It has long been a cherished tradition for Chinese families to gather and partake in festive dishes during Chinese New Year.
The practice symbolises family unity, creating a warm, inviting atmosphere that strengthens bonds while promoting togetherness.
Interestingly, each family’s reunion table will feature Chinese New Year dishes unique to their lineage.
At home, families go to great lengths to cook delicacies using ingredients steeped in symbolism, cultural meaning and signifying auspiciousness.
StarMetro explores the rich culinary customs of Teochew, Hainanese and Hokkien people.
Hokkien traditions
For Hokkien folk, wealth, prosperity and peace are strongly reflected in their festive dishes.
Persatuan Keturunan Hong-Lai Low Malaysia (PKHLLM) general affairs head Low Jin Boon said pork trotters with sea cucumber was one of the staple dishes of Hokkien families during Chinese New Year.
“We braise pork trotters with sea cucumbers, black garlic and ginger.
“We use black garlic over regular ones because it gives the dish better texture.
“Pork trotters symbolise our hopes for an unexpected windfall.
“The pig’s feet are regarded as an emblem of wealth and prosperity,” he said.
An inseparable dish from pork trotters is kee ya kuih (Hokkien steamed cake), said PKHLLM honorary president Datuk Low Kim Chun.
“Kee ya kuih is light in taste so we savour it by dipping it into the pork trotters with sea cucumber gravy.
“To make it, we grind rice grains into powder, then add water to make a paste.
“After that, place the paste in a muslin cloth and squeeze out the water.
“Kansui (lye water) is added to the paste before steaming,” he said.
Kim Chun said the dish was a tradition that has been preserved for generations.
“When I was a child, my grandmother would ask me to grind the rice for the kuih.
“It was a difficult task because the millstone was very heavy and I had to push it fast without pausing, or it would affect the texture,” he added.
Jin Boon said kee ya kuih was traditionally placed on Hokkien ancestral altars during Chinese New Year as part of prayers and offerings to forebears.
“The older generation is very particular about this practice as they place importance on worshipping ancestors during Chinese New Year,” he said.
Pig intestine stuffed with egg was another dish symbolising wealth and prosperity, said Kim Chun.
“We stuff the small intestine with raw eggs before boiling it in water.
“After it is cooked, we cut it into pieces and mix it with soup, which often has pak choy.
“Although it is a classic Hokkien festive dish, not many people make it because the steps are complicated,” he added.
Braised pork belly with bamboo shoot strips symbolises a smooth and peaceful year for Hokkien folk.
The Mandarin pronunciation for bamboo shoots (zhu sun) rhymes with smoothness (shun li), according to Kim Chun.
“Our ancestors used to grow their own bamboo shoots which were dried and stored.
“They would take it out of storage and braise together with pork belly during Chinese New Year.
“It tastes even better served alongside rice,” he said.
Hainanese delights
For the Hainanese, preserving traditions and ensuring a year of abundance are central considerations when preparing their festive dishes.
One such dish passed down through generations was stir-fried pork skin with pineapples, said Malaysian Hainanese Lim Clan Association (MHLCA) public relation chief Lim Yew Choy.
“Only three ingredients are needed – pig skin and intestines, and pineapples.
“Season with salt, pepper and oyster sauce and cook,” he said.
Association’s women wing chief Lim Kwai Chin said some varieties of the dish would include fish maw, as “it symbolises a year of abundance and prosperity”.
The Mandarin word for fish, yu, rhymes with Chinese proverb nian nian you yu, often used to wish people a surplus year during this festive period.
Yew Choy said poached yellow chicken – a Hainanese classic – was also a must-have Lunar New Year dish.
“The chicken is marinated with salt and pepper for about an hour, before being poached in boiling water.
“The fire should be turned off during most of the one-hour poaching process.
“It should only be turned on to reboil the water every 30 minutes,” he said.
MHLCA secretary-general Lim Ming Sham said the accompanying chicken sauce for the meat featured unique Hainanese elements that set it apart.
“We pound garlic, ginger and chilli in a mortar and pestle, before adding salt and lime juice.
“After that, chicken oil – which is the sauce’s crowning touch – is added,” he said.
He said Hainanese poached chicken stood out for its moist and tender texture.
Etched in Ming Sham’s memory is the Hainanese dessert bua gia (glutinous rice strips).
“My father used to make bua gia for the family before he passed away.
“Strips of dough made from a mixture of plain flour, glutinous rice flour and sugar are cooked in a syrup flavoured with ginger, brown sugar and pandan leaves. It is very appetising,” he said.
Teochew specialities
A favourite among Teochew folk is luo tang qian (sticky rice balls with peanuts and black sesame), said restaurant operator Janet Chia.
Chia, who is of Teochew descent, said the Mandarin word luo tang qian signifying wealth and prosperity translated to “money that falls into soup”.
“We shape the dough by mixing glutinous rice flour with water,” she said, adding that each piece of dough is then pressed into the shape of a Chinese copper coin, before being cooked in water.
“The rice balls float to the surface when cooked, symbolising wealth ‘rising up’.”
Once the rice balls are cooked, they are stirred around using a chopstick for about 20 minutes to make them stick together.
“After that, we tear the sticky dough into smaller pieces and dip into peanuts and black sesame before serving.”
Chia said she had also made some adjustments to her version of the dessert.
“Traditionally, sugar is mixed together with the peanuts and black sesame.
“However, I prefer mixing the sugar directly with the dough, so that the peanuts and sesame remain dry, giving the rice balls better texture,” she said.
For main dishes, seafood porridge is a favourite in her family.
“Being a coastal group, Teochew folk love seafood.
“The unique part about Teochew seafood porridge is that we use cooked rice as the base.
“This makes each grain of the porridge fluffy and separate.
“Coriander is also a popular herb among the Teochew, and it is also in my list of ingredients for the porridge,” she said.
To get the best taste, Chia uses fresh seafood for her porridge.
“I grew up in Sungai Besar, Selangor and that is also where I buy my seafood.
“It is also a place with a lot of Teochew Chias,” said Chia, who now resides in Puncak Jalil, Selangor.
She added that Teochew people also loved having seafood steamboat during the Lunar New Year.
“It is a culture passed down by our ancestors.
“Steamboat warms their bodies up during cold weather, which is usually the case during the festive season.”
Married to a Hokkien husband, Chia also prepares Hokkien dishes for Chinese New Year, often incorporating subtle Teochew elements into the delicacies.
“For example, I will add tung choi (preserved dried cabbage), a Teochew favourite, into the napa cabbage soup which is a Hokkien dish,” she said.
