'Lucky' foods during Chinese New Year

Our personal quirks to ensure good fortune and luck!

As the festive feasting gets underway, learn what food is considered lucky during CNY.

Melon seeds, or gua zi in Mandarin, imply not only "many sons" but also "multiple coins". When pronounced in Cantonese, also gua zi, it means “to be in constant thought of someone." These days it comes in flavours like plum, spice and cream, which are added during the stir-frying process.

Bottle gourd, or “hu lu”, sounds like “fu lu”, which means good fortune and prosperity.

You zi (pomelo) symbolises abundance as its Chinese name sounds like the word for "to have". There are two types: the red flesh that is sweeter but more expensive and the white flesh that is affordable but sour. Most Chinese prefer the sweetened one.

Nian gao, which literally means "year cake", is a Chinese New Year staple. It also symbolises "a steady progression", be it in one's education, career or life in general. Nian gao is also used to tempt the “heaven invigilators” so that they won’t report the bad things that one has done to the god of heaven. While it used to be wrapped in banana leaves, nian gao now comes in plastic packaging so that both the customers and shopkeepers do not have to get their hands sticky.

Sunflower seeds have a similar, auspicious meaning to melon seeds. They both imply family continuity. However, compared to melon seed that requires one to peel the shell, this is much easier to eat.

Macadamia has also joined the array of nuts eaten during the New Year celebration. The abalone flavoured ones can be read as assurance (bao) of a surplus (yu) in the year ahead.

Chinese oranges, or tangerines, have become the most popular gift during this period. They are called kam in Cantonese which also means "gold" in the same dialect. In Mandarin, they sound like ji or "lucky" and mean "gifts of good omen". The oranges are given in even numbers for good luck when visiting friends and relatives.

Raw lettuce or sheng cai imply "to grow money". It is usually eaten with braised abalone. Chinese leek or da suan, which sounds like "counting", is served by the Teochews with other dishes to make a combination symbolising auspicious abundance. Mixed with cuttlefish, or you yu in Mandarin, it means "counting continual abundance; if cooked with prawns, or har in Cantonese, it becomes "counting with laughter". The Hokkiens serve leeks during the reunion dinner. Leeks are sometimes hung for good luck during this season.

The Chinese are also very particular about fish served during this occasion. The Mandarin word for fish “yu” is a homophone for the Mandarin word “abundance”. During the reunion dinner, it is customary to serve a fish at the end of the evening meal as it is an auspicious sign for more abundance and prosperity in the New Year. Fish is also served whole, with head and tail, this signifies a whole year’s worth of prosperity, from beginning to the end.

The Northern Chinese will eat jiaozi (dumplings) for breakfast during Chinese New Year as the shape of the dumpling resembles the gold ingots used in Ancient China. Eating dumplings represents a hope for financial abundance in the coming year.

However, some foods are just not favoured during a Chinese New Year dinner. Bitter gourd, or anything known to be bitter is banned from the dining table. This is because Chinese believe that if you eat bitter foods (the Mandarin words for bitter has the same sound as the Mandarin word for suffering), your life in the coming year will be full of trials and tribulations.

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

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