Happy Lunar New Year to foodspotters who celebrate today! In your honor (and mine), we put together some lucky foodspottings to ensure you guys have an awesome Year of the Dragon...
Some of our favorite food traditions include exchanging tangerines with family and friends to bring good luck and wealth. Not coincidentally, the Cantonese word for tangerines sounds just like the word for "gold."
Fish and chicken are served with head and feet intact to signify completeness and to symbolize a good beginning and end to the new year.
Noodles are eaten to bring longevity; savory and sweet glutinous rice cakes called nian gao are served to inspire "higher" achievements and status, especially in business; vegetarian dishes, which all fall under the general name jai, are eaten in the spirit of Buddhist culture, and so on.
You'll find that Chinese culture will freely transfer attributes from one object to another if their names sound alike and Lunar New Year traditions are no exception. This said, be sure to avoid serving four of anything because the number four sounds like "death" in Cantonese. Instead, opt for eight of everything - perfect for groups and for sharing. Not to mention, the number eight is pronounced bot in Cantonese, which sounds vaguely like fot aka richness. Wishing you richness in all you experience this year, friends!
