100 Flower Blossoms
This dish is meant to wish you a blossoming and beautiful beginning in the New Year. Mom chose broccoli and cauliflower for their plentiful florets, and the carrot slices to add an important splash of vibrant color to the dish. The swirly egg white sauce is luxurious; you also can add cooked crab meat to the sauce, which is what my mom prefers. J.H.
Tea Eggs
In northern China, tea eggs symbolize golden nuggets and prosperity. The eggs are hard boiled first, then the shell is gently cracked and simmered in a black tea-soy sauce mixture. Once you peel off the shell, a beautiful marbled design emerges on the egg. J.H.
Crispy Egg Rolls
No celebration would be complete without my mom's famous egg rolls. Stacked together, they look like gold bars and symbolize wealth. The most important thing is to make sure you get the correct wrappers. Find them at an Asian market, in the freezer section. J.H.
Stir Fried Shrimp with Ketchup Sauce
The word for shrimp in Chinese is "ha," which of course symbolizes happiness! Mom wanted to make sure that I included this dish for you because she wishes you a fabulous year full of joy and laughter. By the way, in Asian cooking, color has significance. You might think that garnish is a waste of food, however a Chinese dish must be balanced in both taste and in looks. For example, this shrimp dish is very red, and Mom asked me to serve it on a bed of crisp, green shredded lettuce because it was important to balance the vivid red with another color and texture, especially for Chinese New Year. (Eye roll ...I know, crazy Chinese, eh? J.H.
The tradition of spending time with one's family and honoring both the older and younger generations and preparing oneself spiritually for the new year is a lovely one. To find out more ways to bring this culture to your home, visit Amazon.com. Here are some tempting choices! Gung Hei Fat Choy!
No comments:
Post a Comment