🕷️ Crawler Inspector

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Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 170 (from laksa083)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa170.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.npr.org/2024/02/10/1230026990/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.npr.org/2024/02/10/1230026990/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2024\/02\/10\/1230026990\/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food","crawl_time":1776168293,"first_indexed_time":1707571484,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"org,npr!www,\/2024\/02\/10\/1230026990\/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food s443","src_root_hash":"156162564976766770","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"The best Lunar New Year dishes, according to NPR readers : NPR","meta_descriptions":["Much like Thanksgiving, many dishes eaten during the Lunar New Year are special to the holiday. NPR readers shared their most cherished dishes."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\nNPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\nMore than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called\nTet\nin\nVietnam\n,\nTsagaan Sar\nin\nMongolia\nand Seollal in\nKorea\n. Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead.\nCandied coconut, or\nmut dua,\nis a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSuzanne Nuyen\nCandied coconut, or\nmut dua,\nis a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nLike most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities\n.\nIn my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called\nbanh chung\nand candied fruits called\nmut\nare as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions.\nI wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren.\nResponses have been edited for length and clarity\nBanh chung\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSuzanne Nuyen\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSuzanne Nuyen\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nVietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish.\nFor Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the \"shockingly laborious\" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. \"I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love,\" wrote Nguyen.\nHot pot\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"\nAlvina Chu\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nAlvina Chu\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"\nAlvina Chu\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.\nAmy Fedun\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nAmy Fedun\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.\nAmy Fedun\nThere are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or\nhuoguo\nin China. In Vietnam, it's called\nlau.\nIn Japan:\nshabu-shabu\n. All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth.\n\"It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other,\" Alvina Chu wrote. \"Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!\"\nAmy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. \"There's a [Mandarin] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things,\" wrote Fedun \"Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both.\"\nFresh fruit\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSuzanne Nuyen\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.\nAnh Therese McCauley\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nAnh Therese McCauley\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.\nAnh Therese McCauley\nThe highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a\ngas leak\n. But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it \"\ncrème brûlée on a tree\n.\" \"It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that,\" McCauley wrote.\nJessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the\nmang cau,\nor custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. \"My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct,\" Hoang wrote. \"But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma.\"\nHainanese chicken\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food.\nMektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or\nSongkran,\nis celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or\nkhao man gai\nin Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors.\n\"The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat,\" she wrote. \"My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood.\"\nBraised pork belly\nThit kho trung,\nor caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSuzanne Nuyen\nThit kho trung,\nor caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.\nSuzanne Nuyen\nLike many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called\nthịt kho trứng.\n\"\nThịt kho\npaired with white rice is so comforting,\" Kimberly Huynh wrote. \"It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten.\"\nCarrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called\nDongpo pork\n. She wrote that the layers in the pork belly \"represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years.\"\nJai\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.\nSarah Low\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nSarah Low\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.\nSarah Low\nSarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. \"It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long,\" she wrote. \"It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present.\"\nAs for whether she still hates it? \"I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite,\" Low wrote.\nRice cake soup\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\nIt's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called\ntteokguk\n. The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year.\nMyung Armstrong garnishes her\ntteokguk\nwith seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring \"very happy memories making it with my mother.\"\nDumplings\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.\nMikayla Sanford\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nMikayla Sanford\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.\nMikayla Sanford\nDumplings\noriginated in Northern China\nand spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table.\nMikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as\nLosar.\n\"Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions,\" she wrote. \"My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year.\"\nRECIPE: Alice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\nThis recipe was provided by Alice Young.\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\nAlice Young\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nAlice Young\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\nAlice Young\nAlice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings.\" She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be \"creative and quick\" with her food. She created this recipe for her \"young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren.\" They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof.\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.\nAlice Young\nhide caption\ntoggle caption\nAlice Young\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.\nAlice Young\nIngredients:\nrotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced\nchopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix\nmayonnaise or vegenaise\nhoisin sauce\noyster sauce\nsesame seed oil\nwonton wrappers\nDirections:\nIn a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken\/meat\/tofu and chopped greens. \nAdd mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild.\nPut a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild.\nOptional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling.\nBoil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked\nFor fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked.\nServe with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar and sugar.","attrs_markdown":"Accessibility links\n\n- [Skip to main content](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2024\/02\/10\/1230026990\/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food#mainContent)\n- [Keyboard shortcuts for audio player](https:\/\/help.npr.org\/contact\/s\/article?name=what-are-the-keyboard-shortcuts-for-using-the-npr-org-audio-player)\n\n![]()\n\n****Loading****\n\n- **Hourly News**\n- **Listen Live**\n- **My Playlist**\n\n- Open Navigation Menu\n- [![NPR logo](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/chrome\/npr-logo-2026-animated.gif)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/)\n- **![Station Logo](https:\/\/branding.npr.org\/logo\/service-logo\/logo-Color-Logo-s305.png)**\n  \n  ![WAMU 88.5 logo](https:\/\/branding.npr.org\/logo\/service-logo\/logo-Color-Logo-s305.png)\n  \n  WAMU 88.5\n  \n  - 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[![](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/chrome\/nprplus\/logo.jpg?s=100) Get NPR+](https:\/\/plus.npr.org\/?utm_medium=nprweb&source=globalsubnav)\n  - [More Podcasts & Shows](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/podcasts-and-shows\/)\n- [Search](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/search\/)\n- [Newsletters](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/newsletters\/)\n- [NPR Shop](https:\/\/shopnpr.org\/)\n- [![](https:\/\/cdn.optimizely.com\/img\/11107397707\/70256d3ff60441b1a8690a464256b0cc.svg)JOIN NPR+](https:\/\/plus.npr.org\/)\n- [Sign In](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2024\/02\/10\/1230026990\/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food)Personalize Your Experience\n\n- [![NPR Music](https:\/\/prod-eks-static-assets.npr.org\/chrome_svg\/music-logo-dark.svg) ![NPR Music](https:\/\/prod-eks-static-assets.npr.org\/chrome_svg\/music-logo-light.svg)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/music\/)\n- [Tiny Desk](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/series\/tiny-desk-concerts\/)\n- [New Music Friday](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/allsongs\/606254804\/new-music-friday)\n- [All Songs Considered](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/allsongs\/)\n- [Music Features](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/music-features)\n- [Live Sessions](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/series\/770565791\/npr-music-live-sessions)\n- [The Best Music of 2025](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2025\/12\/10\/g-s1-99930\/best-music-of-2025)\n\n- [About NPR](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/about\/)\n- [Diversity](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/diversity\/)\n- [Support](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/support\/)\n- [Careers](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/careers\/)\n- [Press](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/series\/750003\/press-room\/)\n- [Ethics](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/ethics\/)\n\n**The best Lunar New Year dishes, according to NPR readers** **Much like Thanksgiving, many dishes eaten during the Lunar New Year are special to the holiday. NPR readers shared their most cherished dishes.**\n\n### [Food](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/food\/)\n# Food holds special meaning on the Lunar New Year. Readers share their favorite dishes\nUpdated January 29, 202510:16 AM ET  Originally published February 10, 20248:00 AM ET\n\n[![Suzanne Nuyen](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2021\/04\/08\/suzanne_nuyen_sq-327cd6cfa5a6741c75158d23f2e35fe10d366446.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/people\/859721331\/suzanne-nuyen)\n\n[Suzanne Nuyen](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/people\/859721331\/suzanne-nuyen)\n\n![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nNPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.  **Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\n\n![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.]()\n\nNPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.\n\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\n\nMore than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called *Tet* in [Vietnam](https:\/\/www.vietnamonline.com\/tet.html), *Tsagaan Sar* in [Mongolia](https:\/\/www.viewmongolia.com\/tsagaan_sar.html) and Seollal in [Korea](https:\/\/www.90daykorean.com\/korean-lunar-new-year\/). Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead.\n\n![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nCandied coconut, or *mut dua,* is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.]()\n\nCandied coconut, or *mut dua,* is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nLike most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities**.** In my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called *banh chung* and candied fruits called *mut* are as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions.\n\nI wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren.\n\nSponsor Message\n\n[![Lunar New Year traditions evolve in the Asian diaspora](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/02\/gettyimages-137563231_sq-3ecded88b2debee31b4f5ea5a0de75f5dea51d8c.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2022\/02\/01\/1076304640\/lunar-new-year-traditions-asian-diaspora)\n\n### [Culture](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/culture\/)\n### [Lunar New Year traditions evolve in the Asian diaspora](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2022\/02\/01\/1076304640\/lunar-new-year-traditions-asian-diaspora)\n\n*Responses have been edited for length and clarity*\n\n### Banh chung\n![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.]()\n\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.]()\n\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nVietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish.\n\nFor Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the \"shockingly laborious\" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. \"I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love,\" wrote Nguyen.\n\n### Hot pot\n![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"  **Alvina Chu**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlvina Chu\n\n![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \\&quot;the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\\&quot;]()\n\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"\n\nAlvina Chu\n\n[![Friends, Family and a Feast: A Hot Pot How-To](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2019\/02\/04\/gettyimages-673163539_sq-9fbf5cd54969fbac601f0d26d0c003fbf4c84ed9.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2007\/02\/21\/7502906\/friends-family-and-a-feast-a-hot-pot-how-to)\n\n### [Kitchen Window](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/series\/4578972\/kitchen-window\/)\n### [Friends, Family and a Feast: A Hot Pot How-To](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2007\/02\/21\/7502906\/friends-family-and-a-feast-a-hot-pot-how-to)\n\n![Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.  **Amy Fedun**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAmy Fedun\n\n![Amy Fedun\\&\\#039;s special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.]()\n\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.\n\nAmy Fedun\n\nThere are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or *huoguo* in China. In Vietnam, it's called *lau.* In Japan: *shabu-shabu*. All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth.\n\n\"It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other,\" Alvina Chu wrote. \"Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!\"\n\nAmy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. \"There's a \\[Mandarin\\] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things,\" wrote Fedun \"Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both.\"\n\nSponsor Message\n\n### Fresh fruit\n![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.]()\n\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.  **Anh Therese McCauley**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAnh Therese McCauley\n\n![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \\&quot;weird fruit,\\&quot; but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.]()\n\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.\n\nAnh Therese McCauley\n\nThe highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a [gas leak](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2018\/04\/30\/606990225\/the-durian-fruit-is-known-for-its-potential-stench). But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it \"[crème brûlée on a tree](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thesalt\/2014\/05\/21\/314529503\/on-the-trail-of-durian-southeast-asias-cr-me-br-l-e-on-a-tree).\" \"It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that,\" McCauley wrote.\n\nJessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the *mang cau,* or custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. \"My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct,\" Hoang wrote. \"But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma.\"\n\n### Hainanese chicken\n![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.  **Elsy MektrakarnNguyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\n\n![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen\\&\\#039;s family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.]()\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food.\n\nMektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or *Songkran,* is celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or *khao man gai* in Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors.\n\n\"The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat,\" she wrote. \"My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood.\"\n\nSponsor Message\n\n### Braised pork belly\n![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\n*Thit kho trung,* or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh\\&\\#039;s favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.]()\n\n*Thit kho trung,* or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nLike many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called *thịt kho trứng.* \"*Thịt kho* paired with white rice is so comforting,\" Kimberly Huynh wrote. \"It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten.\"\n\nCarrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called [Dongpo pork](https:\/\/theculturetrip.com\/asia\/china\/articles\/a-brief-history-of-dongpo-pork-hangzhous-signature-dish). She wrote that the layers in the pork belly \"represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years.\"\n\n### Jai\n![Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.  **Sarah Low**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSarah Low\n\n![Sarah Low isn\\&\\#039;t the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.]()\n\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.\n\nSarah Low\n\nSarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. \"It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long,\" she wrote. \"It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present.\"\n\nAs for whether she still hates it? \"I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite,\" Low wrote.\n\n### Rice cake soup\n![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.  **Mike Coppola\/Getty Images**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\n\n![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.]()\n\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.\n\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\n\n[![Celebrating Lunar New Year away from home? Try these quick-fix Korean recipes](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2021\/02\/11\/dsc01125_sq-fd8cdf37840e034f58dbad554cb26074026829e0.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/02\/12\/967061237\/korean-american-tiktok-chefs-share-quarantine-recipes-for-lunar-new-year)\n\n### [Food](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/food\/)\n### [Celebrating Lunar New Year away from home? Try these quick-fix Korean recipes](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/02\/12\/967061237\/korean-american-tiktok-chefs-share-quarantine-recipes-for-lunar-new-year)\n\nIt's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called *tteokguk*. The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year.\n\nMyung Armstrong garnishes her *tteokguk* with seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring \"very happy memories making it with my mother.\"\n\n### Dumplings\n![Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.  **Mikayla Sanford**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nMikayla Sanford\n\n![Mikayla Sanford\\&\\#039;s makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.]()\n\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.\n\nMikayla Sanford\n\nDumplings [originated in Northern China](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thesalt\/2013\/02\/08\/171455463\/chinese-new-year-dumplings-rice-cakes-and-beyond) and spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table.\n\nSponsor Message\n\nMikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as *Losar.* \"Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions,\" she wrote. \"My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year.\"\n***\n### RECIPE: Alice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\n*This recipe was provided by Alice Young.*\n\n![Alice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"  **Alice Young**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlice Young\n\n![Alice Young\\&\\#039;s \\&quot;No Fuss Grandchildren\\&\\#039;s Chinese Dumplings\\&quot;]()\n\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\n\nAlice Young\n\nAlice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings.\" She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be \"creative and quick\" with her food. She created this recipe for her \"young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren.\" They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof.\n\n![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nEnlarge this image\n\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.  **Alice Young**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlice Young\n\n![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.]()\n\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.\n\nAlice Young\n\n**Ingredients:**\n\n- rotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced\n- chopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix\n- mayonnaise or vegenaise\n- hoisin sauce\n- oyster sauce\n- sesame seed oil\n- wonton wrappers\n\n**Directions:**\n\n1. In a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken\/meat\/tofu and chopped greens.\n2. Add mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild.\n3. Put a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild.\n4. Optional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling.\n5. Boil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked\n6. For fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked.\n7. 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We use this information to help operate the NPR Services more efficiently, to gather broad demographic information and to monitor the level of activity on the NPR Services.\n\n#### Functional Cookies\nFunctional Cookies\n\nThese cookies allow our Services to remember choices you make when you use them, such as remembering your Member station preferences and remembering your account details. The purpose of these cookies is to provide you with a more personal experience and to prevent you from having to re-enter your preferences every time you visit the NPR Services.\n\n#### Targeting and Sponsor Cookies\nTargeting and Sponsor Cookies\n\nThese cookies track your browsing habits or other information, such as location, to enable us to show sponsorship credits which are more likely to be of interest to you. These cookies use information about your browsing history to group you with other users who have similar interests. Based on that information, and with our permission, we and our sponsors can place cookies to enable us or our sponsors to show sponsorship credits and other messages that we think will be relevant to your interests while you are using third-party services.\n\n### Cookie List\nClear\n\n- checkbox label\n  \n  label\n\nApply\n\nCancel\n\nConsent Leg.Interest\n\ncheckbox label\n\nlabel\n\ncheckbox label\n\nlabel\n\ncheckbox label\n\nlabel\n\nReject All\n\nConfirm My Choices\n\n[![Powered by Onetrust](https:\/\/cdn.cookielaw.org\/logos\/static\/powered_by_logo.svg)](https:\/\/www.onetrust.com\/products\/cookie-consent\/)","attrs_readable_markdown":"![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nNPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.  **Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\n\n![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nNPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.\n\nJing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley\n\nMore than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called *Tet* in [Vietnam](https:\/\/www.vietnamonline.com\/tet.html), *Tsagaan Sar* in [Mongolia](https:\/\/www.viewmongolia.com\/tsagaan_sar.html) and Seollal in [Korea](https:\/\/www.90daykorean.com\/korean-lunar-new-year\/). Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead.\n\n![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nCandied coconut, or *mut dua,* is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nCandied coconut, or *mut dua,* is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nLike most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities**.** In my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called *banh chung* and candied fruits called *mut* are as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions.\n\nI wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren.\n\n*Responses have been edited for length and clarity*\n\n### Banh chung\n![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nBanh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nMaking banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nVietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish.\n\nFor Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the \"shockingly laborious\" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. \"I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love,\" wrote Nguyen.\n\n### Hot pot\n![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"  **Alvina Chu**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlvina Chu\n\n![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \\&quot;the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\\&quot;](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nAlvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"\n\nAlvina Chu\n\n![Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.  **Amy Fedun**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAmy Fedun\n\n![Amy Fedun\\&\\#039;s special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nAmy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.\n\nAmy Fedun\n\nThere are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or *huoguo* in China. In Vietnam, it's called *lau.* In Japan: *shabu-shabu*. All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth.\n\n\"It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other,\" Alvina Chu wrote. \"Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!\"\n\nAmy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. \"There's a \\[Mandarin\\] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things,\" wrote Fedun \"Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both.\"\n\n### Fresh fruit\n![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nIn Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.  **Anh Therese McCauley**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAnh Therese McCauley\n\n![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \\&quot;weird fruit,\\&quot; but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nAnh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.\n\nAnh Therese McCauley\n\nThe highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a [gas leak](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2018\/04\/30\/606990225\/the-durian-fruit-is-known-for-its-potential-stench). But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it \"[crème brûlée on a tree](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thesalt\/2014\/05\/21\/314529503\/on-the-trail-of-durian-southeast-asias-cr-me-br-l-e-on-a-tree).\" \"It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that,\" McCauley wrote.\n\nJessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the *mang cau,* or custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. \"My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct,\" Hoang wrote. \"But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma.\"\n\n### Hainanese chicken\n![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.  **Elsy MektrakarnNguyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\n\n![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen\\&\\#039;s family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen\n\nElsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food.\n\nMektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or *Songkran,* is celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or *khao man gai* in Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors.\n\n\"The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat,\" she wrote. \"My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood.\"\n\n### Braised pork belly\n![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\n*Thit kho trung,* or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.  **Suzanne Nuyen**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\n![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh\\&\\#039;s favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\n*Thit kho trung,* or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.\n\nSuzanne Nuyen\n\nLike many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called *thịt kho trứng.* \"*Thịt kho* paired with white rice is so comforting,\" Kimberly Huynh wrote. \"It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten.\"\n\nCarrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called [Dongpo pork](https:\/\/theculturetrip.com\/asia\/china\/articles\/a-brief-history-of-dongpo-pork-hangzhous-signature-dish). She wrote that the layers in the pork belly \"represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years.\"\n\n### Jai\n![Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.  **Sarah Low**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nSarah Low\n\n![Sarah Low isn\\&\\#039;t the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nSarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.\n\nSarah Low\n\nSarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. \"It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long,\" she wrote. \"It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present.\"\n\nAs for whether she still hates it? \"I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite,\" Low wrote.\n\n### Rice cake soup\n![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.  **Mike Coppola\/Getty Images**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\n\n![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nA view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.\n\nMike Coppola\/Getty Images\n\nIt's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called *tteokguk*. The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year.\n\nMyung Armstrong garnishes her *tteokguk* with seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring \"very happy memories making it with my mother.\"\n\n### Dumplings\n![Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.  **Mikayla Sanford**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nMikayla Sanford\n\n![Mikayla Sanford\\&\\#039;s makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nMikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.\n\nMikayla Sanford\n\nDumplings [originated in Northern China](https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thesalt\/2013\/02\/08\/171455463\/chinese-new-year-dumplings-rice-cakes-and-beyond) and spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table.\n\nMikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as *Losar.* \"Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions,\" she wrote. \"My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year.\"\n\n### RECIPE: Alice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\n*This recipe was provided by Alice Young.*\n\n![Alice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"  **Alice Young**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlice Young\n\n![Alice Young\\&\\#039;s \\&quot;No Fuss Grandchildren\\&\\#039;s Chinese Dumplings\\&quot;](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nAlice Young's \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings\"\n\nAlice Young\n\nAlice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls \"No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings.\" She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be \"creative and quick\" with her food. She created this recipe for her \"young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren.\" They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof.\n\n![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg)\n\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.  **Alice Young**  ****hide caption****\n\n****toggle caption****\n\nAlice Young\n\n![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https:\/\/media.npr.org\/assets\/img\/2024\/02\/09\/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg)\n\nAlice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.\n\nAlice Young\n\n**Ingredients:**\n\n- rotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced\n- chopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix\n- mayonnaise or vegenaise\n- hoisin sauce\n- oyster sauce\n- sesame seed oil\n- wonton wrappers\n\n**Directions:**\n\n1. In a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken\/meat\/tofu and chopped greens.\n2. Add mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild.\n3. Put a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild.\n4. Optional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling.\n5. Boil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked\n6. For fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked.\n7. Serve with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar and sugar.","meta_canonical":null}

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URL	https://www.npr.org/2024/02/10/1230026990/lunar-new-year-dragon-2024-food
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Meta Title	The best Lunar New Year dishes, according to NPR readers : NPR
Meta Description	Much like Thanksgiving, many dishes eaten during the Lunar New Year are special to the holiday. NPR readers shared their most cherished dishes.
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Boilerpipe Text	NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley hide caption toggle caption Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley More than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called Tet in Vietnam , Tsagaan Sar in Mongolia and Seollal in Korea . Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead. Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen Like most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities . In my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called banh chung and candied fruits called mut are as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions. I wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren. Responses have been edited for length and clarity Banh chung Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen Vietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish. For Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the "shockingly laborious" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. "I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love," wrote Nguyen. Hot pot Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu hide caption toggle caption Alvina Chu Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun hide caption toggle caption Amy Fedun Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun There are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or huoguo in China. In Vietnam, it's called lau. In Japan: shabu-shabu . All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth. "It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other," Alvina Chu wrote. "Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!" Amy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. "There's a [Mandarin] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things," wrote Fedun "Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both." Fresh fruit In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley hide caption toggle caption Anh Therese McCauley Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley The highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a gas leak . But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it " crème brûlée on a tree ." "It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that," McCauley wrote. Jessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the mang cau, or custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. "My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct," Hoang wrote. "But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma." Hainanese chicken Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen hide caption toggle caption Elsy MektrakarnNguyen Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food. MektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or Songkran, is celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or khao man gai in Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors. "The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat," she wrote. "My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood." Braised pork belly Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen Like many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called thịt kho trứng. " Thịt kho paired with white rice is so comforting," Kimberly Huynh wrote. "It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten." Carrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called Dongpo pork . She wrote that the layers in the pork belly "represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years." Jai Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low hide caption toggle caption Sarah Low Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low Sarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. "It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long," she wrote. "It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present." As for whether she still hates it? "I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite," Low wrote. Rice cake soup A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Mike Coppola/Getty Images A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images It's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called tteokguk . The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year. Myung Armstrong garnishes her tteokguk with seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring "very happy memories making it with my mother." Dumplings Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford hide caption toggle caption Mikayla Sanford Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford Dumplings originated in Northern China and spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table. Mikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as Losar. "Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions," she wrote. "My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year." RECIPE: Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" This recipe was provided by Alice Young. Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young hide caption toggle caption Alice Young Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young Alice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings." She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be "creative and quick" with her food. She created this recipe for her "young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren." They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof. Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young hide caption toggle caption Alice Young Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young Ingredients: rotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced chopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix mayonnaise or vegenaise hoisin sauce oyster sauce sesame seed oil wonton wrappers Directions: In a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken/meat/tofu and chopped greens. Add mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild. Put a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild. Optional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling. Boil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked For fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked. Serve with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar and sugar.
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NPR readers shared their most cherished dishes. ### [Food](https://www.npr.org/sections/food/) # Food holds special meaning on the Lunar New Year. Readers share their favorite dishes Updated January 29, 202510:16 AM ET Originally published February 10, 20248:00 AM ET [![Suzanne Nuyen](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2021/04/08/suzanne_nuyen_sq-327cd6cfa5a6741c75158d23f2e35fe10d366446.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https://www.npr.org/people/859721331/suzanne-nuyen) [Suzanne Nuyen](https://www.npr.org/people/859721331/suzanne-nuyen) ![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley hide caption toggle caption** Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley ![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.]() NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley More than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called Tet in [Vietnam](https://www.vietnamonline.com/tet.html), Tsagaan Sar in [Mongolia](https://www.viewmongolia.com/tsagaan_sar.html) and Seollal in [Korea](https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-lunar-new-year/). Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead. ![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption** Suzanne Nuyen ![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.]() Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen Like most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities. In my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called banh chung and candied fruits called mut are as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions. I wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren. Sponsor Message [![Lunar New Year traditions evolve in the Asian diaspora](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/02/gettyimages-137563231_sq-3ecded88b2debee31b4f5ea5a0de75f5dea51d8c.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https://www.npr.org/2022/02/01/1076304640/lunar-new-year-traditions-asian-diaspora) ### [Culture](https://www.npr.org/sections/culture/) ### [Lunar New Year traditions evolve in the Asian diaspora](https://www.npr.org/2022/02/01/1076304640/lunar-new-year-traditions-asian-diaspora) Responses have been edited for length and clarity ### Banh chung ![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.]() Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen ![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.]() Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen Vietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish. For Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the "shockingly laborious" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. "I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love," wrote Nguyen. ### Hot pot ![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites."](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu hide caption toggle caption Alvina Chu ![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"]() Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu [![Friends, Family and a Feast: A Hot Pot How-To](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2019/02/04/gettyimages-673163539_sq-9fbf5cd54969fbac601f0d26d0c003fbf4c84ed9.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https://www.npr.org/2007/02/21/7502906/friends-family-and-a-feast-a-hot-pot-how-to) ### [Kitchen Window](https://www.npr.org/series/4578972/kitchen-window/) ### [Friends, Family and a Feast: A Hot Pot How-To](https://www.npr.org/2007/02/21/7502906/friends-family-and-a-feast-a-hot-pot-how-to) ![Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun hide caption toggle caption** Amy Fedun ![Amy Fedun\&\#039;s special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.]() Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun There are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or huoguo in China. In Vietnam, it's called lau. In Japan: shabu-shabu. All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth. "It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other," Alvina Chu wrote. "Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!" Amy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. "There's a \[Mandarin\] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things," wrote Fedun "Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both." Sponsor Message ### Fresh fruit ![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.]() In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen ![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley hide caption toggle caption** Anh Therese McCauley ![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.]() Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley The highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a [gas leak](https://www.npr.org/2018/04/30/606990225/the-durian-fruit-is-known-for-its-potential-stench). But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it "[crème brûlée on a tree](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/05/21/314529503/on-the-trail-of-durian-southeast-asias-cr-me-br-l-e-on-a-tree)." "It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that," McCauley wrote. Jessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the mang cau, or custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. "My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct," Hoang wrote. "But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma." ### Hainanese chicken ![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen **hide caption toggle caption** Elsy MektrakarnNguyen ![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen\&\#039;s family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.]() Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food. MektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or Songkran, is celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or khao man gai in Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors. "The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat," she wrote. "My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood." Sponsor Message ### Braised pork belly ![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption** Suzanne Nuyen ![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh\&\#039;s favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.]() Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen Like many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called thịt kho trứng. "Thịt kho paired with white rice is so comforting," Kimberly Huynh wrote. "It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten." Carrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called [Dongpo pork](https://theculturetrip.com/asia/china/articles/a-brief-history-of-dongpo-pork-hangzhous-signature-dish). She wrote that the layers in the pork belly "represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years." ### Jai ![Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low **hide caption toggle caption Sarah Low ![Sarah Low isn\&\#039;t the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.]() Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low Sarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. "It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long," she wrote. "It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present." As for whether she still hates it? "I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite," Low wrote. ### Rice cake soup ![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption** Mike Coppola/Getty Images ![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.]() A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images [![Celebrating Lunar New Year away from home? Try these quick-fix Korean recipes](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2021/02/11/dsc01125_sq-fd8cdf37840e034f58dbad554cb26074026829e0.jpg?s=100&c=85&f=jpeg)](https://www.npr.org/2021/02/12/967061237/korean-american-tiktok-chefs-share-quarantine-recipes-for-lunar-new-year) ### [Food](https://www.npr.org/sections/food/) ### [Celebrating Lunar New Year away from home? Try these quick-fix Korean recipes](https://www.npr.org/2021/02/12/967061237/korean-american-tiktok-chefs-share-quarantine-recipes-for-lunar-new-year) It's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called tteokguk. The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year. Myung Armstrong garnishes her tteokguk with seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring "very happy memories making it with my mother." ### Dumplings ![Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford **hide caption toggle caption** Mikayla Sanford ![Mikayla Sanford\&\#039;s makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.]() Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford Dumplings [originated in Northern China](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/02/08/171455463/chinese-new-year-dumplings-rice-cakes-and-beyond) and spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table. Sponsor Message Mikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as Losar. "Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions," she wrote. "My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year." *** ### RECIPE: Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" This recipe was provided by Alice Young. ![Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings"](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young **hide caption toggle caption Alice Young ![Alice Young\&\#039;s \"No Fuss Grandchildren\&\#039;s Chinese Dumplings\"]() Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young Alice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings." She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be "creative and quick" with her food. She created this recipe for her "young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren." They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof. ![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Enlarge this image Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young hide caption toggle caption Alice Young ![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.]() Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young Ingredients: - rotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced - chopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix - mayonnaise or vegenaise - hoisin sauce - oyster sauce - sesame seed oil - wonton wrappers Directions: 1. In a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken/meat/tofu and chopped greens. 2. Add mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild. 3. Put a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild. 4. Optional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling. 5. Boil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked 6. For fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked. 7. Serve with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar and sugar. - Facebook - Flipboard - Email ###### Read & Listen - [Home](https://www.npr.org/) - [News](https://www.npr.org/sections/news/) - [Culture](https://www.npr.org/sections/culture/) - [Music](https://www.npr.org/music/) - [Podcasts & Shows](https://www.npr.org/podcasts-and-shows) ###### Connect - [Newsletters](https://www.npr.org/newsletters/) - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/NPR/) - [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/npr/) - [Press](https://www.npr.org/series/750003/press-room/) - [Public Editor](https://www.npr.org/sections/publiceditor/) - [Corrections](https://www.npr.org/corrections/) - [Transcripts](https://www.npr.org/transcripts/) - [Contact & Help](https://help.npr.org/contact/s/) ###### About NPR - [Overview](https://www.npr.org/about/) - [Diversity](https://www.npr.org/diversity/) - [NPR Network](https://www.npr.org/network/) - [Accessibility](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/1136563345/accessibility) - [Ethics](https://www.npr.org/ethics/) - [Finances](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/178660742/public-radio-finances) ###### Get Involved - [Support Public Radio](https://www.npr.org/support/) - [Sponsor NPR](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/186948703/corporate-sponsorship) - [NPR Careers](https://www.npr.org/careers/) - [NPR Shop](https://shopnpr.org/) - [NPR Extra](https://www.npr.org/sections/npr-extra/) - [Terms of Use](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179876898/terms-of-use) - [Privacy](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy) - [Your Privacy Choices](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy#yourchoices) - [Text Only](https://text.npr.org/) - © 2026 npr Sponsor Message Sponsor Message [Become an NPR sponsor](https://www.npr.org/about-npr/186948703/corporate-sponsorship) ![NPR Plus logo](https://prod-eks-static-assets.npr.org/chrome_svg/npr-plus/npr-plus-combo-logo.svg) ##### Exclusive benefits ###### Give a little. 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Readable Markdown	![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley **hide caption toggle caption** Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley ![NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/yellow-modern-burger-presentation-169-_wide-e0106e89e6c6ca2344b9640456948ea6e6196317.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) NPR readers share the dishes they love most for the Lunar New Year. Jing Gao; Alvina Chu; Amy Fedun; Beth Rogers-Ho; Alice Young; Elsy MektrakarnNguyen; Sarah Low; Anh Therese McCauley More than a billion people worldwide are celebrating the Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Snake, which began Wednesday. It's called Tet in [Vietnam](https://www.vietnamonline.com/tet.html), Tsagaan Sar in [Mongolia](https://www.viewmongolia.com/tsagaan_sar.html) and Seollal in [Korea](https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-lunar-new-year/). Whether it's celebrated in Asia or abroad, the annual holiday is a time for many to honor elders, spend time with family, reflect on the past year and wish for a lucky year ahead. ![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption** Suzanne Nuyen ![Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_0653_vert-0578371ca74437cb3d8cd4c77604838b3a79f68a.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Candied coconut, or mut dua, is a common dish seen at Vietnamese New Year celebrations. Suzanne Nuyen Like most holidays, a bountiful spread of food is essential to Lunar New Year festivities. In my Vietnamese household, rice cakes called banh chung and candied fruits called mut are as essential to the New Year as turkey and mashed potatoes are to Thanksgiving. Traditional foods vary across Asian cultures. Some have even evolved as Asian diaspora communities invite others to share in their traditions. I wanted to know what dishes NPR readers couldn't go without on the Lunar New Year. These were some of the dishes that stood out as favorites, plus one special recipe a reader created for her grandchildren. Responses have been edited for length and clarity ### Banh chung ![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-2-98ff3be5e27957fabc35d2f21de8a6429ab6bfc7.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Banh chung and banh tet are quintessential parts of a Vietnamese Lunar New Year meal. Suzanne Nuyen ![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_5570-6fb7ba68471f914625603cac55d16ccd44527a7d.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Making banh chung involves a labor intensive process. Often, the entire family is roped in to help. Suzanne Nuyen Vietnam's quintessential Lunar New Year dish is a labor of love. Banana leaves are meticulously washed, then wrapped around sticky rice filled with pork belly and mung beans. The cakes are boiled for hours before they're ready to eat. It often takes a whole family to make the dish. For Yolanda Vo, the dish reminds her of her refugee parents, who brought their tradition to the U.S. nearly 50 years ago. Sahra Nguyen watches her mom make the "shockingly laborious" cakes every year. She wrote that she sees her mom's love for her family in her dedication to making the dish. "I feel deeply grateful for the opportunity to enjoy each bite because I know it's one of her biggest displays of love," wrote Nguyen. ### Hot pot ![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites."](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu hide caption toggle caption Alvina Chu ![Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because \"the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites.\"](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_1170-c2ee014ed6b94ef77453bb19c6cd4e64f899eda3.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Alvina Chu loves hot pot for the new year because "the meal gathers us around the pot to commune with each other and enjoy our favorite bites." Alvina Chu ![Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun hide caption toggle caption** Amy Fedun ![Amy Fedun\&\#039;s special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_inbound3750805933645060181_vert-29156076adc579eaac777c9835406162a8929f7e.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Amy Fedun's special hot pot includes whole grilled or baked fish and lamb chops. Amy Fedun There are endless varieties of Hot pot across Asia. It's also known as Chinese fondue or huoguo in China. In Vietnam, it's called lau. In Japan: shabu-shabu. All the dishes involve cooking meats, noodles and vegetables communally in a pot of broth. "It gathers the family around a single pot to linger and commune with each other," Alvina Chu wrote. "Everyone gets to pick what they like — and the prep is no-stress for mom!" Amy Fedun wrote that she loves a steamy pot on cold days. She tops her special hotpot with a whole grilled or baked fish, then stacks grilled lamb chops cut to look like bear paws on top of the fish. "There's a \[Mandarin\] saying that literally goes, 'you can't have both fish and bear paw,' meaning you have to make a choice between two desirable things," wrote Fedun "Well, here at my new year's table, you get to enjoy both." ### Fresh fruit ![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption Suzanne Nuyen ![In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_1425-ed7500d159b2c80718ba66f996be83c655bbebe2.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) In Vietnam, a display of fresh fruit represents gratitude to your ancestors on the new year. Suzanne Nuyen ![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley hide caption toggle caption** Anh Therese McCauley ![Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a \"weird fruit,\" but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_5445-1--ed6dccde73e24b92b1a16ba8c9d491f73775f719.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Anh Therese McCauley thinks durian is a "weird fruit," but loves it on the Lunar New Year regardless. Anh Therese McCauley The highlight of Anh Therese McCauley's Lunar New Year meals is when her mother brings out the durian fruit. It's an acquired taste. Its smell has been described as similar to a [gas leak](https://www.npr.org/2018/04/30/606990225/the-durian-fruit-is-known-for-its-potential-stench). But many covet its custardy taste and texture, calling it "[crème brûlée on a tree](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/05/21/314529503/on-the-trail-of-durian-southeast-asias-cr-me-br-l-e-on-a-tree)." "It's such a weird fruit, but we can claim it as ours in the Asian diaspora, and I can't help but love that," McCauley wrote. Jessica Hoang's Vietnamese fruit of choice is the mang cau, or custard apple. Her grandma always had it in her home during the new year. Her mother would tell her stories of growing up eating the fruit in Vietnam and using the seeds to play a marbles game. "My grandma was an intimidating woman — tough, cold and not afraid to be direct," Hoang wrote. "But her way of showing she cared was giving us food and telling us to eat. In those moments, for a few minutes, a young me was able to be close to my grandma." ### Hainanese chicken ![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen **hide caption toggle caption** Elsy MektrakarnNguyen ![Elsy MektrakarnNguyen\&\#039;s family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-2--daae5aa89df51d67e4fd157f4c0d94fed3191970.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family always includes Hainan chicken rice as part of their Lunar New Year table. Elsy MektrakarnNguyen Elsy MektrakarnNguyen's family has its roots in Hainan, China, just as this chicken and rice dish does. Hainanese migrants took the recipe with them when they migrated across Southeast Asia. The meal of poached chicken and garlic rice cooked in the chicken's broth is now an iconic fixture in Singaporean street food. MektrakarnNguyen's family moved to Thailand before her mother was born. Though the new year, or Songkran, is celebrated there in April, her family continued to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Hainanese chicken, or khao man gai in Thai, was often part of the table of offerings to their ancestors. "The garlic rice was precooked with LOTS of garlic and chicken fat," she wrote. "My house would smell of garlic for days after cooking it. The smells of my childhood." ### Braised pork belly ![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen **hide caption toggle caption** Suzanne Nuyen ![Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh\&\#039;s favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_6099-b15ebb09589054e6077aff2b7059ab5c4762392b.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Thit kho trung, or caramelized pork belly with eggs, is Kimberly Huynh's favorite Lunar New Year dish. She loves how the meat falls apart after hours of braising. Suzanne Nuyen Like many of the dishes mentioned above, a version of braised pork belly appears on many Lunar New Year tables across Asia. In Vietnam, hard-boiled eggs are added to the dish called thịt kho trứng. "Thịt kho paired with white rice is so comforting," Kimberly Huynh wrote. "It braises for hours and it just falls apart when it's ready to be eaten." Carrie Huang, from Taipei, Taiwan, enjoys a similar dish from Hangzhou, China called [Dongpo pork](https://theculturetrip.com/asia/china/articles/a-brief-history-of-dongpo-pork-hangzhous-signature-dish). She wrote that the layers in the pork belly "represent seasons of the year and the good times and challenging times, similar to the rings inside the trunk of a tree showing the tough years and the good years." ### Jai ![Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low **hide caption toggle caption Sarah Low ![Sarah Low isn\&\#039;t the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/img_20240208_190106-1--07c276c6d316f704b96ec6f01aac0098d685c096.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Sarah Low isn't the biggest fan of jai, but she makes it because it reminds her of her culture and her late grandparents. Sarah Low Sarah Low wrote that she used to hate jai, also known as Buddha's delight or lo han jai. Still, she makes this vegetarian dish every year to remember her late grandparents and the culture she grew up in. "It's a dish that is so different than what I cook all year long," she wrote. "It's a great way to remember the past and be mindful of the present." As for whether she still hates it? "I find I appreciate the flavors, but it's never going to be my favorite," Low wrote. ### Rice cake soup ![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption** Mike Coppola/Getty Images ![A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/gettyimages-108701472-aa23f7d46e017c9a6b7077907e973da1627d5dca.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) A view of Tteokguk during the Korean Food Foundation Luncheon at Bann on February 1, 2011 in New York City. Mike Coppola/Getty Images It's not Korean New Year, or seollal, without this rice cake soup called tteokguk. The coin-shaped rice cakes are thought to bring prosperity and riches, and its white color symbolizes a fresh start to the New Year. Myung Armstrong garnishes her tteokguk with seaweed and julliened egg omelette. She wrote that the warm, savory beef broth and soft, chewy rice cakes bring "very happy memories making it with my mother." ### Dumplings ![Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford **hide caption toggle caption** Mikayla Sanford ![Mikayla Sanford\&\#039;s makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/157135820_img_2053-3bdcbd03d2f18193e6fdc583d02db0fe029fe334.jpeg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Mikayla Sanford's makes Tibetan momos every year for the new year. Sometimes, her family can make hundreds of them. Mikayla Sanford Dumplings [originated in Northern China](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2013/02/08/171455463/chinese-new-year-dumplings-rice-cakes-and-beyond) and spread around the world. They are thought to bring fortune in the new year because they're shaped like ancient Chinese money. Zhong dumplings, one of the most iconic street snacks of Chengdu, China, are a key part of Jing Gao's Lunar New Year table. Mikayla Sanford's dumpling of choice are momos. They hail from Tibet, where the Lunar New Year is known as Losar. "Tibetan's never had much flour or meat, so momos were always prepared for special occasions," she wrote. "My family has been making them since I was a child. We even get together with huge steaming vats to make hundreds of momos during the new year." ### RECIPE: Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" This recipe was provided by Alice Young. ![Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings"](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young **hide caption toggle caption Alice Young ![Alice Young\&\#039;s \"No Fuss Grandchildren\&\#039;s Chinese Dumplings\"](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/lny-3-5c5175a6f261dff6ddb82e135ce8baca0e828a4a.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Alice Young's "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings" Alice Young Alice Young has a unique dumpling recipe that she calls "No Fuss Grandchildren's Chinese Dumplings." She spent decades as a law partner and wrote that she had to be "creative and quick" with her food. She created this recipe for her "young, blue-eyed and blonde grandchildren." They live in North Carolina, where Chinese communities are scarce. To adapt, Young's recipe uses ingredients that are easy to find and childproof. ![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=1100&c=50&f=jpeg) Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young hide caption toggle caption Alice Young ![Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with.](https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2024/02/09/thumbnail_image0-1-_vert-14d8bbf00d20fb8283c708dc356ababa868cfd97.jpg?s=2600&c=100&f=jpeg) Alice Young came up with her dumpling recipe using ingredients that are easy to find in North Carolina and steps that her grandchildren can follow along with. Alice Young Ingredients: - rotisserie or any cooked chicken or meat or sausage, or firm tofu, diced - chopped green onions or chives or cabbage, or a mix - mayonnaise or vegenaise - hoisin sauce - oyster sauce - sesame seed oil - wonton wrappers Directions:** 1. In a medium-size bowl mix equal portions of chicken/meat/tofu and chopped greens. 2. Add mayonnaise, hoisin sauce, and a splash of oyster sauce and sesame oil until the mixture has the consistency of a sticky filling and tastes good to the sampling grandchild. 3. Put a teaspoon of filling in a wonton wrap, lightly wet the edges of the wrap with water on your fingertips, and seal each dumpling in either a triangle or with a crimped edge, depending on the skill and interest of the grandchild. 4. Optional- if the grandchild is forewarned and is not likely to swallow a small toy gold coin, sneak one into one of the dumplings as a lucky dumpling. 5. Boil a pot of water and drop the finished dumplings in and cook for 6 minutes, until the dumpling wraps are cooked 6. For fried dumplings. heat a pan with peanut or almond oil on medium heat, and fry the dumplings for 5 minutes until crispy on the bottom, add a splash of water and cover for 1-2 minutes until the water has evaporated and the dumpling wraps are cooked. 7. Serve with soy sauce mixed with rice vinegar and sugar.
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