Chinese New Year is here once again with its full range of joyous activities and celebrative traditions, in particular when it comes to eating. Each food has a symbolic meaning and children and adults alike simply indulge in savouring the tasty dishes and the pleasure of eating.

The family gathering dinner is a most important event. No matter how far or near, people rush home for their family meal and mother is all geared up to prepare her finest dishes. The centerpiece of the dining table is always a "whole chicken" to symbolize "blessings for the whole family". Vegetables are to be eaten slowly from the beginning to the end of dinner to signify "longevity". Sometimes the fish on the table is a fake one that cannot be eaten which carries the meaning of "abundance". Some people include fish balls, shrimp balls and meat balls which represent the three scholarly rankings of the olden days and here they are considered as tokens for "success in examinations".
 

On the first day of Chinese New Year, many people prefer vegetarian dishes to clear and let their stomachs rest for a while. Northerners mostly eat dumplings which is a tradition handed down from the Tang Dynasty. The dumplings have to be wrapped on Chinese New Year's Eve. Their fillings are different from the ordinary days and include peanuts, chestnuts, red dates, and sugar. After midnight on Chinese New Year's Eve, people gather to eat the dumplings. When they come across sugar fillings, it means they will have a "sweet and pleasant life" the following year, while peanuts stand for "good health".

Rice cake is also a must for Chinese New Year and it symbolizes "each year is getting better than the last". The ingredients for rice cake vary from places to places. The South is noted for rice cake of finely ground with water while white rice cakes and yellow rice cakes are popular in the North. In the Southwest where many minority ethnic groups live, rice cakes are made with sticky rice. Noodles are another popular food during Chinese New Year. The lengthy noodles also symbolize "longevity".
 
On the 4th day of Chinese New Year, villagers of He Shan in China have a tradition of tying a red string around a live carp to visit each others' homes. In addition to saying all the congratulatory remarks, they also sing: "Lively carp, lively carp, may your family prosper throughout the year." When the head of household finishes listening to the song, he will lit the firecracker and distribute "red packets" of lucky money. The villagers will then leave happily and cook the carp into a delicious meal.
 
We would like to take the opportunity here to wish you all a happy Chinese New Year, good health, and a prosperous year ahead.