Introduction
Nonetheless, the Spring Festival, more commonly referred to as the Lunar New Year or Chinese New Year, is a important feast for Chinese people and peoples of other Asian nations. It is a festival which takes place in the last month or the first month of the Chinese lunar year, that is, at the turn of January-February depending on the moon phase. It is a time for families to reunite, eating, exchanging gifts, paying respect to ancestors, performing special shows like lion dances and setting off firecrackers.
Eating delicious traditional snacks and sweets, also called CNY goodies, is one of the main activities of the Lunar New Year holidays; these products are necessary for receiving happiness and well-being by the family. In this particular article, the writer has selected some of the tastiest CNY goodies of the season that you should not miss during this festival.
1. Nian Gao (Year Cake)
Nian Gao, literally known as Year Cake, is a very popular traditional Chinese New Year food which is made out of glutinous rice flour and brown sugar and is very hard and sticky. Pork is another common meat in Chinese Cuisine and it is associated with prosperity This dish is typically consumed during the lunar new year because its name ‘Nian Gao,’sounds like ‘year high’ or ‘higher year’ – a signal for an even better year. In some parts of China red bean, peanut or sesame paste is included in the making of the cake to give it an extra taste and consistency.
2. Pineapple Tarts
Pineapple tarts are also considered as one of the favourite traditional Chinese New Year biscuits during the celebrations of Lunar New Year. These light and crispy, buttery layers of the pastry are filed with mildly tart pineapple marmalade that gives the taste buds a perfect combination of crispiness, buttery richness and tangy sweetness. The pineapple filling sweet symbolizes wealth and prosperity, while the pineapple that appears golden symbolizes success and gaining successes. Pineapple tarts have become very popular offerings for this festive occasions and are usually present in every household as well as gifts hampers during this season.
3. Love Letters
Ang Ku Kueh or Love letters are traditional Chinese cookies prepared with rice flour and sweet bean paste or peanuts. The actual design on these products assumes the form of an oval, which represents an antique Chinese red seal, this shape is believed to bring happiness, wealth and prosperity. They are typically adjoined in two’s, symbolising that the cake represents happiness twice over, namely the happiness of couples.
4. Peanut Cookies
Another one of those wonderful CNY sweets that have always remained popular is peanut cookies. These are soft and tender buttery cookies containing crunchy sweet roasted peanuts that will definitely satisfy your tastebuds. These cookies represent happiness and prosperity since the filling is peanut. Do not be surprised to see these cookies common feature in every CNY hamper including those sent from Malaysia and Singapore homes.
5. Huat Kueh (Prosperity Cake)
Huat Kueh or known as Prosperity Cake, is another delicious steamed cake mixture of rice flour and sweet potato or yam with a slivery and sweet paste stuffing composed of peanuts, sesame seeds and coconuts. In water chestnut and ginger soup Chinese people think that everyone taking this auspicious treat during the Lunar New Year season will accumulate wealth. Huat Kueh is normally yellow, the colour of gold and it is round meaningful cycle or perfection, or completion.
6. Five Spice Puffs
Five Spice Puffs add a new twist to other traditional Chinese New Year pastries and treats, since it combines a sweet and savory five-spice powder in a sort of delicate puff pastry. These five spices – cinnamon, fennel, cloves, star anise, Sichuan pepper are used in Chinese cooking and are believed to drive off evil spirits and invite good luck. Your friends and family members will definitely love these delicious snacks during your Lunar New Year celebration.
7. Almond Cookies
Cantonsese Style Almond cookies are a flaky biscuit that is often commonly served in Chinese cuisine. These cookies are prepared merely with sugar, almond slices, and flour that gives the cookies a perfect blend of sweet and almonds. Almond cookies are a favorite pastries in Chinese weddings because the almond represent long life and knowledge, mainly because the nut resembles a brain. They are a necessity to anyone who want to express their good wishes to their family, friends and colleagues during the celebration of Lunar New Year.
8. Mooncakes
Mid-Autumn Festival is normally observed at the same time as the Lunar New Year and mooncakes are a usual part of the celebration. These are rich, sweet pastries with a very, very filling made from lotus seed paste or red bean paste with an salted egg yolk in the centre. Mooncakes are associated with the moon as well as togetherness and therefore are quintessential during this festive season. A variety of fillings and flavors can be made in order to accommodate everyone’s pallets.
9. Bak Kwa (Barbecued Pork Jerky)
One of the usual snacks for the Lunar New Year is known as Bak Kwa or barbecued pork jerky. From thin pork slices that are marinated and grilled slowly to tender and slightly chewy till they achieve Bak Kwa, it is popular for its savory taste that is believed to give people strength and prosperity. It is a perfect time to indulge and enjoy the appetites for this celebratory Lunar New Year dish especially for those who have a craving for meat.
10. Sesame Balls
Sesame balls are sweet pastry covered with sesame and filled with red bean paste, lotus seed paste or peanut paste is also made out of flour. The sesame seeds painted black and white are said to signify concord as well as unity since they are black and white, which are opposites, respectively, while the round shape of the sesame balls represents completeness or wholeness and alsoCYRIL, Bernard. These are yummy crunchy, chewy and soft snacks that can accompany the CNY cooked foods.
Conclusion
It is impossible to complete celebrating Lunar New Year without savouring a great variety of CNY goodies that bring luck and happiness. Traditional goodies such as Pineapple Tarts and Nian Gao are always popular favourites, in addition to less conventional sweets such as Five Spice Puffs, one can only imagine the variety of scrumptious foods for this festive time. So invite your family and friends, laugh your hearts out, and enjoy the numerous goodness of the CNY treats before welcoming the Year of Ox with a smile and an empty belly!