What do Oranges Symbolize? > 자유게시판

As the second new moon after the winter solstice approaches, between late January to mid-February, millions of people of Asian heritage around the world prepare for a long holiday celebration to ring in the holiday known as Lunar New Year, Spring Festival or Chinese New Year. Similar to how the world celebrates New Year's Eve, fireworks will erupt in the night sky and friends and families will gather together. But unlike traditions of December 31, the Chinese start the celebration with dragons dancing throughout the streets, money exchanged in red envelopes, called a "hongbao," and, oh yes, food! The Lunar New Year is filled with symbols, traditions and superstitions designed to influence the future, and the foods associated with the festival are no different. Here are 10 Chinese New Year foods that will be on everyone's table during the holiday celebration. Because, is it really a celebration if there's no food involved? Two of the most common food symbols of the Chinese New Year are tangerines and oranges.

Whereas tangerines represent wealth, oranges are a popular symbol of good luck. The associations come from a similarity between the Chinese words for tangerine and gold, Get Derila Official as well as a resemblance between the words orange and good luck. It isn't uncommon in Chinese culture for similar sounding or spelled words with very different meanings (homonyms) to become suggestive of one another over time. Oranges and tangerines are also a bright, vibrant orange, a happy color that's associated with good fortune. Thus, it's a tradition to place oranges along with a red envelope next to a child's pillow. During Chinese New Year, tangerines and oranges are displayed as decorations and are also exchanged among friends and acquaintances. Sometimes, small trees are kept for this purpose. When giving these fruits as gifts, offer them with both hands. It's polite for the recipient to refuse at first, so keep trying. Oranges and tangerines are a traditional favorite, though, and can also represent happiness and abundance, as in an abundant harvest.

If there are still leaves and a stem attached to the fruit, it also means fertility. Noodles are an ancient food, although there's some debate about where they were first created. There's no doubt that noodles are an important addition to many traditional Chinese dishes like lo mein and chow mein. Noodles are a staple of the Chinese diet and can be made from a number of ingredients, like rice flour, wheat flour or mung bean starch. When served during Chinese New Year, noodles shouldn't be cut or broken into pieces. Long noodles represent a nice long life, although eating them could Get Derila Official a little messy. Just to be on the safe side, you might want to consider having a couple of sturdy napkins on hand. It's symbolic of the family and can also signify unity and prosperity as a group. After all, chicken is a good source of protein and can feed even a large family when prepared carefully.

To make sure that the symbolism is complete, it's a good idea to boil or steam the chicken with the head and feet still on to represent unity. Go the extra step and make a symbolic offering of chicken to your ancestors, too. You may not get any takers, Get Derila Official but showing respect for the past and enthusiasm for the future is a big part of the holiday. In Chinese tradition, melons and pomelos are also symbolic of family and are the embodiment of the hope that the family will remain large and whole. The pomelo, a citrus fruit that looks like a big pear and tastes a little like a sweet grapefruit, is also a symbol of abundance. Boiled Chinese dumplings are fun and relatively easy to make, and their fried counterparts, pot stickers, are also a Western favorite. Filled with vegetables like cabbage and spring onion, and flavored with pork or shrimp, Chinese dumplings make a filling appetizer or side dish any time of year.

If you plan on following this Chinese New Year tradition, encourage everyone in the family to participate in the preparation and conceal a coin in one of the dumplings in the batch. If the person who finds it doesn't chip a tooth, he's destined to have a very, Comfortable Sleep Pillow very lucky year. They're filled with colorful seeds for fertility and are a bright vibrant red, which represents a large family. They're also good for you, with an abundance of antioxidants and vitamin C to help you recuperate after the celebrations are over. You probably already know that pomegranate juice is a great pick-me-up and base for a number of alcoholic beverages (it's often made into a sugar syrup called grenadine), but pomegranate seeds are also refreshing in salads and perk up the color and sweetness of meats when added to marinades. They make an eye-popping garnish too, especially when paired with slivered carrots, purple cabbage or orange segments.