It’s the YEAR of THE MONKEY!
As the sun rises…Today January 8th is the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year!
For many of China’s lunar holidays, people of northern China like to eat jiaozi (Chinese dumplings). Why are jiaozi so popular? Why do people always choose to eat jiaozi during the holidays?
Writer and lecturer of studies of Chinese ancient civilization, Wang Fengchen, explains that the earliest jiaozi were eaten in the Three Kingdoms Period when there were wonton in the shape of a crescent moon. Moving on to the Northern and Southern Dynasties, people ate jiaozi, back then called wonton, together with noodle soup. Only in the Tang Dynasty did people start to eat jiaozi without the soup. During the Song Dynasty, the name “jiaozi” began to evolve.
Apart from their rich history, jiaozi have been popular for many other reasons. Wang thinks jiaozi are the favorite food for the northern Chinese. I have to agree!! He says, They’re not only delicious, but also very simple to make. Different places have their different ways of making and eating jiaozi. For example, in some of the southern cities in China, jiaozi are made in the shape of ear of wheat, while people from the north tend to make jiaozi like crescent moons. People from some places like to eat jiaozi together with noodles, implying a wish for great fortune. Based on the auspicious shape of jiaozi, it usually has implications for wealth or a good harvest, which is why people like to eat jiaozi for luck and especially at New Year.
At the beginning of the hottest part of the summer, the beginning of autumn, the beginning of winter, the winter solstice, as well as the lunar New Year eve, people will eat jiaozi, rewarding past successes and hoping for good fortune in the following days. Chinese people have the tradition of being thrifty in managing a household, and as jiaozi are a delicious delicacy, people like to save them for important occasions. After being passed down for a thousand years, eating jiaozi has become an important part of Chinese culture.
And eating jiaozi on the 1st Day of the New Year is tradition. Guess what’s for dinner tonight?
Jiaozi!!!
and meatball soup and noodles!!!! Lots of favourites!!
新年快乐…快乐猴年 🐒
Tonight as 2015 passes to 2016, we are THANKFUL for having had another year and look forward to what a new year will bring! There are some exciting things already planned and here’s wishing for surprises and adventure along the way.
What are your thoughts and wishes as we celebrate this New Year’s Eve?
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!
David got Night Vision!
The dumpling cube presses out 4 at a time! But honestly David, how am I ever going to perfect my jiaozi making skills if I start using a cube? That just won’t do.
My parents and my sister and her family here. It is our family tradition and It has been a wonderful day celebrating together.
Christmas is a day of reflection, gratitude, togetherness, cheer, warmth, giving, and goodness. It’s unique for many reasons, one of them being that it happens one day a year. When a full moon occurs, there’s an overwhelming energy that arises. The sun and the moon are in opposite Zodiac signs. And while it proves to be a time of utter charge, it also brings about balance. The solar yang and the lunar yin are congruous.
It’s Christmas Eve …my favourite! 
The actual meal is always eaten after our Christmas Eve Church. Yum, Tortiere & Yule Log.
It is known as the longest night and shortest day. It is the Winter Solstice!
Just An East Coast Girl 