CHINESE NEW YEAR'S EVE DINNER

http://mumsiechu2.blogspot.com This will be mumsiechu's new blog (due to technical reasons mumsie has to creat mumsiechu2...) So this will be mumsiechu's last blog.

Traditionally, Chinese families would gather for a feast one day before the start of the Lunar New Year. This meal is known as "Tuan yuan fan", or literally "REUNION RICE", rice being the main staple of the Chinese. It is also translated as "Reunion Meal or "Reunion Dinner" since it is almost always eaten after nightfall as the last meal of the old year.

This is one of the most important meals for the Chinese, and many Chinese living away from their homes would make special effort to attend this meal with their families, as the Chinese place a lot of emphasis on being reunited with their family members especially for this day. The reunion dinner should be eaten with all immediate family members present as a symbol of strength and unity in the family. This is a time to renew and reaffirm family ties.

This explains why cities like Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, ect becomes ghost towns cos all the city folk 'balik kampung' to eat this all important meal....(One gotta book airflight and bus tickets months ahead)
This year in the STAR NEWSPAPER headlines ( Wed 6th Feb'08) RUSH HOME...A million on the road as Chinese New Year exodus begins. A daily volume of 1.3 million vehicles is expected from Wed 6th till Sunday.

As food plays such an important role in the lives of the Chinese, it is only natural that what they eat during Chinese New Year should be symbolic of good fortune for the rest of the year.

There is usually an abundance of food prepared for this meal, even by poorer families. The Chinese believe that having an excess of food on the table symbolises good fortune for the New Year, as it would bring excess wealth. Some families would make special effort to save up money throughout the year in order to prepare a good reunion dinner. These days more urban Chinese families prefer to dine out. Because of this, many Chinese restaurants are fully booked during this day...(Some popular restaurants even have a timetable which the customers have to strictly adhere to: 6pmm-8pm for one batch of customers, 8pm-10 pm for the second batch..and to avoid disappointment..one gotta to book at least months ahead)

But mumsie follows tradition...so gotta to eat at home...well mumsie used to "slog" in the kitchen...for this all important meal....now she got wiser (or cleverer??)

Mumsie will "carter" a whole table of food from the restuarant...yah...the night before New Year's eve mumsie will get out her best dinner sets and sent them to the resturant..so that the

chef can cook and serve the food well..Then on Reunion dinner night..at an appointed time mumsie will collect them and serve the family.....Great isn't it...Yep one whole table of auspicious dishes!!! Every dish is designed with auspicious meanings. (See below)
This year mumsie got her Reunion dinner from the above restaurant....
This is the yee sang dish.., shredded vegetables, herbs and sauces and the most important raw fish..Its name sounds like "growing luck." (abalone if you can pay more!!) Literally meaning "raw" or " live fish" the dish symbolises both abundance and longevity. The word yee or yue (fish) sounds like the Cantonese word for "having more than enough" or "abundance", while the word sang means life.

All the ingredients for the dish are served separately on the same plate, and would then be tossed and mixed, carried with chopsticks high in the air by all at the table, while saying out loud the word "loh hei", which means liveliness, prosperity and longevity. They will also wish each

other good health, career advancement all the way or sucess in business.

This practice is said to herald prosperity for the coming year....
The higher you toss, the greater your luck and prosperity in the New Year!
The table is laden with auspicious dishes like this
prawn dish..Prawns are one of those expensive and yet important stuffs for Chinese New Year.

Because prawn is call 'har' in Cantonese and it rhymes with the sound of laughter of hahaha. Therfore symbolises happiness "Big laughter and Joy " or "Har har tai siu"

Braised sliced abalone with Black Mushrooms

the tradition "Hoe Si Fatt Choy...Stewed oyster, (oysters are known as "hou see", akin to "good things that happen in life" mushroom and moss ("fatt choy" means "becoming rich") Abalone = pau yue means "gauranteed abundance". So the whole dish is pau lei hou see yau fatt choy, which means "gauranted that one will have good things and wealth in life"

Mushrooms "Mou Ku" represents family reunion, sharing and happiness.

Lotus leave rice...which contains waxed sausages or lap cheong augur well for longevity (cheong sau) This is given the name of "Lap mei fan" is also called "NGM KUK FONG SAU" (reaping a five-grain harvest") represtnting "bountiful results"

Kampung chicken in pepper sauce (mumsie likes this very much)

To the Chinese the chicken is the embodiment of the phoenix, symbolizing rebirth and reaffirmation. Chicken is also believed to be a food that promotes longevity as well as a tonic that possesses recuperative powers!
Deep fried red snapper with Apple in Thai sauce (Dadda likes this )

Tradionally, it must be one whole fish that is served as the head and tail parts of the fish signifies completion in all the things that we do, that there is a good beginning and an ending.

This is "nian nian you yue" which means "every year there is fish/leftover" which means "be blessed every year" or have profit every year" since yue is also the pronounciation for "surplus"

Now mumsie loves fish head...but this dinner mumsie cannot attack the head...must leave the head and the tail of this fish "intact" ..."yo tou yo wei" - "good beginning and good ending"

And as keeping some leftovers mean that the family will always have "more than enough" or "surplus and continuous good fortune!"

(Should have taken the photo before we eat...this dish 3/4 of the dish has been served (and eatten)

This is shark's fin or yue chi (most unfortunately for the species) has been a constant feature in Chinese menus..cooked with crab meat in soup
This year mumsie was able to have all but one of her little ones at her reunion table....(MUST pray harder so that she can have all her little ones next year for her reunion dinner!!!)

We brought her back from CSM but she slept right thru the dinner...cos just as we were about to start dinner...dadda was called out for and emergency operation! So dinner was postponed to quite late...(gotta to reheat most of the food)

For many many years Whyner..the children's godpa has been joining us for re-union dinner...
Yummy yummy auspicious food


After dinner traditionally the maids took the opportunity of taking photos with the CNY decor around the house...(wanna to post them bakc to their families)