Monday, 23 January 2012

• Lunar New Years Eve's Dinner

  

  First I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Early Lunar New Year! Welcome to the Year of the Dragon! This is going to be a remarkable year because I'm born in the year of the Dragon, so looking forward to what this year may bring.

  Lunar New Year has always been my favorite holiday growing up because of all the festivities and the food. I love spending days and days with family and friends enjoying the cultural food that's eaten on this special occasion.

  On the night before Lunar New Year, a special Reunion Dinner takes places. For this meal, the best foods and dishes with a meaning are served - and in abundance too, as the abundance of food is believed to bring the family great material wealth for the new year.

  

  The New Year's Eve dinner is very large and traditionally includes chicken, pork, and fish. Most reunion dinners will include a whole chicken, symbolizing prosperity (note: chicken with its head, tail, and feet symbolizes completeness) and a whole fish symbolizing surplus and prosperity.

  In my family, it's a tradition to have eight dishes because eight is a special and lucky number in the Asian culture.

  

  My mom makes the best shrimp (at least I think so). They're always cooked to the right texture and just divine! I am semi-allergic to shrimp so I don't get to eat it a lot.

  I have to say my mom's shrimp is one of the best dishes she makes. It's bright, inviting, and so appealing.

  

  I love my mom's vermicelli, more than any one else's because my mom's vermicelli always comes out great-tasting and it's never too soggy or too undercooked because it's just perfect.

  She always garnishes the vermicelli with dried baby shrimp and scallions. This is a very simple dish that contains minimal ingredients, but a great taste to it!

  

  Another famous dish during most traditional Chinese dinners is crispy pork. I love sucking on the skin for extra flavor and the crispy texture. It goes perfectly with some sweet Hoisin sauce and best eaten the day you buy it when it's crispy, crunchy, and juicy!

  

  I love my mom's mixed vegetable dish with calamari because it comes with an array of vegetables, such as: bok choy, onions, lotus, broccoli, cauliflower, snow peas, calamari, wood ear, and some others. This is definitely one of my favorites!

  

  My ultimate favorite dish is the pig feet with bean curd and bean curd paste that my mom makes. Many members of my family say this is the best they've ever had from my mom.

  This was one of my grandpa's favorite dishes when he was alive. I'm always going to remember this when I eat it because it's one of my favorites too.

  There's not much meat on the pig feet but it's still full of flavor. The bean curd stick is usually deep fried first and than mixed in with the braised pig feet and bean curd paste. When it all comes together, it's truly delicious. I would love to learn how to make this dish someday.

  Lunar New Year is by far one of my favorite holidays and it's great to spend with family, but it's also great to be exposed to so many different types of food. I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Lunar New Year!

  What's your favorite dish on Lunar New Year?

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