Winter Solstice is here!!! Although I had been staying in Taiwan where my school canteen had a stand that sell these, but I still craved for it! (too expensive I cant afford to buy).
Dong Zhi or Winter Solstice
Traditionally, the Dongzhi Festival is also a time for the
family to get together. One activity that occurs during these get-togethers
(especially in the southern parts of China and in Chinese communities
overseas) is the making and eating of tangyuan (湯圓) or
balls of glutinous rice, which symbolize reunion. Tangyuan are made
of glutinous rice flour and sometimes brightly coloured. Each family member
receives at least one large tangyuan in addition to several small
ones. The flour balls may be plain or stuffed. They are cooked in a sweet soup
or savory broth with both the ball and the soup/broth served in one bowl. It is
also often served with a mildly alcoholic unfiltered rice wine containing
whole grains of glutinous rice (and often also Sweet Osmanthus flowers), called jiuniang.
In northern China, people typically eat dumplings on
Dongzhi. It is said to have originated from Zhang Zhongjing in the Han
Dynasty. On one cold winter day, he saw the poor suffering from chilblains on
their ears. Feeling sympathetic, he ordered his apprentices to make dumplings with
lamb and other ingredients, and distribute them among the poor to keep them
warm, to keep their ears from getting chilblains. Since the dumplings were
shaped like ears, Zhang named the dish "qùhán jiāoěr tāng" (祛寒嬌耳湯)
or dumpling soup that expels the cold. From that time on, it has been a
tradition to eat dumplings on the day of Dongzhi.
Old traditions also require people with the same surname or
from the same clan to gather at their ancestral temples to worship on
this day. There is always a grand reunion dinner following the sacrificial
ceremony.
The festive food is also a reminder that celebrators are now
a year older and should behave better in the coming year. Even today, many
Chinese around the world, especially the elderly, still insist that one is
"a year older" right after the Dongzhi celebration instead of waiting
for the lunar new year.
To Taiwanese people, the festival in winter also plays
a very important role. It is also a tradition for Taiwanese to eat tangyuan on
this day. They also use the festive food as an offering dish to worship
the ancestors.
In an interesting twist, in accordance with ancient Taiwanese
history, many people take some of the tangyuan that have been used as
offerings and stick them on the back of the door or on windows and tables and
chairs. These "empowered" tangyuan supposedly serve as
protective talismans to keep evil spirits from coming close to
children.
In addition to following some of the customs practiced on
mainland China, the people of Taiwan have their own unique
custom of offering nine-layer cakes as a ceremonial sacrifice to worship their
ancestors. These cakes are made using glutinous rice flour in the shape of a
chicken, duck, tortoise, pig, cow, or sheep, and then steamed in different layers
of a pot. These animals all signify auspiciousness in Chinese tradition.
Another interesting custom in Taiwan is that many people
take invigorating tonic foods during this particular winter festival.
To the Taiwanese, winter is a time when most physical activities should be
limited and you should eat well to nourish your body. This practice follows the
habits shown by many animals which follow the law of nature and hibernate throughout
winter months to rejuvenate and to preserve life. In order to fight cold
temperatures, it is necessary to eat more fatty and meaty foods during winter
when your body can better absorb the rich and nutritional foods at this time
due to a slower metabolic rate.
Since Dongzhi is the "Extreme of Winter",
Taiwanese regard it as the best time of the year to take tonic foods. Some of
the most widely popular winter tonic foods enjoyed by Taiwanese to fight cold
and strengthen the body's resistance are mutton hot pot and ginger duck hot
pot. Other foods like chicken, pork, and abalone are also common
materials used in making tonic foods with nurturing herbs such as ginseng, deer horn,
and the fungus cordyceps.
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Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dongzhi_Festival
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