Chinese New Year recipes should reflect the purpose of the Spring Festival, which is a fresh start. Not only should the food be delicious and authentic, but it should also be symbolic of your hopes for the next year.
Chinese Dumplings
Because Chinese dumplings resemble ancient Chinese gold and silver ingots, dumplings are used as a traditional food during the Chinese New Year to symbolize wealth and prosperity. The more dumplings you have on your plate, the more wealth you can expect in the coming year. Traditionally, the Chinese bakers will drop a coin or two into the mix when making dumplings. The person who gets a dumpling with a coin in it is automatically granted good fortune for the coming year.
Ingredients You Will Need:
2 ½ cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
1 tablespoon lard
Filling:
1 cup Napa cabbage, finely chopped
Water
2 tablespoons salt
1 pound ground pork, chopped fine
4 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon ginger root, grated
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 scallions, chopped fine
1 egg white
1 tablespoon cornstarch
Salt and pepper
Purchase a bag of pre-made dumpling skins in the Asian section of the supermarket, or mix the flour, salt, water and lard into a stiff dough. Pinch off about a tablespoon of dough at a time. Keep the remaining dough in an airtight container. Roll the dough into a ball, and then roll the ball out into a flat circle on a floured surface to create the dumpling skin. Keep the skins in an airtight container until ready to fill.
To make the filling, it's important that you first wilt the cabbage by placing it into a bowl and covering it with water. Then sprinkle the salt into the water, and let the cabbage sit for 30 to 45 minutes. Drain and, using the same large bowl, combine all of the ingredients, squishing them together with your hands until you have a thoroughly blended mix.
Place a tablespoon of the mixture onto each skin, and then press the edges together or crimp them with a fork. (Use a few drops of water along the edge before crimping the edges together. The water will help the two edges seal better.)
Cook the dumplings in a large kettle of boiling water. Add about one third of the dumplings, and stir several times gently until the water comes to a boil. Add a cupful of ice cold water to the kettle, and wait for it to boil a second time. Repeat this procedure a third time, and then drain the dumplings or pot stickers, as they are sometimes called.
Note: Dumplings can be made ahead of time and frozen. Freeze them in plastic freezer bags, and then remove all of the air. As an added precaution, store them in plastic containers. If packaged correctly, they will remain edible for up to two months. After that, they will begin to dry out.
Long Life Noodles
Long life noodles represent longevity. Take care not to cut or break the noodles when serving or eating them. A shortened noodle means a shortened life span. For this reason, all knives and chopping devices are usually not used during the Spring Festival. Food dishes that require chopped items are usually made in advance so that nothing clouds the symbolism of the event.
Ingredients You Will Need:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 ½ tablespoons garlic, freshly minced
2 dozen shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 cups cabbage, chopped
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon ginger root, freshly minced
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
½ cup stir-fry sauce
1 pound linguine noodles, cooked
Heat the olive oil and garlic, and then add the shrimp. Continue cooking until the shrimp turn pink. Quickly scoop out the shrimp, and remove them from the pan. Put the cabbage, scallions, minced ginger root and bell pepper into the pan, and stir-fry until tender. Add the shrimp, and cook until heated through.
Pour the stir-fry sauce over the vegetables and shrimp, and stir. When the vegetables and shrimp are blended, add the noodles and fold gently until every noodle is coated with sauce and the vegetables are mixed throughout.
Note: The sauce and vegetables can be frozen in advance, but the noodles should be made fresh for this dish. Remember also that the noodles should not be cut. In fact, the longer, the better.
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