At the mention of Chinese New Year, most people will think of red packets and reunion dinners by default. After all, the latter is a major part of the celebrations, and Chinese New Year would not be the large gathering of families that it is if not for the feasting that leaves everyone content and satiated.
Anticipation builds as people look forward to special once-a-year dishes that are only prepared and consumed during the festive season. While menu items can vary from family to family, and how impossible it is to list them all, here are just a few most popular reunion dishes (and their cultural significance) that you will find at reunion dinners when you ‘balik kampung’!
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Poon Choy
Starting off big, Poon Choy – or Pen Cai as it is alternatively called – is a large pot of premium ingredients stacked layer by layer. An authentic Cantonese dish, not all dialect groups in Malaysia practice eating Poon Choy, though most do these days due to the popularity of the exclusive dish.
From the bottom, you’ll find stacks of vegetables like cabbages, radishes and mushrooms, followed by meats and seafood at the top. As the stack gets higher, so does the quality of food. Usually, meats like chicken, pork and beef are found in the middle layer while the top layer will feature top-class ingredients like fish maw, abalones, crabs and prawns.
It’s a labour-heavy dish which requires the help of many to assemble. As such, Poon Choy is a way of encouraging teamwork in the family. Once the ingredients are ready, the large pot is simmered until all the ingredients are thoroughly cooked before serving.
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Steamed Dumplings
An ever-popular dish all year, steamed dumplings or Jiao Zi are especially sought after during the festive season. Every reunion dinner table will probably feature these fragile yet flavourful bites because they are thought to represent gold ingots – an ancient Chinese currency. The similarity in shape and colour is believed to symbolise wealth and prosperity for the family.
Generally, steamed dumplings are filled with minced pork, chicken or radish, and they can be served fried as well and are paired with a dipping sauce like soy sauce.
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Deep-Fried Spring Rolls
Another classic all-year-round dish, spring rolls are consumed especially more in the Lunar New Year because it coincides with the Spring season which marks the beginning of a new year. These crispy bars are a must-have at reunion dinners as not only do they represent a new beginning, the golden spring rolls also look eerily similar to gold bars and therefore represent wealth as well.
Spring rolls are stuffed generously with julienned vegetables that are fresh picks of the season and paired with chilli sauce for an extra zing to every bite.
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Longevity Noodles
Also known as Chang Shou Mien, long noodles are considered a lucky dish because they symbolise longevity for all who eat them. The rule of thumb with preparing Longevity Noodles is that they remain uncut or unserved so as to maintain the luck it brings.
Though supermarkets sell packaged longevity noodles, bee hoon is a good alternative to the dish as it is served with various vegetables and seafood.
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Steamed Fish
Many Chinese New Year foods allude to symbols of wealth and the steamed fish dish is no different. Fish or ‘Yu’ as it is pronounced in Mandarin sounds similar to the words ‘excess’ or ‘abundance’, and to have a surplus of wealth at the start of the year is always a good sign for the rest of the year.
Every family probably has their own method of preparing this steamed fish dish. Some prefer to use ginger and scallion and soy sauce to accompany steamed fish, while others prefer to deep fry the fish. Regardless, it remains important that the head and tail of the fish remain intact throughout the cooking process to keep the good luck in place.
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Poached Chicken
A centrepiece to the reunion dinner table, whole chicken is used to represent family unity and togetherness for the upcoming year. Some households choose to deep-fry chicken to keep it finger-licking good whereas others poach their whole chicken instead.
Whatever the method of cooking, like fish, it is important that the head and the feet are not removed before cooking, as breaking them off would be considered a bad omen.
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Buddha’s Delight
Purely vegetarian through and through, Buddha’s Delight is consumed early on in the celebrations as Buddhism states that one should not consume any animals in the new year as a form of self-purification.
Though most religious families continue to subscribe to this belief, these days Buddha’s Delight is still a mainstay on the dinner table regardless. Religious connotations aside, the dish is still packed with cultural significance thanks to its ingredients.
The carrots are said to be auspicious thanks to its reddish hue and the ways it is cut into slices can be synonymous with coins and wealth. Fatt Choy (black moss) is another seasonal ingredient that is homonym for ‘Fa Cai’ which means ‘to be prosperous’. Snow peas, thanks to their circular shape, represent unity while bamboo shoots signify a long and happy life for the family members.
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Roast Peking Duck
Considered a luxury dish, Roast Peking Duck is an expensive meal to prepare and to have it for the Lunar New Year is a sign of good wealth for the upcoming year. The red colours of the crispy skin are also considered auspicious, making it a must-have dish during any reunion dinner. Not to mention, the glossy, red colours are as much a feast for the eyes as it is for the taste buds.
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Yee Sang
Not necessarily a ‘reunion dish’ per se, but definitely worth a mention is Yee Sang as it stands as an iconic meal of the celebrations, with every family or business doing the toss or ‘lo hei’ at least once during the holidays.
In its essence, Yee Sang is a salad made with sliced vegetables like carrots, radish and meng kuang. Premium ingredients like raw fish and salmon are usually included alongside crackers, sesame seed and mandarin oranges for an added dose of good fortune.
The ‘lo hei’ ceremony starts with everyone tossing the ingredients up high with their chopsticks while shouting popular Chinese New Year phrases or greetings. It is believed that the one who tosses the highest will have the best fortune in the upcoming year.
Delicious Dishes For Reunion Dinner
While the thought of these dishes will have everyone’s mouths salivating, it’s no easy feat to prepare them all, and the lead-up to the big day is usually when the kitchen gets increasingly busy.
As such, some families and get-togethers turn to food delivery services for a little assistance. We don’t want to take away the joy of preparing these dishes together, but if you’re running short on resources, a browse on foodpanda will give you the nearest restaurants serving these delectable goodies.
Give it a try to impress your friends and families on Chinese New Year. They won’t be forgetting the good time and good food they’ve had at your reunion dinner when the next festive season comes around.