The NYU Girls Chinese New Years Traditions

One of my best friends Shirley said if we all pull one or two of our Chinese New Years traditions together, all will not be lost with our generation.

Two questions for you:
1) What traditions do you follow?
2) What traditions do you remember as a child?

Here are what the NYU Girls said.

Shirley
Unfortunately, I don’t cook the traditional dishes. However, I do follow all the other traditions. I buy new underwear, pajamas, slippers (preferably all in the color of red or close to it) and wear it the night before Chinese new year. I also buy a new red top for each of us to wear on Chinese New Year. No washing of hair on the day of Chinese new year as this will wash away all the good fortune for the year. Also, day of the new year, eat chicken (good luck), Chinese cupcakes (fat gow) for welcome prosperity, noodles (the long stringy one for longevity), fish (for plentiful) and orange and candy to bring about sweetness for the year. Also, clean the house. Sweep away the old to bring in the new. I also display candy and oranges (nine) in my house for guests. No swearing or arguing that day as it will be indicative of the year. This is the one day the kids and Steve can get away with murder! I also display guts (small oranges) and red envelope throughout the house. I put up couplets by each of the door/entrances into the house. Clean all the linens. You are also not allowed to clean for the two weeks of the celebration. Minor cleaning is fine. It’s so much work! I spent one day just washing out and throwing out stuff and another day to wipe down stuff and put up all the decorations and stuff. I will probably need to spend one more day to display the oranges and stuff throughout the house. I’ll probably do this on Tuesday or Wednesday. I’m glad that I’m almost done! Oh yeah. The eve of New Years, I also leave out a whole cooked chicken with a fish, a rib of roast pork, some sort of tongue and tail, all on a tray to offer to the ancestors and gods. I also leave out a tray of fat gow, and lettuce. On New Year’s day, I eat all this stuff with my family to welcome in the new year. On the morning of new year, all of us would wake up and eat a kumquat and a piece of candy. I think this is about it. I’ll let you know if I remember something else.

Shirley

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Margaret
Sorry I won't be of much help on this as my family never followed much of this. The only thing I do remember my parents saying is not to wash my hair on New Years otherwise I will wash away all the good luck. I do also remember my mother cleaning the house before the new year. Then I know it is customary to bring oranges over to peoples' houses you visit for the New Year. But funny how we never displayed oranges around our own house. Of course the red envelopes of money are also a tradition we do follow too. But I think Shirley Hom has covered these and much more!

--Margaret
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Judy
We started hosting Chinese New Year dinner for our family the last couple of years because it was getting to be too much for my parents. Luckily Ken was able to take this on. We make and serve what my parents used to:
vermicelli (fun see)
boiled chicken with scallion & ginger
fat choy with oyster
snow peas with water chestnut
whole fish
vegetarian dish
sweet & sour pork
pan fried shrimp
stuffed mushroom
lobster
soup
Other than the dinner and red envelopes, we don't do anything else.

Wishing everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!!

Judy
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Lucy
When we are home for chinese new year. Our traditions aren't as entailed as Shirley's. We have a combination of northern and southern Chinese traditions. I'm not as particular about observing the traditions. These are the things we do- red envelopes (people more believers in Hk and Singapore than china) kids get less now. We give them out for good luck and to the kids to keep their age down (literal translation in mandarin).we still get red envelopes from our parents for us and of course kids.

No sweeping of floors- takes the luck out of the house

Buy firecrackers and fireworks to light new year's eve. Good luck.we can light them in our compound.

Make dumplings and eat for dinner.

Make fish (2).

Rice vermicelli (long life)

Make whole chicken

A veggie dish

Shrimp dish

For dessert we will have nian gao (sticky rice cake) and glutinous rice w red bean paste,red dates,lotus seed,dried fruit and other stuff.can't remember what.

We'll also have glutinous rice balls filled with sesame paste in soup. There's a certain day during new year you are suppose to have them. we eat them when ever. They come in all different fillings now ie red bean,meat,etc.

Don't wash hair but sometimes I do.

I will also put out a tray of candies,water melon seeds,pistachios.

enjoy new year!

Lucy
otherwise known as 8 treasure rice(ba Bao fan)

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Shirley
Happy Chinese New Years. This reveals so much about each of us. Unfortunately I know about the traditions but don't really do any of it except partake in the eating of the foods.
The only thing I do is the red envelopes for the kids (yeah we go into hiding from my family!)

This is what my mother does:

making new years cakes (i didn't know what else to call them)
- woo tow gow (taro)
- lor bok gow (daikon)
- fot gow (chinese cup cake that splits into 3 parts)
- brown sugar tee (we call it bubble gum. made of rice flour and brown sugar)

have a mini feast (special foods with meaning) to close out the year with family

makes an offering to ancestors with chicken, pork, new years cakes, chinese wine, lights up incense at table. Burns special paper (money, riches) in backyard.

cooks vegetarian dish eaten at shortly after midnight on new year's day (sounds almost like what you guys make)
Send
puts oranges in each room. Grandma used to make sure she put an orange and a little tangerine with the leaf on in each room.

turns on all the lights in the house until after the first meal is eaten

No arguing for the first 3 days (like Shirl)

Go to the relative's house (always oranges with red envelope and maybe cookies, new years cakes) - We visit parents and aunt/uncle

to open year, makes feast (special foods with meaning) to open year with family

makes a ton of shrimp chips

Shirley
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Rita
When living at home with my parents we did most of the things everyone mentioned. When just us in new jersey, not so much. We do try to go to Chinatown on the weekend to see the parade. Now the kids a little older they like the red envelopes more than anything. In the past few years I did volunteer to share the event with the kid's class in school. Had a craft activity relating to Chinese new year, read them a book and showed them the Chinese zodiac and gave out chocolate gold coins in red envelopes.

Regards,
Rita
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Great traditions from great friends (yes, this is pretty telling). One question, Lucy, why are you also known as eight treasure rice (or somehow did that copied wrong)? ok, visit the blog and leave a comment.