Chinese New Year, or Lunar New Year, is my kind of holiday—parading dragons, fireworks, and food (lots of food!). The dragons and fireworks are meant to scare off evil spirits and auspicious foods portend prosperity, longevity, health, fertility, happiness, and more for the coming year.
The Lunar New Year is possibly the most important holiday on the Chinese calendar. Everything you do (and eat) that day, and in the days leading up to it, is said to determine how your entire year will play out.
Any holiday that promises to deliver good fortune because I stuffed my face with dumplings, noodles, and other auspicious foods is carved in stone on my calendar, too.
Show Me the Dumplings
Dumplings represent wealth. The little bundles can be made to look like silver ingots or purses, hence the symbolism here. According to legend, the more dumplings you eat during the lunar new year, the more money you’ll bring in during the year.
Dumplings can contain seasoned meat, fish, seafood, or vegetables inside a pasta-like wrapper. They can be steamed or boiled until plump and tender; pan fried or deep fried to give them a crispy, golden brown shell; or baked for a fluffier, more bread like exterior.
Shrimp are said to bring joy and laughter. Har Gow are Chinese shrimp dumplings with a tender, translucent wrapper and a filling of plump, seasoned shrimp. They make an ideal addition to your Chinese New Year menu. Joy and wealth is a combo I can get behind.
Char Siu Bao is another great dim sum dish—puffy bread filled with delicious braised pork.
Need a laugh?
Shrimp will bring a year filled with joy and laughter since the word for shrimp (har) sounds like laughter. Sichuan-style spicy, garlicky Szechuan Shrimp is perfect.
Looking to grow your family? Eat nuts and seeds!
Nuts and seeds represent fertility and “many sons,” so if you’re hoping to grow your family this year, enjoy this Sesame Chicken or Kung Pao Chicken.
Or these Five-Spice Seasoned Peanuts.
Long Noodles Mean Longevity
Long noodles mean a long life, so noodles are on pretty much every Chinese New Year table. Everyone wants to live long and be healthy. Since noodles represent longevity, they should never be cut or broken.
Singapore Noodles are fragrant with the heady flavors of curry powder and are studded with char siu pork, shrimp, egg, and veggies.
Sesame Noodles are easy to make, tossed with a sauce of with toasted sesame paste, toasted sesame oil, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, and an optional dollop of chile crisp or chili oil.
Other common Chinese New Year foods include steamed whole fish, egg rolls, and the brown sugar cake called niangao.
35+ Best Chinese New Year Recipes
From shrimp to represent joy and laughter, noodles to represent longevity, dumplings to represent wealth, nuts and seeds to usher in fertility, sticky rice for family togetherness and more, symbolic foods usher in hopes and dreams for a bright new year.
Har Gow or Chinese Shrimp Dumplings
This recipe for plump Har Gow, Chinese shrimp dim sum dumplings, are the perfect dish to usher in a joyful and prosperous new year.
Fried Pork and Shrimp Wontons
These crispy fried wontons are filled with a ground pork and shrimp filling that's seasoned with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame oil, and other seasonings. They're easy to make and fry and totally irresistible.
Pork & Shrimp Wonton Soup
I cannot get enough of this savory broth studded with juicy, flavorful homemade wontons. It’s a massively comforting, crazy delicious meal that can be on the table in under 30 minutes.
Szechuan Shrimp for Chinese New Year
This spicy, garlicky shrimp is quick and easy to make but full of flavor. It uses both spicy bean paste and chili oil with fermented black beans, both of which can be found in Chinese or Asian markets or the international foods aisle of many supermarkets.
Char Siu or Chinese BBQ / Roast Pork
Serve this sweet, succulent pork thinly sliced over white rice or use it to fill steamed buns or make pork fried rice.
Char Siu Bao (Steamed BBQ Pork Buns)
Pillowy steamed buns are stuffed with succulent, sweet-savory char siu pork.
Pork Fried Rice
Pork Fried Rice is a quick, easy, and delicious one-pot meal. It’s also the best way to use up leftover cooked rice.
Crispy Scallion Pancakes
These flaky, golden brown pancakes make a great side dish for saucy dishes, a perfect base for sunnyside up fried eggs with runny yolks, or an addictive snack.
Singapore Noodles
Seasoned with curry powder and studded with sliced Char Siu or Chinese Roast Pork, prawns, julienned carrots, thinly sliced onions, and scrambled egg, this quick noodle dish is a delicious one-skillet meal.
Sesame Noodles
Sesame noodles are quick and easy to make. Flavored with toasted sesame paste, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger, they are a real crowd-pleaser.
Kung Pao Chicken
This kung pao chicken is just like what you get at your favorite Chinese takeout restaurant. Tender bits of chicken, crunchy peanuts, a salty-sweet sauce, and a hit of spice all come together to make one delicious dish.
Vegetarian Dan Dan Noodles
Tender noodles are tossed in a savory sesame sauce and topped with tofu and shiitake mushrooms. The dish is fiery, filling, and fantastically addictive.
Air Fryer Sesame Chicken
Pieces of tender chicken are coated in egg and cornstarch and then fried to a crispy crunch and tossed in a savory-sweet, sticky sauce that is so good I could eat it with a spoon. Add a bowl of sticky white rice and some steamed vegetables and for a perfect easy meal.
Chinese Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings
Chinese Salt and Pepper Chicken is a restaurant takeout favorite and it’s easy to make at home. I love this spicy version with Szechuan peppercorns and stir-fried hot chile peppers and garlic.
Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Tofu
Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Tofu is so delicious, it will make even non-believers into tofu lovers! It’s crispy on the outside, tender inside, and tossed with spicy chile peppers, garlic, green onions, and a mix of flavorful seasonings.
Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Chicken
Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Chicken is easy to make without the mess—or extra calories!—of deep frying. This version gets a hit of mouth-tingling spice from Szechuan peppercorns and a topping of white pepper and stir-fried hot chiles and sliced garlic.
Chinese Dry Fried Green Beans with Bacon
Chinese Steamed Buns or Mantou
These Chinese steamed buns are what dreams are made of. They're light and fluffy and filled with the most delicious fillings, from Char Siu or Chinese Roast Pork to vegetables sautéed in hoisin sauce.
Chinese Five-Spice Peanuts
Chinese Five-Spice Powder is a blend made of warm spices like cinnamon, cloves, star anise, fennel, and Szechuan peppercorns. These peanuts seasoned with Five Spice make a great party snack.
Brown Rice Instant Pot Congee
Made with hearty brown rice and healing turmeric, this satisfying rice porridge is full of flavor and nutrition. It's the perfect way to start your day and your year.
Homemade Turkey Eggrolls
Egg rolls represent good fortune for the new year because they are similar in shape to gold bars. They're also super delicious!
Potstickers (Chinese Pan Fried Dumplings)
These dumplings are filled with savory meat and vegetables and then cooked by a combination of pan frying and steaming.
Egg Drop Soup
Egg Drop soup combines green onions, ginger, chicken broth and eggs together in perfect harmony for an ultra tasty yet simple soup.
Sweet Pork Dumplings
These sweet fried or steamed Pork Dumplings are filled with ground pork, cabbage, and ginger.
Chinese Hot & Sour Soup
The popular restaurant dish Hot and Sour Soup is quick and easy to make at home!
Peking Chicken
Peking Chicken is a nice alternative to the classic Peking Duck. It’s tender, flavorful and cooked to perfection in the slow cooker.
Roast Duck Braised in a Master Stock
This roast duck recipe is jam packed with flavor. Firs the duck is braised in a Master Stock, then it's roasted to crisp up the skin.
Sticky Chinese Chicken Drumsticks-Healthy Life Trainer
Chicken drumsticks are marinated in a sweet sticky sauce made with soy sauce, honey, and fresh ginger and garnished with sesame seeds and chopped green onion.
Vegan Vegetable Lo Mein with Tofu
Slurpable noodles and stir-fried veggies make this a flavor-packed noodle meal.
Vegetable Chow Mein
With crispy noodles, stir-fried veggies, and a savory sauce, there’s plenty to love about this vegan version of a Chinese classic.
Easy Chicken Egg Foo Young
These Chinese omelettes are made with only 5 basic ingredients. But you can also top them off with a simple 4-ingredient egg foo young sauce.
Kim-Joy's Tangzhong Cat Shaped Bread
This is the cutest thing! Fluffy tear-and-share 'tangzhong' bread rolls are shaped and decorated to look like cute little cats. Adorable, right?!
Easy Vegetable Lo Mein
Vegetable Lo Mein recipe is a delicious, one-pan meal that can be on the table in 30 minutes or less.
The Best Braised Chicken Feet (Dim Sum Chicken Feet)
These braised and then stir-fried Chicken Feet rival any dim sum restaurant. The umami-packed sauce really makes the dish.
Chinese Style Steamed Fish & Chinese New Year
A whole steamed fish is an auspicious dish to celebrate Chinese New Year because it symbolizes wealth and prosperity.
Chinese Style Vegan Tofu Minced Pork – my plantiful cooking
Chinese style vegan minced "pork" is made from tofu! It's super flavorful and can be made in just 15 minutes.
Mongolian Beef Recipe: One Healthy Sweet & Spicy Savory Dish
Mongolian Beef is a popular dish that's perf for family dinners, gatherings and holiday feasts.
Red Dot Almond Cookies for Chinese New Year
These Red Dot Almond Cookies are the perfect sweet treat to make to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year.
Chinese New Year Cake “Nian Gao” Recipe
Made with brown sugar syrup and sweet rice flour, this cake symbolize prosperity or promotion or children growing taller.
Pineapple Cookies (�e) for Chinese New Year
For celebrating Chinese New Year, or just for enjoying with a cup of tea, Pineapple Cookies are an international treat to be savored.
Butter Cookie Dragons ( �| ) for Chinese New Year
These crisp, dragon-shaped cookies melt in your mouth.