The perfect way to celebrate Chinese New Year is with family meals. We’ve gathered some of the best delicious and easy to make Chinese New Year recipes from our community of top bloggers and influencers. For 2021, Chinese New Year begins Friday 12 February. The celebrations last for 15 days, which means there are enough here for every day and more!
About Chinese New Year
The timing of Chinese New Year is dictated by the lunar calendar and the celebration is older than even the Great Wall itself!
The Chinese zodiac moves in a 12-year cycle and 2021 will be the Year of the Ox. Typically a sixth of the world’s population travel home to be with their families for Chinese New Year so it really is the world’s biggest party. Of course any good party requires food, so we’ve gathered top Chinese New Year recipes from our food blogging buddies.
Dumpling recipes
Dumplings are a traditional Chinese New Year food. Janie’s Spicy Cabbage Wontons are delectable and are great fun to make. Pop the pan of spicy cabbage on the table, hand out the wrappers and get the whole family wrapping. We love the look of this recipe for Mom’s Best Pork Dumplings from Omnivore’s Cookbook. Or this kit for Sichuanese Wontons in Chilli Oil Sauce, which Eileen (who writes frequently about Chinese food and culture) blogs about on ET Speaks from Home.
Crispy duck recipes for meat-lovers and vegetarians
One of my absolute favourite Chinese dishes is Crispy Duck. Fab Food 4 All shares her Poor Man’s Crispy Duck — pulled Hoisin Pork Tortillas. These are tasty and succulent due to being cooked in the slow cooker.
Katherine at Veggie Desserts has created a vegan version of crispy duck with five-spice seasoned, shredded roasted cauliflower instead of meat: wonderful alongside easy homemade pancakes and a quick plum sauce.
Chinese pork in brioche recipe
Bintu shares a divine sounding recipe for a Chinese red-cooked pork brioche sandwich. Its simple aromatics pack a big taste punch and she suggests serving it with some slaw and lots and lots of jasmine tea.
Soup and Dim Sum Chinese New Year recipes
My own recipe for Kale, Noodle and Coconut Broth is super quick and easy to make with no complicated ingredients. Check out Greedy Gourmet’s Chinese Chicken and Sweetcorn Soup. Always a favourite at dim sum restaurants: Family Friends Food’s spring onion pancakes are totally addictive.
Quick and easy fried rice recipes
There are so many options when it comes to fried rice. This 15-minute recipe for Egg Fried Rice from Taming Twins will hit the spot, quickly. Easy Peasy Foodie has a easy, quick and family-friendly version. Her Leftover Chicken and Egg Fried Rice is perfect for a busy weeknight and a great way to use up your roast chicken leftovers. Basement Bakehouse shares a healthy, delicious vegetarian dish of Sweet Potato Fried Rice. Who needs a takeaway when you can make this? A chicken version is this Lemon Chicken with Egg Fried Rice by Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy.
Chinese soup and noodle dishes for vegetarians and meat-eaters
Noodles are a traditional Chinese New Year dish. Curlys Cooking says that her Chicken Chow Mein tastes just as delicious as your favourite Chinese takeaway. Or go vegetarian with quick Sesame Noodles, a delicious and healthy Chinese recipe that is ready in about 15 minutes from My Gorgeous Recipes.
Chinese New Year recipes for stir fry
Stir Fry is another classic and Lost in Food shares Catherine’s best ever dinner of stir-fried chicken & cashew nuts. A family favourite mid-week dinner, quick to cook and full of flavour. The Petite Cook goes sweet and sour with crispy chunks of deep-fried battered chicken with a deep citrusy aroma, served with fragrant rice. We also can’t help but think this succulent dish of Orange Chicken with Forbidden Rice is the perfect excuse for gathering together family and friends to celebrate Chinese New Year (even if this year it is via video or phone).
Salmon teriyaki and sea bass Chinese style
Fish, another traditional Chinese New Year food, is healthy and flavourful. Joshi Cooks has the perfect quick weeknight meal with this Sesame Crusted Salmon Teriyaki. Or try this fish May at Eat Cook Explore with Steamed Sea Bass Chinese Style. Lost in Food also has a light, easy, healthy Chinese Steamed Sea Bass with ginger, spring onion and chilli.
A whole fish is perfect for Chinese New Year! Head and tails intact means there’s a beginning and an end. It’s all auspicious.
Sweet treats and desserts
Eileen from ET Speaks from Home loves these Peanut Cookies during Chinese New Year. Her husband also swears by her Mini Egg Tarts. Or to keep with a simple Chinese theme, try these Homemade Fortune Cookies recipe by Charlotte’s Lively Kitchen.
More fun for Chinese New Year
- Discover Arts & Crafts you can do for Chinese New Year with the kids
- Pretty Chinese New Year crafts that don’t require mad art skills
About Claire Jessiman
Claire Jessiman is a Scottish Freelance Foodie based in Aberdeen who has been blogging her Edible Scottish Adventures as Foodie Quine since 2012. A mum of two and wife of one, she is passionate about cooking from scratch, seasonality, food education and family-friendly recipes. She's always keen to seek out local food specialities, markets and experiences whilst travelling in the UK and abroad and is eager to champion local Farmers, Suppliers and Producers. Addicted to social media, Claire is also partial to Cheese, Gin, Peanut Butter, Tea and Rhubarb and is permanently looking for the recipe that can successfully combine them all.
- Web |
- More Posts(10)
12 pancake recipes for Pancake Day / Shrove Tuesday
»
So many great recipes for Chinese New Year!
Loving all these recipes to celebrate Chinese New Year:-)
What a fab collection of recipes to celebrate Chinese New Year!, I want to try them all!