Traditional foods to celebrate the Lunar New Year

Today marks the beginning of a very special time for the Chinese and several other cultures, as it is the beginning of the lunar new year. This holiday, celebrated by 20% of the world’s population, is honored differently in various countries, but food features prominently in all celebrations. For the Chinese new year, 2025 ushers in the Year of the Snake. Each of the foods traditionally eaten during this holiday has a meaning behind it.

Almost all of the traditional New Year’s foods are symbols of good luck and prosperity in the coming year, such as fish representing an increase in prosperity because ‘fish’ sounds like ‘surplus’ in Chinese. It’s not all about wealth, however, as the round shape of sweet rice balls, eaten throughout the Spring festival in south China, is associated with reunion and family togetherness.

In Tibet, Losar is celebrated with momo, a type of dumpling. These are packed with minced meat and are filled with juice, which necessitates a thicker wrapper to contain the liquid. The Vietnamese ring in Tet with a variety of dishes including a red sticky rice called Xoi Gac. This is a symbolic dish because of its vibrant red coloring, which comes from gac, a baby jackfruit that is hard to come by outside of Asia.

Seollal is the word for the Korean New Year, and the most significant dish for this holiday is Tteokguk, rice cake soup. It is usually made with beef or anchovy broth, beef chunks, thinly sliced rice cake, with egg or al-gomyeong (a type of omelette) whisked in to finish. This dish is believed to bring longevity, good health and fortune.