterpieces from the Global Bakery

🇫🇷 法式長棍麵包 (French Baguettes)

France

法國人可能不認同邊走邊吃，但「le quignon」（細長法棍兩端酥脆的尖端）是個心照不宣的例外。你被允許掰下那一角，在沿街漫步時咀嚼它——這或許是因為法棍作為法國文化的象徵，擁有至高無上的自豪地位。不過，就像許多偉大的傳統一樣，法棍其實是相對近期的發明。據巴黎食品歷史學家吉姆·切瓦利爾（Jim Chevallier）所述，類似現代法棍的細長麵包在 19 世紀開始流行，而首次官方提及是在 1920 年的一份價格清單中。儘管如此，法式長棍麵包還是在 2022 年獲得了聯合國教科文組織（UNESCO）頒發的非物質文化遺產地位。

The French may frown on eating on the go, but there’s an unofficial exception for “le quignon,” the crisp-baked end of a slender baguette. You’re allowed to break that off and munch it as you walk down the street – perhaps because the baguette has pride of place as a symbol of French culture. But like some of the greatest traditions, the baguette is a relatively recent invention. According to Paris food historian Jim Chevallier, long, narrow breads similar to modern baguettes gained prominence in the 19th century, and the first official mention was in a 1920 price list. Nonetheless, the baguette was awarded UNESCO status for Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2022.

🇮🇳 印度抓餅 (Paratha)

India

在這款全麥印度美食中，平底鍋煎製的扁麵包變得層次分明、酥脆無比，可以單吃也可以夾入豐富的鹹味餡料。藉由將麵糰多次摺疊、擀開並抹上油脂，創造出類似可頌或千層酥般香氣濃郁的華麗分層。夾餡麥餅在印度已有數百年的歷史，在 12 世紀的梵文典籍《Manasollasa》中甚至提到了幾種變體，這是該地區食物最早的文字記載之一。

Flatbreads go wonderfully flaky in this whole-wheat Indian treat, which can be eaten plain or studded with savory fillings. Folding and rolling the dough over thinly spread fat creates sumptuous layers that are rich with flavor, employing a technique similar to that used for croissants or puff pastry. Stuffed wheat bread has been made in India for hundreds of years, and several varieties even get a shout-out in the “Manasollasa,” a 12th-century Sanskrit text that contains some of the earliest written descriptions of the region’s food.

🇩🇪 德國黑麥麵包 (Pumpernickel)

Germany

純黑麥粉賦予了這些標誌性的北德麵包令人驚嘆的厚實分量與獨特的深紅褐色。最傳統的版本是在溫暖潮濕的蒸氣烤箱中慢烤長達 24 小時。這是一種非常獨特的技術，有助於轉化黑麥粉中的糖分，將天然甜味昇華為深沉悠長的風味。黑麥麵包在德國威斯特法倫地區已有數百年歷史，蘇斯特鎮甚至有一家自 1570 年以來就使用相同配方製作這種紮實麵包的家族烘焙坊。

Pure rye flour lends these iconic north German loaves impressive heft, along with a distinctive, mahogany hue. The most traditional versions are baked in a warm, steamy oven for up to 24 hours. It’s an unusual technique that helps transform sugars in the rye flour, turning naturally occurring sweetness into depth of flavor. Pumpernickel has been a specialty in Germany’s Westphalia region for hundreds of years, and there’s even a family-owned bakery in the town of Soest that’s been making the hearty bread using the same recipe since 1570.

🇨🇳 中式芝麻燒餅 (Shaobing)

China

咬開燒餅金黃酥脆的芝麻外殼，展現出麥香濃郁、層次分明的鬆軟內裡。專業的燒餅師傅能將麵糰揉捏、甩打得極薄，使成品擁有多達 18 層以上的層次。這款中國北方的經典扁麵包可以夾入甜或鹹的餡料，從香濃的黑芝麻醬到煙燻肉品、再到川味花椒，風味千變萬化。

Crack into the sesame-seed crust of a shaobing to reveal tender layers that are rich with wheat flavor. Expert shaobing bakers whirl and slap the dough so thin that the finished product has 18 or more layers. The northern Chinese flatbread can then be spiked with sweet or savory fillings, from black sesame paste to smoked meat or Sichuan pepper.

🇮🇹 義大利拖鞋麵包 (Ciabatta)

Italy

在注重「古老穀物」與數百年麵粉傳統的烘焙界中，麵包製作似乎常被認為是一門古老且一成不變的工藝。但麵包其實是不斷演變的，沒有比這款經典的義大利麵包更好的例子了——它其實是在 1980 年代才剛被發明。1982 年，義大利麵包師阿納爾多·卡瓦拉里（Arnaldo Cavallari）創造了這款低矮、耐嚼的拖鞋麵包，以對抗當時席捲羅馬麵包店的法式長棍麵包。這是手工麵包復興史上的分水嶺，源於對 1960 和 70 年代日益工業化的食品系統的反思。

Between an emphasis on “ancient grains” and centuries of floury traditions, it can seem like breadmaking is stuck in the past. But bread is continually evolving, and there’s no better example than this iconic Italian loaf, which was only invented in the 1980s. In 1982, Italian baker Arnaldo Cavallari created the low, chewy loaf in defiance of the baguette-style breads he saw taking over Roman bakeries. It was a watershed moment in the comeback of artisanal breads, which has roots in the 1960s and 1970s backlash against the increasingly industrialized food system.

🇲🇽 墨西哥玉米餅 (Corn Tortillas)

Mexico

薄薄的玉米麵糰在熾熱的 comal（自公元前 700 年起就在墨西哥使用的傳統平底鐵鍋）上烙烤至微微起泡。無論是包裹成塔可，還是單獨享用，玉米餅都是墨西哥最受歡迎的靈魂美食。看似簡單的玉米餅蘊含了高超的烹飪智慧：在磨成麵粉前，玉米會與石灰等鹼性原料混合，這段稱為「鹼法烹加工（nixtamalization）」的過程，能讓穀物釋放更豐富的營養並更容易被消化。

Thin rounds of corn dough turn blistered and brown on a hot comal, the traditional griddles that have been used in Mexico since at least 700 BCE. Whether folded into a taco or eaten out of hand, corn tortillas are one of the country’s most universally loved foods. The ground-corn dough is deceptively simple; made from just a few ingredients, it’s nonetheless a triumph of culinary ingenuity. Before being ground, the corn is mixed with an alkaline ingredient such as lime, a process called nixtamalization that makes the grain more nutritious and easier to digest.

🇧🇷 巴西起司球 (Pão de Queijo)

Brazil

南美洲本土木薯能擺脫其天然毒性（含有足夠致人死命的氰化物）而端上餐桌，簡引領是廚房智慧的奇蹟。原住民群體藉由浸泡、壓榨和乾燥等程序，將這種澱粉質根莖轉化為出人意料的烹飪明星。如今，它是巴西最受歡迎的小點心「起司麵包球」的主原料，外酥內軟，帶有淡淡的酸香，軟Q牽絲的口感令人愛不釋手。

It’s a triumph of kitchen ingenuity that South America’s native cassava is eaten at all: The starchy root has enough naturally occurring cyanide to kill a human being. But by carefully treating cassava with a cycle of soaking, pressing and drying, many of the continent’s indigenous groups found a way to turn the root into an unlikely culinary star. Now, it’s the base for one of Brazil’s most snackable treats, a cheesy bread roll whose crisp crust gives way to a tender, lightly sour interior.

🇮🇪 愛爾蘭蘇打麵包 (Soda Bread)

Ireland

做出蓬鬆發起的麵包不需要酵母：酸性與鹼性原料的化學反應同樣能帶來驚奇。雖然北美原住民早已利用碳酸鉀來使薄餅發酵，但蘇打麵包是在愛爾蘭大饑荒的艱難歲月中大放異彩。在馬鈴薯絕收的危機下，貧困的愛爾蘭人開始使用軟麥粉、酸牛奶和烘焙蘇打來烘烤麵包。如今，這款質地紮實的蘇打麵包成為了完美的懷舊美食，配上帶鹹味的愛爾蘭奶油，溫暖而厚實。

You don’t need yeast to get lofty bread: Chemical leavening can add air through an explosive combination of acidic and basic ingredients. While Native Americans used refined potash to leaven griddled breads – an early example of chemical leavening – this version became popular during the lean years of the Irish Potato Famine. With potato crops failing, impoverished Irish people started mixing loaves using soft wheat flour, sour milk and baking soda. Now, dense loaves of soda bread are a nostalgic treat that’s a perfect pairing with salted Irish butter.

🇹🇷 土耳其芝麻圈 (Simit)

Turkey

沾滿芝麻並擰成螺旋環狀的 Simit 是土耳其最經典的街頭速食。在烤入木炭烤箱前，麵包圈會先浸泡在糖水或稀釋的糖蜜中，這層糖衣在烈火烤炙下轉化為誘人的焦糖，帶來酥脆、散發焦香與微甜的完美外殼。時至今日，通勤者仍會在路邊攤打包一兩個溫熱的芝麻圈，做為一天的溫馨開始。

Dredged in sesame seeds and spiraled into rings, simit might be Turkey’s ultimate on-the-go treat. Commuters pick up their daily simit at roadside stands, where the deep-colored rings are stacked by the dozen. A burnished crust infuses the breads with a light sweetness – before sliding into wood fired ovens, simit is dunked in sugar-water or thinned molasses, a slick glaze that turns to caramel in the intense heat.

🇺🇸 美式比司吉 (Southern Biscuits)

United States

抹上奶油或澆上濃郁的肉汁，比司吉是美國最親民溫馨的靈魂風味。然而這看似簡單，製作卻相當不易：要達到鬆軟、層層分明的質地需要敏捷的手藝與極溫和的揉搓。在南北戰爭前的南方，比司吉是週日晚餐的奢華點綴；如今它已無處不在。其中一部分秘訣在於麵粉——通常採用 White Lily 等低蛋白質軟麥粉，早期這種軟麥大多產自美國南方。

Smeared with butter or dripping in gravy, biscuits are one of the United States’ homiest tastes. That’s not to say they’re easy to make: Achieving soft, fluffy biscuits requires quick hands and gentle mixing. In the antebellum South, biscuits were seen as a special treat for Sunday dinner. These days they’re nearly ubiquitous. Part of the secret is in the flour, typically a low-protein flour like White Lily.