How to make lucky Chinese Lunar New Year dishes to bring money and happiness
- S.C. Moey describes Chinese festivals and gives recipes for how to make dishes traditionally eaten on those occasions
- She includes Lunar New Year dishes created to bring wealth, happiness and luck, and recipes for any Chinese feast – from roast pork to Yangzhou fried rice
Preparing a Chinese festival feast back in the old days must have been a daunting task.
In Chinese Feasts & Festivals – A Cookbook (2006), S.C. Moey writes: “It is often said that the Chinese live to eat. Happily for them, China’s rich history and culture have, with heaven’s mandate, conspired to fill the traditional calendar with a generous round of festivities at which all their gastronomic longings can be fulfilled.
“One good turn deserves another. To honour the benevolent powers that make all things possible, the Chinese install in their homes various guardians – some people call them gods – who at the appropriate times are invited to participate in human festivities and are plied with food and drink.
“The gods eat the spiritual essence of the offerings and man consumes the delectable substance. Chinese ancestors, who are considered on par with the gods, are revered and worshipped in the same way with a glorious repast.
