Ever experience superstitious eating? With Chinese New Year coming up, the Chinese community prepare the most important dinner banquet on the eve of the New Year. Each dish is specifically selected to represent what the year ahead would hopefully bring.
Some dishes are key – a whole fish is included, whether it’s steamed or fried. The Chinese phrase ‘may there be surpluses every year’ sounds the same as ‘may there be fish every year’. It is advise not to eat the fish completely but to have leftovers, representing an abundance of food supply year round. The other superstition is to not flip the whole fish over while eating as it represents ‘rocking of the boat’ which is bad luck.
Hefty pigs’ trotters braised in midnight, syrup-like juices with mushrooms and black fungus is a significant dish. The trotters are shaped like Chinese gold nuggets, portraying wealth.
A must-have dish is noodles served uncut, representing long life. It can be served as an accompaniment, plainly fried with strips of mushrooms and greens or as a main dish, spilling with surf, turf and green options. 'Slirping' the noodles is highly recommended, as not only is it a representation of not ‘breaking’ your long life, but it is also a sign of appreciation of the food served.
It is ideal to serve an even number of dishes, where eight to twelve is perfect and common for the banquet celebration. But definitely not four dishes as in Chinese, ‘four’ sounds the same as ‘death’.
So if you’re lucky enough to be invited to a Chinese New Year’s Eve banquet, remember to 'slirp' the noodles, indulge in pig’s feet and not flip the fish for a year of longevity, wealth and abundance.
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