#chinesenewyear

It looks like we are not out of the Covid-19 woods yet, and we can’t quite let our hair down and enjoy the festivities like we used to. With social distancing regulations limiting only 8 people for Lunar New Year gatherings, this year’s celebrations will be muted and minimalist. But to some, it can be a refreshing change from the yearly toiling in the kitchens, just to cook up a multi-course feast for guests who can’t finish their food. Snacks and small bites that can be easily prepared for a low-key crowd are key to keeping the festive spirit alive, especially in these challenging times. Here is a list of easy to make snacks that can be whipped up in an hour or less.

Quick pineapple tarts

Instead of making the pineapple paste from scratch, you could get ready-made from baking supplies shops such as Phoon Huat. *Makes 40 Ingredients for pastry dough:

• 200g of all-purpose flour
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tablespoon of water
• 100g of butter
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt

Instructions:

1. Rub the butter into the flour. Add egg, salt and water. Mix well to create a smooth dough ball.
2. Wrap the dough in cling wrap and leave the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. You could prepare the dough the night before and c

Whenever Chinese New Year is around the corner, homemade fortune cookies are one of the best ways to welcome the festive season. This recipe isn't only easy; the most fun part lies in unfolding your “secret” fortune inside the fortune cookie! To make the baking process more enjoyable (as if it already isn't), invite a friend or your children to this DIY session. Fun fact: Did you know that the fortune cookie is not a Chinese invention? In fact, its origins can be traced back to Japan! The cookie was subsequently popularised in the United States by Japanese immigrants.

In Taiwan, pineapple cake is called “鳳梨酥 (fèng lí sū)” and they are commonly shaped into rectangle which is greatly different from its South East Asian counterparts. The fillings too, is softer and lighter in color as winter melon is cooked slowly with pineapple.

Ngo Hiong simply means five spice in Teow Chew language; this is a fantastic dish made with sliced taro and carrot instead of pork meat, but the classic flavour has been retained with five spice powder and good quality white pepper powder.

Longevity Noodles (yī miàn, 伊面) or yi mein, symbolize longevity and can always be found on the banquet table at many Chinese weddings. The saying goes: long noodles, long blissful life. Whether it’s a birthday, a new baby, a wedding, or a lunar new year banquet, long life noodles are an important aspect of all these happy celebrations! The dish is always highly anticipated during these events, when the server starts dishing out steaming bowls of yi mien, braised perfectly in savoury sauce and punctuated with juicy bits of mushroom and Chinese chives. This recipe we have today will replicate that unforgettable flavour, with a special addition of braised crayfish just to make it a bit more special. If you’re pressed for time, you can opt out of the crayfish addition too – trust us, the noodles are great on their own!

Every dish that is served during Chinese New Year has an auspicious meaning behind it! Our friends at ShareFood.sg bring you this recipe prepared by Jessie Koey, who is a stay home mum and a recipe blogger. In her home town back in Malaysia, this is a family classic dish – Sweet and Sour Sea Cucumber with Fish Maw. The recipe is below, and you can read their full post here.

Taro nest is a classic Chinese banquet dish - once it appears on the table, it disappears with lightning speed because it's just that tasty. Mashed taro is formed into nests, deep fried to a delicious crisp and used as the base for chicken or vegetable fillings. Our recommendation is to use palm based shortening that is trans-fat free. We use fresh crab meat and chilli sauce as topping in this classic rendition. This recipe requires you to freeze the nests before frying, so do plan ahead! This recipe makes 10 mini sized taro nests.

Crispy on the outside with fried beancurd skin, soft and a little bit crunchy on the inside! This unique Hokkien and Teochew dish is filled with all the goodness in each roll, and it will never be enough for everybody. Here’s a traditional Hokkien Ngoh Hiang recipe brought to you by ShareFood.sg contributor Irene Tan, where she shares her Ah Ma’s recipe. When a recipe is passed down from generation to generation, that’s when you know it’s good! Full post here.

Writer Jo-ann Huang investigates a Lunar New Year tradition specific to Southeast Asia that has confounded her for over a decade At Chinese New Year, few dishes are as divisive as Yu Sheng. Do you revel in the ritual, tossing veggies as high as you can? Or do you have to be dragged kicking and screaming by your elders, rolling your eyes at how silly and superstitious it seems? Perhaps it’s less the ritual than the actual dish itself. While Chinese New Year favourites such as roast pork or pineapple tarts involve lots of preparation time – not to mention years of practice to refine – to me Yu Sheng is a glorified Asian salad with slivers of raw fish and squirts of plum sauce that is shoved upon us Chinese folks by enterprising restaurants looking to cash in on the festivities. My first experience with Yu Sheng was more than a decade ago. The fish wasn’t quite fresh, and I ended up with a bad bout of diarrhoea. That could explain my contempt towards it. Of course, the S$48 bill for a simple dish of vegetables and fish didn’t help. But one thing we can all agree on is that Yu Sheng has become an essential part of Chinese New Year reunion dinners, as friends and relatives participate in the “lo hei” experience, which literally translates as “tossing for luck” in Cantonese. In this case, it is the tossing of the Yu Sheng up in the air. Just as important is reciting lucky phrases in Mandarin while preparing Yu Sheng in order to usher in a year of good health and prosperity. After the dish has been neatly laid out, everyone proceeds to make a mess of shredded vegetables and fish slices. Thank goodness it happens just once a year. Despite my bias towards the dish, it has become a well-loved staple in Chinese New Year celebrations. To its fans, it’s a fun dish that brings us together – and yet another excuse to feast.

Yu Sheng’s roots (and a food fight)

While Yu Sheng was purportedly first eaten by the Cantonese, today it’s found only among the ethnic Chi