Five Auspicious Recipes to Celebrate Lunar New Year

Most Asian families will feast on auspicious and delicious dishes to celebrate Lunar New Year. We’ve chosen five of the most traditional and popular recipes eaten during Lunar New Year to satisfy all tastes from meat lovers to vegans, including those with a sweet tooth.

Image credit: Pexels

1. Buddha Jumps Over the Wall Recipe

Servings: 4

Time: 3 hours, 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 sea cucumbers
• 5 abalone
• 2 pieces of conch meat
• 4 dried scallops
• 8 dried shitake mushrooms
• 30 g dried sand blasted fish maw
• 3 tbsp shaoxing wine
• 3 tbsp abalone sauce
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 L chicken broth
• 1 tsp salt (since chicken broth and abalone sauce all come in variable salt content, you should determine the amount of salt you add. I used 1 tsp)
• 3 stalks of bok choi
• 2 bunches of Mung bean vermicelli (60 g)

Preparation

1. The night before, clean and soak dried shitake mushrooms (1 cup) and dried scallops (1/2 cup). Defrost the sea cucumber, abalone, and conch meat if they are frozen.

2. An hour prior to cooking, soak the fish maw. Remove the abalone from the shell, remove their organs, and clean them with water.

3. Slice the soaked fish maw into abalone-size pieces, and cut the stems off the shitake mushrooms.

4. Pour all the soaking water from the scallops and shitake mushrooms into a pot, then add the abalone, fish maw, scallops, mushrooms, and conch meat, mixing with shaoxing wine, abalone sauce, and oyster sauce.

5. Pour chicken broth into the pot until all ingredients are covered. Cover the pot with a lid, bring the sauce to boil, and then turn it down to low-heat.

6. Braise for 3 hours, and stir every 30 minutes. If the sauce does not cover the ingredients, add more broth.

7. Meanwhile, soak 2 bunches of mung bean vermicelli. Wash the bok choi and cut them in half length-wise.

8. After braising the sauce for 2 and half hours, take out the conch meat to cool, and boil 1 litre of water in another pot.

9. Cook the sea cucumbers in boiled water for 5 minutes, before taking them out to cool; then put the bok choi in and cook for 2 minutes.

10. After 2 minutes, take out the bok choi and lay it on the serving plate. Use the same boiled water to cook vermicelli for 2 minutes. Pour them into a colander and rinse under cold water, then leave to cool.

11. Slice the conch meat, cut the sea cucumber, and then put them both into the braising pot. *Note: frozen sea cucumber should only be braised for 10-15 minutes.

12. After braising for 3 hours, the sauce should be fairly thick. Take out all ingredients in the sauce and put the vermicelli into the sauce to soak for 2-3 minutes.

13. Take out the vermicelli and arrange it on the serving plate along with all the ingredients.

14. Pour the sauce on top of all the ingredients.

Image credit: Pixabay

2. Vegan Buddha Jumps Over the Wall Recipe

Servings: 4-5

Time: 4 hours

Ingredients:

For the vegetable stock:

• 2 carrots
• 8 pcs red dates
• 1 white onion
• 2 tbsp of wolfberry
• 6 figs
• 3-4 L water for boiling
• 1 tbsp kombu shitake dashi soup powder
• 2 tbsp shoyu
• A pinch of sea salt

The rest:

• 8 dried shitake mushrooms
• 1 medium size lion head mushroom
• 1 medium size kao fu
• 1 small carrot
• 1 tsp mirin to taste

Preparation

1. The night before cooking, soak the dried shitake mushrooms and lion head mushroom in water.

2. Thinly slice the carrot and white onion, break the lion head mushroom into small pieces, cut the shitake mushrooms in half, and chop kao fu into small pieces.

3. Boil all of the ingredients of vegetable stock in a pot except shoyu, kombu shitake dashi soup powder, and sea salt, and boil for 1 hour.

4. Strain the vegetable stock with a sieve and discard the vegetables.

5. Add kombu shikate dashi soup powder, sea salt and shoyu into the stock.

6. Boil the remaining shitake mushrooms and carrots on low heat for 2 hours, then add the lion head mushroom and kao fu before bringing the soup to boil.

7. Add the mirin before serving.

3. Lotus Root And Pork Soup Recipe

Servings: 12

Time: 7 hours

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rehydrated seaweed
• 900g pork ribs (bones only)
• 450g lotus root
• 4 slices of ginger
• 1 tbsp dried goji berries
• 12 cups cold water
• 1 chopped scallion
• salt to taste

Preparation

1. Leave the dried seaweed in water and rehydrate it overnight.

2. Soak the pork ribs in cold water for 1 hour.

3. Boil a pot of water and add the pork ribs to blanch. Bring the water to boil again, then cook for 1 minute before draining the water and washing the ribs clean.

4. Peel and chop the lotus root into large chunks right before cooking the soup to avoid oxidization.

5. Add all ingredients into a pot. Bring the soup to boil, then turn it down to low heat to simmer for at least 4 hours.

6. For a more flavorful result, let it cool overnight and reheat it the next day.

7. Add salt to taste and serve with chopped scallion on top.

4. Sweet And Sour Fish Recipe

Servings: 4

Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 kg red snapper (fish)
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 2 tbsp cornstarch mixture (1 tsp cornstarch + 2 tbsp water)
• Adequate cooking oil

For the stir-fry:

• Half red onion (cut)
• Half tomato (cut)
• 1-2 red bell peppers (deseed, cut)
• 1-2 green bell peppers (deseed, cut)
• 1 cucumber (cut)

For the sauce:

• 2 tbsp tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp chili sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1 tbsp sugar
• half bowl of water

Preparation

1. Cut all the stir-fry ingredients into chunky pieces. Mix all the ingredients for the sauce well.

2. Coat the fish in cornstarch, and deep fry until golden and crispy. Drain and set it aside.

3. Heat the wok, add some oil, and stir fry all the stir-fry ingredients, then set them aside.

4. Pour the mixed sauce into the wok and bring to boil.

5. Mix in the stir-fried vegetables, then pour all ingredients in the wok onto the fish.

Image credit: Pixabay

5. Chinese New Year Cake (Sticky Rice Cake) Recipe

Servings: 2-3

Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes

Ingredients:

• a 5-inch round cake mould (removable base preferred)
• 1 cup water
• 200 gm glutinous rice flour
• 70 gm wheat flour
• 250 gm brown sugar in bar
• 80 ml coconut cream
• 30 g oil + a dash to grease cake mould
• 1 whisked egg

Preparation

1. Boil 1 cup of water into a saucepan, and add brown sugar to cook until dissolved, then stir in coconut cream and oil.

2. Strain the syrup with a sieve to make a smooth mixture, and set aside to cool.

3. Mix glutinous rice flour with wheat flour, and sift the mixed flour twice. Add the four into the syrup bit by bit, stir along the way, and make it into a smooth batter.

4. Pour the batter into a greased cake mould. Leave it in a covered wok over high heat for 60-75 minutes.

5. Leave it out to cool, then refrigerate the cake for at least 3 hours.

6. Slice the cooled cake into thick slices, coat with whisked egg, and fry on medium-low heat until both sides are golden.

7. Serve hot.

Image credit: Pixabay