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Spring Festival is a time when families get together and celebrate, and just like in the West, that means lots and lots of eating! There are tons of goodies to choose from, but the most important meal happens on the night before the first day of the New Year, when families gather as one and dig in to a variety of traditional foods.

In many parts of China fish is eaten because the Chinese expression “May there be surpluses every year” (年年有余 – niannian you yu) sounds like “May there be fish every year” (年年有鱼 – niannian you yu).  For this reason, some families make sure they don’t eat the whole fish – the leftovers become the first surplus of the New Year!

No Spring Festival would be complete without dumplings, a traditional Northern Chinese dish that can be prepared in a variety of ways and is shaped like a crescent moon.

Although dumplings are eaten throughout China, people from the south also often eat New Years cakes. Other Spring Festival classics include Tangtuan, a sweet round dumpling-like confection, and noodles, which are considered symbols of longevity in Chinese culture because of their length. Over the fifteen days Chinese people chow down on all kinds of delicious treats, from Mandarin oranges to a large variety of sweets and cakes.

For more about Spring Festival food, see Northern Spring Festival Food (with dumpling recipe) and Southern Spring Festival Food.