Family:

The Reunion Table

Contributor: Alison Fong is a junior Honors College student majoring in history, international and global studies with a concentration in peace, human rights, and security, and Asian studies and minoring in East Asian history and politics. Originally born in Singapore before moving to Phoenix, Arizona in 2010, Alison is involved on campus as a member of the University of Arkansas Museum Student Advisory Council, an Honors College Ambassador, and a member of Sigma Iota Rho. After college, Alison desires to pursue a masters in global and Asian history and further her knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Reunion Dinner at my grandmother’s place.

Preparations for Chinese New Year always begin weeks before its celebration. From buying decorations to seasonal snacks to cleaning the house, there is always much to prepare before the holiday itself. For some, Chinese New Year preparations begin as early as the 8th day of the 12th lunar month, Laba (腊八: ‘12th lunar month’ (腊: là) and ‘8’ (八: bā)), which corresponds to January 20 in 2021. However, many tend to start their Chinese New Year with a thorough ‘spring-cleaning’ on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month (February 4, 2021). By sweeping out the ‘old dust’, we welcome the new year and the new possibilities that the new year will bring. The remaining days leading up to the new year are spent buying Chinese New Year decorations, seasonal foods and snacks, and new clothes.  

Chinese New Year’s Eve (February 11th, 2021) is one of my favorite days of Chinese New Year. On the eve of the new year, we decorate the walls and doors of our homes with red couplets, firecrackers, and upside down ‘福’ (fú) stickers. At night, we gather at our grandparents’ house and have a giant reunion dinner. In Singapore, where I grew up, Lo Hei (Cantonese for “tossing up good fortune”) is a common dish that is served during the Reunion Dinner. You can learn more about Lo Hei from this informative article by the National Heritage Board of Singapore. More often than not, Chinese families will have two reunion dinners to honor the paternal and the maternal sides of the family. Some families choose to have a reunion lunch with one side of the family and a reunion dinner with the other. If I had to equate a similar western tradition to the reunion dinner, it would be like a Thanksgiving dinner or a Christmas dinner.  

Lo Hei before its tossed!

For most Americans, there are several dishes that are a must-have at the Thanksgiving table, such as turkey, green bean casserole, and stuffing. The Chinese have a similar tradition, but each dish includes ingredients that all symbolize auspicious wishes for the new year. For example, you will often see a steamed whole fish as a part of the spread because the Chinese character for ‘fish’ (鱼: yú) is a homophone for ‘abundance’ (餘: yú). The belief is that by preparing and ingesting these symbolic ingredients, your new year will be filled with these good signs like ‘abundance’, ‘good fortune’, ‘gold’, ‘a good life’, etc. This site features a list of ingredients and their symbolisms that you would commonly find at a Reunion Dinner. 

Being a college student, it is very difficult for me to celebrate the Reunion Dinner with my family because we are all in different parts of the world. For me, Chinese New Year usually falls on a school day, and I can’t afford to take a week away from school to spend a few days with my family – it’s expensive and costly. I’ve taken to baking almond cookies to make up for the lack of tradition due to my inability to buy certain ingredients and my lack of cooking skill. Baking almond cookies every Chinese New Year brings some comfort to me when I cannot be with my family at this time. Here’s the same recipe that I use to make these almond cookies for the New Year. 

My freshly baked almond cookies in preparation for Chinese New Year 

Family is a consistent theme in all Asian festivities, emphasizing the importance of filial piety and community in our culture. Food becomes more than a category of our culture; it is a mean of bonding with family, friends, and even strangers. If you wish to share in this experience with your friends, colleagues, or family, here are 25 recipes that you could make for your own Reunion Dinner.

Some extra resources: 

• 10 Vegetarian Dishes for Chinese New Year: The variety of Chinese New Year dishes means that there are a ton of vegetarian-friendly recipes as well. This blog compiles ten vegetarian dishes that are still super delicious! 

• Top 19 Traditional Chinese Vegan Recipes: Chinese cuisine is not only diverse but versatile, which makes it easy to switch out ingredients to cater to specific dietary needs. Check out this list of delicious vegan recipes. 

• Gluten-free Chinese New Year Cookies: The best part about Chinese New Year are the various snacks and cookies that sit around the coffee tables of your relatives’ houses. Even if you are on a gluten-free diet, you can still indulge in these delicious cookies! 

Image Attributions:

• Alison Fong. Family photographs.