The Lunar New Year is just around the corner, and for those celebrating, one of the many things we look forward to during the festivities is the variety of snacks and goodies.
Most of these you will find at the Chow Luck Club Foodie Markets on Saturday 11th and 18th January at ParkCity 261 Morrin Road, St John’s.
For the Chinese especially, there is a strong emphasis on the symbolic meaning behind these foods - they can be related to how the food name is pronounced, the colour or even what they represent among other reasons.
The interesting thing is that the symbolism in food is just not just around what is served at the dinner table, but also with most of the cookies and snacks - which also carry a deeper meaning and significance.
Here’s how you can snack your way to good health and wealth when you pick up some of these goodies at the markets.
Nian Kao: This sticky rice cake is directly translated as “year cake”. It is made of sugar, glutinous rice flour and water. When pronounced, the name of the cake also sounds like “grow every year” which symbolizes a more prosperous year. According to legend, nian kao was first baked as an offering to the Kitchen God so that he would have only sweet things to report to the jade Emperor, and because it is sticky, it also seals his mouth to prevent him from saying anything bad.
Bakkwa or Rou gan: This is a dried marinated meat that is slow-grilled and cut into large squares. The red colour of the sweet meat symbolises luck and serving this to friends means wishing them good fortune and a sweet year ahead. texture. It tastes like sweet barbecued meat and is traditionally made out of pork.
Pineapple Tarts: This pastry with pineapple jam can come in several shapes - sometimes with the jam on a biscuit base, or sometimes a small cylindrical shape or even as a ball. In the Hokkien dialect, pineapple is called “ong lai” which also sounds like “prosperity comes”. So eating pineapple tarts during Lunar New Year is believed to bring in wealth and good fortune.
Peanut Cookie: These are sweet and salty cookies that are filled with ground peanuts, shaped into small balls. In Cantonese, peanuts are called fa sang which symbolises good health and longevity.
Find these at
Chow Luck Club Foodie Market on Saturday 11 Jan and 18 Jan at ParkCity, 261 Morrin Road, St John’s. 10am - 3pm.
