Glutinous rice cake (年糕 Niángāo /nyen-gaoww/) is a lucky food eaten on Chinese New Year's Eve. In Chinese, glutinous rice cake sounds like it means "getting higher year-on- by year". In Chinese people's minds, this means the higher you are the more prosperous your business is a general improvement in life. People in Chengdu, southwest China, enjoy a Lunar New Year feast. There are auspicious foods to eat during the festival, and others you should avoid if you want good fortune in the new lunar year. Chinese New Year, celebrated in 2024 on Saturday, February 10th, marks the beginning of the Year of the Dragon, a symbol of power, strength, and good luck in Chinese culture. This festival is the cornerstone of Chinese tradition, lasting for 15 days and concluding with the Lantern Festival. What can you not eat during Chinese New Year? In Guangdong, people normally won’t order squash because squash, or gwa, sounds similar to death in Cantonese. In some places, porridge should not be eaten, because it is considered that only poor people have porridge for breakfast, and people don’t want to start the year “poor” as this is a You can’t have Chinese New Year without delicious dumplings! In 2025, dumplings still symbolize wealth, as their shape resembles gold ingots. The more dumplings you eat, the more money you’re said to attract. And if you’re lucky enough to find a coin hidden in one, it’s a sure sign that you’ll have an extra lucky year! Mention Chinese New Year food, dumplings, fish, glutinous rice balls, and niangao may come into mind. Food plays an important role in Chinese New Year and certain foods which have symbolic meanings of luck and auspiciousness are especially popular and essential during the festival. Here are 7 Chinese New Year Foods that will bring you good luck. For Seollal, Korea’s Lunar New Year, people eat tteokguk, which is a rice cake soup made with water, beef, green onion, and egg. Centering thin white disk-shaped rice cakes that resemble coins In many parts of China, tang yuan are eaten at the start of the Lantern Festival, marking the end of the Chinese New Year period, but in Shanghai and the south, they're eaten throughout the New Year festivities. The glutinous rice balls might be plain and the size of a small marble, or larger and stuffed with sweet black sesame paste. Nian gao, also known as “rice cake” or “New Year cake” in English, are a must for Chinese New Year. In ancient times, nian gao were used only as offerings to the ancestors and gods. Gradually, they became a traditional dish during the Spring Festival. Now they are available every day of the year, but are still a special treat for the You may think “Lunar New Year” and “Chinese New Year” refer to the same event. That’s not the case! The Lunar New Year celebration in South Korea or Vietnam looks different than a celebration of the Lunar New Year in China. The holidays take place on different dates, too. In 2025, China begins to celebrate its Lunar New Year on Most Americans consider January 1 the start of the new year, but many Asians and Asian-Americans don’t. Instead, they follow Lunar New Year, also referred to as Chinese New Year in the U.S., which begins on January 29, 2025. (That’s the Year of the Snake in the Chinese zodiac, BTW.) Because the Sticky rice cake is also called “New Year cake” in Chinese, which is homonymous with “getting higher every year”, eating “New Year cake” means that people’s work and life are getting better and better year by year. Babao rice (八宝饭 / 八寶飯) The foods served to celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year hold symbolic meanings such as luck, prosperity, happiness and togetherness. While there is a long list of foods that are part of the celebration, you can discover how to welcome good fortune into your life with this roundup of eight commonly eaten Chinese Lunar New Year foods. Sweet Sticky Rice Chinese New Year Cake, also known as nian gao, is a Chinese New Year (CNY) treat that is first steamed and then pan fried in egg. #Chinesenewyear #newyearcake #dimsum During the Chinese New Year period, most Chinese people are highly aware and sensitive about the need to perform good deeds and auspicious acts because they believe that the positive energy and accumulated karma is a prelude to a smooth-sailing year ahead. Not eating beef, which stands for benevolence and mercy, is one of those deeds. 8 Lucky Foods To Eat During Chinese New Year To Have A Heng Ong Huat 2020! This is the ultimate guide to your reunion dinner this Chinese New Year Eve, make sure to check each and every one off your checklist! Last but not least, happy Lunar New Year and HUAT AH! Read More: 10 Chinese New Year Snacks To Feast On During The Festive Season! Nian Gao (年糕 nián gāo), also called "rice cake" or "Chinese New Year cake", is a traditional food made from glutinous rice flour and eaten during Chinese New Year. Chinese New Year cake/Niao Gao is a must-eat snack for the Chinese Spring Festival. Eating Nian Gao always means a happy and lucky next year. Chinese New Year cake- Niao Gao As the Chinese New Year approaches on Jan. 29, most of the people are looking for ways to usher in good fortune and positive energy for the upcoming year. During the Lunar New Year Lunch hosted by New World Hotel, Feng Shui expert Patrick Fernandez from the Yin and Yang Shop of Harmony shares Then stop counting calories because legend has it that the more dumplings you eat, the more money you’ll earn during the new year. Nian Gao (sweet glutinous rice cake) Photograph: Resorts World 20. Niangao (Chinese New Year Cake) Niangao, the sticky rice cake, emerges as a culinary metaphor-laden with auspicious meanings. Associated with growth, progress, and the anticipation of a higher income, its name echoes the desire for “increasing prosperity year after year.”
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