When we talk about the spring festival or Chinese New Year, what traditional food comes to your mind? Is it poached chicken or fish? Most people will say dumplings.
Dumpling (饺子) is a traditional chinese food with fillings wrapped in a thin, round wrappers made of flour. Because the shape of Dumplings is like yuanbao (元宝), the ancient chinese currency, they are considered to bring good luck and wealth. Dumplings also have a lot of different types of fillings, including but not limited to chives and pork, cabbage and pork, cabbage and chicken.
There is a story about the origin of dumplings. In ancient China’s East Han Dynasty(AD 25–220), there is the doctor name Zhang Zhongjin (张仲景) who saw a lot of people’s ear been frostbitten because of the cold winter. He wanted to help them, so he invented a food called jiaoer (娇耳) meaning tender ear, which is made of chopped lamb and other ingredients wrapped by dough. Later, this food gradually evolved into today’s dumplings.
Dumplings symbolize togetherness. In China, families usually make dumplings before New Year’s Eve Dinner. Making dumplings involves several processes, such as rolling dough, making filling, wrapping, and boiling. It usually is the family activity that every member of the family will participate in. Rather than being just a chore, the family sat around the table, and in laughs and cheerful conversations, dumplings were being wrapped up one by one. The thing that underlies dumplings is the love and happiness between the family members. Plates of dumplings show that we are together.
Dumplings–a dish that looks ordinary—but actually, it is quite extraordinary. It is the symbol of wealth, the symbol of health, and, most importantly, the symbol of home and love.
Thanks to Jenny Yue for helping revise the article.
picture resource:
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