Lunar New Year
46 recipes found

Fried Wontons
Crunchy on the outside with a juicy shrimp filling, these deep-fried wontons are the ultimate party food. (You can use storebought or make your own wontons with this recipe.) To make sure they cook to the ideal golden brown crispness, avoid crowding the pan of hot oil. Each batch takes only a few minutes to fry, and the wontons still taste great when served warm. Better yet, welcome guests into the kitchen and serve the wontons as they’re ready. The spicy sweet-and-sour dipping sauce can be prepared ahead, making this party dish even easier.

Wontons
Wontons are dumplings, but not all dumplings are wontons. And not all wontons are Cantonese — there are thicker-skinned versions in northern China and spicy ones from Sichuan in the southwest, among others — but Hong Kong wontons, distinguished by silky wrappers and shrimp in the stuffing, are arguably the most delicious and nuanced. In Cantonese cooking, the inherent flavors of ingredients are meant to shine, so this formula seasons the shrimp and pork lightly with classic sauces, ginger and scallions. The filling can be varied to your tastes: You can add diced water chestnuts for crunch, chopped rehydrated dried shiitake or other Chinese mushrooms for their meatiness, or swap minced fish or scallops for the pork. Once the wontons are wrapped, they can be boiled for soup, fried or steamed, or frozen to cook in the future.

Shanghai Stir-Fried Chunky Noodles
This Shanghainese noodle recipe, from the British cook and food writer Fuchsia Dunlop, can be made vegetarian by omitting the pork. Do seek out light and dark soy sauces; light soy sauce adds salty-umami flavor and dark soy sauce adds color. Traditional woks are made from carbon steel, and must be routinely seasoned to keep from rusting. To season, heat the wok on high, turn off the flame and use a paper towel to wipe the interior with vegetable oil. Repeat if necessary. A deep frying pan with high sides will work for this recipe if you don't have a wok.

Keo Lac Vung (Peanut and Sesame Candy)
Gifting and eating sweets during Lunar New Year is an integral part of the Vietnamese Tet tradition. People often buy festive treats from confectioners equipped with particular skills and specialty ingredients, but you can make this easy, crunchy, delicately fragrant candy from readily available ingredients. This version of northern Vietnamese keo lac vung calls for corn syrup in place of maltose, which is often used in Vietnam. Sometimes, butter is added for a touch of fattiness, but coconut oil also works and makes the candy dairy-free.

Chicken Congee
Congee is regarded as the ultimate Chinese comfort food, according to the author Fuchsia Dunlop. This recipe for ji zhou or chicken congee, from her book on Jiangnan regional cuisine, is dead simple and satisfying. Serve it with chicken and soy sauce for a late-night Shanghai-style snack.

Sesame Candy
This sesame candy is a traditional Chinese candy that is available year-round but also eaten during the Lunar New Year celebrations. This recipe produces a slightly chewy candy, with some crunch on the sides. It’s a relatively easy candy to make, but you’ll want to follow the directions closely when preparing the syrup. The addition of water helps to evenly dissolve the sugar as the syrup cooks. Do not stir the sugar as it cooks or it will crystallize, forming small clumps instead of a smooth syrup. It can be hard to see a visual cue when toasting black sesame seeds. A subtle indication that they are toasted is that they feel a bit hollow compared to before they are toasted — or you can simply trust their scent: They’ll smell fragrant and toasted.

Homemade Dumpling Wrappers
From-scratch dumpling dough requires only two ingredients — flour and water — and the water temperature yields different types of wrappers. Cold water is best for boiled dumplings because it causes the flour’s proteins to form the gluten that makes dough chewy and able to withstand vigorously boiling water. Hot water denatures flour’s proteins, resulting in dough supple enough to roll very thin and into tender wrappers ideal for pan-fried and steamed dumplings, such as chile crisp dumplings. The hot water for this dough should be hotter than warm and cooler than boiling and can come from the faucet’s hot tap. Letting the dough rest allows it to more fully absorb the water and relax, which will make rolling even easier.

Suon Kho (Pork Ribs in Savory Caramel Sauce)
A richness permeates these ribs, which are first marinated, then grilled until charred and finally simmered in a bittersweet caramel sauce. They become so dark and savory that some people mistake them for beef. For Tet festivities in northern Vietnam, pigs are often slaughtered to celebrate the Lunar New Year, and this preparation is among the best ways to use the ribs. It reheats and freezes well, a perfect make-ahead dish for the holiday since it’s a time when everyone is supposed to relax rather than work hard in the kitchen. Pair the ribs with a side of dua hanh to cut their richness, and serve with rice and stir-fried greens to round out the meal.

Thit Heo Kho Trung (Pork and Eggs in Caramel Sauce)
Tet is for savoring abundance, which explains why this rich, savory braise of pork and eggs in bittersweet caramel sauce is a must-have on many southern Vietnamese Lunar New Year menus. It’s an extravagant treat. Pork leg with the skin attached (fresh ham) is the cut of meat traditionally used, but pork shoulder or belly also offers the delicious balance of fat and lean meat. The eggs lend an interesting contrast of chewy white and buttery yolk, while the sauce featuring coconut water is softly sweet. Searing the meat and including peppercorns are modern touches that induce greater complexity. The cook time can be cut nearly in half by making the braise in a pressure cooker. Crunchy pickled bean sprout salad is the traditional accompaniment, along with plenty of rice. Stir-fried greens can be served alongside too.

Dua Gia (Pickled Bean Sprout Salad)
Delicately crunchy and bright tasting, this easy southern Vietnamese favorite is technically a pickle because the vegetables steep in brine. But it is eaten in large amounts like a salad, usually with intensely flavored fish or pork kho (dishes simmered in savory caramel sauce). The vegetables provide a refreshing contrast to the inky, deep flavors of kho but they’re also terrific paired with dumplings or sandwiches. The bean sprouts and carrot are typically combined with flat Chinese chives. Since those kinds of chives can be hard to find, you can also use thin green scallion tops.

Singaporean Chicken Curry
In Singapore, there are countless versions of curry. Families have their own formulas depending on heritage, and this recipe comes from Shila Das, a second-generation Singaporean of Indian and Vietnamese descent. She makes it as an integral part of her nasi biryani for special occasions, including the Lunar New Year, when she brings the dish to a celebration with her best friend. Spices and aromatic pandan leaves infuse the sauce with lovely, complex flavors.

Chinese Wheat Wrappers
These Chinese wheat wrappers are popular in northern China, where they are paired with anything stir-fried in small shreds, such as moo shu pork. The author Carolyn Phillips is a proponent of using Korean flour, which is lower in gluten than American all-purpose flour. Adding a layer of oil between the dough before rolling it into a circle is a trick that allows the layers to be peeled apart after cooking for a thinner wrapper. But even unpeeled, these wrappers are fairly thin.

Moo Shu Pork
This is not your corner takeout's moo shu pork, but it is popular in China, where its northern origins are debated, according to the author Carolyn Phillips. The egg is thought to resemble the flowers of the sweet olive (osmanthus fragrans) shrub, hence its Chinese name, muxi rou, or osmathus blossom pork. The ingredients are stir-fried in batches to cook evenly and retain the vibrancy of the colors. The sauce is intentionally salty, so underseason the stir-fry and add just a dab of sauce to each wheat wrapper.

Spicy Chinese Mustard Chicken Wings
In Chinese-American restaurants, spicy yellow mustard often appears on the table as a dipping sauce — but you rarely taste it anywhere else in the meal. Jonathan Wu, the chef at the innovative Chinese-influenced restaurant Fung Tu in New York, decided to take that flavor and run with it. The two kinds of mustard (along with cayenne) makes these almost as spicy as Buffalo wings, but the heat is balanced by sweetness. To make a prettier plate, sprinkle with whole cilantro leaves and minced scallions.

Dua Hanh (Pickled Shallots)
During Vietnamese Lunar New Year, rosy, northern-style pickled shallots are a must-have on many menus. In fact, there is a traditional Tet couplet that includes dua hanh as one of the foods required for the holiday. The shallot’s delightful tanginess and mild bite cut the richness of traditional dishes like suon kho, banh chung sticky rice cakes and charcuterie. They’re also good any time in a salad or sandwich, on a cheese board or in a gin on the rocks. Peeling small shallots on your own can be tedious, so make the task a group project. Tet is about family bonding time too.

Chinese-Style BBQ Ribs
These are the best oven-roasted ribs ever, and they can also be finished on a grill for extra smoky flavor. Creating steam in the oven is the key to tender meat. The ingredients here are close to the ones used by traditional Cantonese barbecue masters to produce sticky-salty-sweet meat that has a reddish, caramelized crust — with ketchup standing in for Chinese red fermented tofu. (It can be left out if desired.) Although these ribs are presented as an appetizer in many American Chinese restaurants, barbecued meat is traditionally a main course, served with freshly cooked rice and a green side like smashed cucumber salad or stir-fried bok choy.

Nasi Biryani
Because of its vibrant multiethnic population, Singapore is one of the few places where biryani — a dish with origins in the Indian subcontinent — is regularly eaten for Lunar New Year. This recipe is from Shila Das, a second-generation Singaporean of Indian and Vietnamese descent who grew up celebrating the festivities. You first prepare chicken curry as you’ll use its sauce in this dish and serve the chicken with it. As a prolific home cook, Ms. Das has been tasked with making this dish for annual Lunar New Year potlucks. She learned how to make it from her father, who prepared it for Diwali.

Shrimp and Scallop Dumplings
A bowl of Chinese dumplings is always welcome, whether served in broth or, like here, simply dressed with rice vinegar and spicy sesame oil. It’s no trouble at all to chop and season the filling, and store-bought wrappers are easy to stuff and seal. Four minutes in boiling water is all it takes to get these bright-tasting shellfish dumplings on the table.

Lumpia Shanghai
Lumpia are cousins to spring rolls, a tradition that most likely goes back to the Chinese traders who first visited the Philippines in the ninth century. As kids, we’d crowd around the kitchen counter to make them, spooning out the filling and rolling up the skins before sliding them into hot oil. They come in different incarnations and may be served unfried and even unwrapped, but the classic is lumpia Shanghai, skinny cigarillos with supercrunchy skins, packed with meat, juices seething. I like dipping them in banana ketchup, which you can buy or improvise by cooking overripe bananas and tomato paste into a sweet-and-sour jam.

Peking Duck With Honey and Five-Spice Glaze
Peking duck is one of the most famous and popular Chinese dishes. The traditional method is grand and laborious, requiring three days of intense preparation. This recipe simplifies that method for a home version that comes pretty close to the original. For that coveted crisp, golden skin, all the excess fat is trimmed, and the skin is separated from the meat. The duck is then air-dried overnight and roasted vertically to ensure even cooking, while rendering out the fat. The crunchiest skin comes from the duck’s backside and legs, so carve them off first to maintain their crackly texture. A simple honey and five-spice glaze creates a beautiful mahogany lacquer on the finished duck.

Nonya Hokkien Stir-Fried Noodles
The Singaporean cookbook author Sharon Wee, who wrote “Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen,” customarily makes these slick noodles tossed in a savory sauce for Lunar New Year’s Eve to mark the beginning of the two week-long celebrations. Her mother taught her how to throw proper Peranakan feasts, which include a unique blend of Malay, European and Chinese influences. They spent weeks pickling vegetables in spiced vinegar, making pork liver meatballs and braising duck in a tamarind gravy. This simple stir-fry is anchored by juicy pork belly and shrimp, and topped with pale yellow egg strips, bright red chiles and vibrant mustard greens. It is best enjoyed with a dollop of sambal belacan, which gives it a hit of heat, and served with braised cabbage and chicken curry.

Braised Chicken With Ginger and Chestnuts
Gish Jen, the author of “Mona in the Promised Land,” shared this recipe with The Times in the late 1990s. Growing up in Scarsdale, N.Y., she was “suspicious” of her mother’s cooking. “I mean, I never ate the kind of Chinese food they serve in restaurants.” But she came to love her mother’s family-style Shanghai cooking. This dish, Peace and Safety In All Seasons, is part of her family's traditional Chinese New Year feast along with Step-by-Step Higher (rice and cabbage), Yearly Surplus (fried sea bass) and High Achievement (pork and hard-boiled eggs). To derive the maximum benefit from the feast, the author said, you have to eat absolutely everything — the sweet and the sour.