Celebrate the Chinese New Year with Traditional Chinese New Year Foods

Chinese New Year is a time of celebration for the people of China and for people of Chinese descent worldwide. Western people have also discovered the fun and excitement of celebrating the Chinese New Year.

One way to celebrate is to feast on traditional Chinese New Year food. Like everything associated with Chinese culture, the food served at Chinese New Year is very symbolic, each Chinese New Year food representing things like good luck, health, wealth, happiness, and a long life for those partaking in the feast.

Every year, according to Chinese legend, the Kitchen God makes a report to Heaven about each person and their family. For this reason, most Chinese families begin their Chinese New Year with an offering to the Kitchen God. Traditionally, this is a very sticky and sweet steamed cake. You can find an excellent recipe for this traditional Chinese New Year food here: http://www.123chinesenewyear.com/chinese-new-year-cake.html

Keep a bowl filled with tangerines (for wealth) and oranges (for happiness) as a centerpiece on your dining table or buffet, and encourage people to partake of them to ensure good things for the year to come. Also keep a "tray of togetherness" close to the fruit. This tray is a round tray or candy dish containing eight types of dried fruits and candies.

Pot stickers are another traditional Chinese New Year food. Their new moon shape represents a new beginning, and also represents wealth, as at one time there was money in the classic shape of the Pot Sticker. A wonderful recipe that never fails to please those who eat it is located here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chicken-Lo-Mein/Detail.aspx - for a lower fat variation on this recipe, try using ground turkey instead of ground pork.

Noodles, representing longevity, are another popular Chinese New Year food. Because they represent a long life, they should not be cut. Try serving Lo Mein: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chicken-Lo-Mein/Detail.aspx

Turnips, seasoned with ginger and soy sauce, are often served because their Chinese name "cai tou" also means "good luck".

Spring rolls symbolize wealth because of their shape, which is similar to bars of gold. You can find a great vegetarian recipe for this delicious Chinese New Year food here: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1618,132183-255193,00.html

The final course of any meal consisting of traditional Chinese New Year foods should be a whole fish, with its head and tail still attached. The Chinese word for fish is "Yu", which sounds very much like the words used for "wish" and "abundance", making this a doubly lucky food. Serving the fish with its head and tail both still attached represents a good beginning and end for the new year. You can bake or steam the fish according to your favorite recipe, or create something truly Chinese using this recipe: http://www.inmamaskitchen.com/RECIPES/RECIPES/Fish/Chinese_steamed_fish.html

For dessert, serve the Kitchen God's sticky cake, almond cookies, and consider making a big dish of Eight Precious Pudding: http://chinesefood.about.com/od/desserts/r/preciouspudding.htm

There are many, many delicious and traditional Chinese New Year foods. These are just a few of the hundreds of wonderful recipes out there, each recipe was chosen because it is easy enough for the novice Chinese cook to make with a minimum of fuss.

With these Chinese New Year foods, you and your family can sweep out the old year and welcome the new in fine style.