Lucky foods for your Chinese New Year recipes
© KarmaWeather by Konbi - All rights reserved
In the Asian culture, the Lunar New Year, which marks the beginning of the spring festival, is a festive period punctuated by meals whose dishes must be as varied as they are generous.
Furthermore, the foods shared on the occasion of the Chinese New Year have a value as much gastronomic as symbolic.
The Lunar New Year period is probably the most important moment of the year in Asia. In China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia, South Korea, the Philippines, and around the world, from Canada to Australia, families and friends gather to share festive meals together, at home and in restaurants.
In the table below, we begin by recalling the classification of foods (fruits, vegetables, herbs) as they are traditionally used both in cooking and in Chinese medicine.
Each element has its own culinary and medicinal virtues, which can be transposed to specific foods and organs, senses or functions of the human body.
Food classification according to Chinese medicine
| Element | Organ | Quality | Fruit, vegetable, herbs | |
| 🌳 | Wood | Gallbladder, liver, muscles, tendons, ligaments, eyes | Drawing, reading, table tennis, visual acuity, birth, elimination, acid taste | Wheat, kiwi, salad, Chinese cabbage, broccoli, green beans, olive oil, avocado, pistachios, coriander, thyme, rosemary, mint, verbena lemongrass, parsley, basil |
| 🔥 | Fire | Blood stream, heart, blood vessels, small intestine, throat, tongue, sweat | Speech, songs, joy, laughter, athleticism, warmth, bitter taste | Tomatoes, red peppers, red peppers, watermelon, strawberries, peach, cherries, raspberries, red beets, peanuts |
| 🗿 | Earth | Mouth, lips, flesh, blood, inner fluids, saliva, pancreas, spleen, stomach | Compassion, delicacy, cooking, outdoor sports, humidity, taste and smell, sweet taste | Rye, corn, banana, lemon, apricot, pineapple, honey, sunflower oil, potato, cashew, cinnamon |
| 🛠 | Metal | Nose, lungs, skin, hair, tears, large intestine, mucus | Harvest, fitness and yoga, freshness, spicy taste | Rice, soy, onion, turnip, white radish, lychee, cauliflower, white mushrooms, coconut, dragon fruit, pine nuts |
| 💧 | Water | Bone marrow, bones, joints, ears, saliva, kidneys, bladder, urine | Audition, writing, salty taste | Black beans, plums, prunes, blackberries, black currants, eggplants, dates, coffee, raisins, pepper, poppy seeds, nigella seeds, figs |
Now, thanks to the table below, you will be able to customize your Lunar New Year meal according to your wishes for the coming year. Depending on whether you are looking for good luck, health, wealth and prosperity or success, adapt your menu according to your personal, family and professional aspirations.
If some of the listed foods are closely related to the Chinese tradition, you have no obligation to apply specific recipes. Even in China, there are hundreds of ways to cook dumplings or noodles. The only thing that matters about noodles is that they are of a consistent length, because it is the guarantee of the longevity with which they are associated.
🥟 Chinese New Year's lucky foods
| Desired virtue | Chinese New Year foods | |
| 💰 | Money, prosperity | Dumplings, spring rolls, lobster, seaweed, grapefruit, tangerines |
| 🖖 | Longevity | Noodles, peaches, bamboo shoots, leeks, chives |
| 🍀 | Good fortune and abundance | Whole fish (catfish, carp), meat, poultry, seafood |
| 💰🍀 | Money and lasting luck | Orange, tangerine, dried apricots, shrimps, bean sprouts |
| 🔑 | Success | Rice cake |
| 🍊 | Fertility, good health | Eggs, lotus seeds, grapefruit seeds |
| 🕊 | Peace | Roast pork |
| 💙 | Loyalty | Duck |
| 🤞 | Hope, happy family | Watermelon, tofu |
Finally, below, you will find a non-exhaustive list of the most popular traditional Chinese New Year snacks.
🥮 Chinese New Year snacks and desserts
- Moon cakes
- Nan Gao donuts
- Love letters
- Bahulu
- Bak Kwa
- Peanut cookies
- Fortune cookies
- Peanuts puffs
- Shrimp rolls
- Twisted cookies
- Crispy honeycombs
- Pineapple tartlets