One of my resolutions for 2011 is to take things a little easier. Many of us were exhausted by the events of last year. I have been recovering from the wicked virus that’s been going around. Hopefully by this coming Thursday – the first day of the Lunar New Year – I will have vanquished that cough to start anew. I’m physically tired from all the coughing and light wheezing. I am also behind on many projects and need to catch up. I neither have the energy nor time to do my usual Lunar New Year blow out. Nevertheless, I want to ring in the year with some kind of fanfare.
That’s the genesis for this post. It is for people who, like me, are interested in accomplishing more by doing less. Feel free to add your ideas!
Ponder the animal: Cat or Rabbit?
To prepare yourself for the New Year, think about the animal that’s coming up. It’s a nice thematic approach to framing the months ahead. Say goodbye to the Year of the Tiger. For 2011, you can choose between the rabbit or cat.
Rebellious Vietnamese people long ago decided to celebrate the Year of the Cat when the rest of the Lunar New Year celebrants feted the Year of the Rabbit. Why the division? Some say that it was a translation error but no one has clarified that. Other Viet people argue that the cat balances out the dog in the Chinese zodiac for a yin yang thing.
Don’t believe the Viet people who say that rabbits are for food and cats are not. Sometimes cats are served up as “little tigers.” Whoever believes that hasn’t thought enough about how dog is eaten in Vietnam yet it remains a sign in the Chinese zodiac.
Cats are also perceived as clean, sociable and smart animal companions. They are harbingers of harmony. Cat people are patient, smooth talkers who wait for just the right moment before pouncing!
Btw, the 1976 hit, "The Year of the Cat" by Al Stewart was titled after the feline symbol from Vietnamese astrology. Take a listen... the references in the lyrics are to the movie Casablanca but the title was Vietnam inspired.
The Chinese ascribe similar qualities to rabbits as people born in the Year of the Rabbit are articulate, talented, ambitious yet generally kind. They seldom lose their temper. Rabbit people have the ability to choose the right time to hop into action. Rabbits sound somewhat like cats, don't you think?
Pondering the animal for the upcoming year takes up a lot of time. If you become expert at the animal, you will be good at talking to others about the New Year. You will be good for Lunar New Year cocktail parties!
Talk a friend into hosting a party
So think like a cunning cat and act like a tactful rabbit to plot your Tet festivities. Consider having a small shindig but at someone else’s home! It’s enough to clean your house before Tet arrives. Don't dirty it up.
Instead, buy a new outfit, get a haircut, and ‘invite’ yourself to someone else’s abode for a pot luck party. My friend Jeff volunteered to host this year since we hosted him last year.
“Brilliant!” I responded. “I’ll bring a couple of dishes.” We’re keeping it casual with a small group. It’s really an excuse to get together to eat, drink, and laugh.
Raid your -- or better yet -- Mom’s freezer
Leading up to Thursday, I’ve gone through my freezer to cull a few goodies that I stashed in there over the months gone by. Lunar New Year is a time for relaxation. You are not supposed to slave in the kitchen. In the past, people spent weeks preparing food in advance so that during the holiday, they would set the stuff out for a wonderful repast.
They banked their prior cooking efforts. My modern answer to that is: the freezer. I found the following in my deep freezer leftover from Asian dumpling making sessions:
- Shanghai radish cakes
- Steamed char siu bao
- Steamed curry chicken bao
- Nepalese lamb momos
During Christmas, my mom gave me two Tet sticky rice cakes (banh chung); the above photo is of a cut up one. The square-shaped, adobe brick like savory cakes are a must-have for the holiday. My industrious mother made about two dozen last summer.
She froze them and when the time was right, offered them up to each of her kids. What a loving mother! She basically saved my butt. In years past, I’d spend 1 ½ days prepping and cooking banh chung rice cakes. It was really fun but I am glad to thaw and refresh (read: reboil) the ones that mom made.
Make a few easy things
Over the weekend, I made a batch of Vietnamese pickles. They’re a family favorite called dua gop and combine cauliflower, carrot and red bell pepper. It’s a recipe from Into the Vietnamese Kitchen that’s easy to put together, and within 24 hours, the tangy crunchy vegetables are ready to eat. For Tet, Vietnamese people love to have pickles to cut the flavors of hearty foods such as the sticky rice cake.
I’ll be caving in to simmering pork in caramel sauce for a kho (claypot dishes). It’s another Vietnamese Tet tradition. If you’re southern Viet, it’s thit heo kho trung, pork and boiled eggs in a savory sweet caramel sauce with coconut juice. My parent’s northern Vietnamese inclination is to simmer pork riblets in caramel sauce (suon kho) until they’re nearly falling off the bone. I’m a sucker for the pork riblets for Tet. They keep for days and improve with flavor!
Tet Supertitions
There are so many things that people think they must do to guarantee a good year ahead. I try to keep things fun and easy. I was raised on Tet superstitions such as making sure that the first person to enter your front door will offer you good luck for the year. (I'm getting my husband to knock on the door first thing on Thursday!) I decorate with some blossoms or pots of chrysanthemums. Then I take the first day of the new year off for relaxation and positive thinking.
Simon below asked about taboo Tet foods. He asked, "Does anyone personally object to serving or eating duck, squid, or shrimp at Tet?" Some people think that ducks are stupid (really?) and the dark ink from squid is seen as dirty. I don't know about the shrimp.
Many Viet people cooking whole chickens and slaughtering a pig for Tet. Such sacrifices seem like a joyous one for people who traditionally have labored so hard for the rest of the year. All of these things are up to the believer.
Any thoughts or food superstitions for the new year? Have you heard of any? Do you practice some superstition or avoid certain taboos?
Make it a group activity
Gold is the preferred color for this holiday. If I get up the gumption, I’ll deep-fry something into a luscious, prosperity-laden golden crisp. It will be something simple, like a shrimp and pork wonton or the Trader Vic campy classic, crab Rangoon. I’ve taught my husband to fill and fold wontons quite well so I can get him to pitch in.
Or, maybe I’ll make dumpling dough and filling and take them to Jeff’s house for a group activity. We can roll wrappers and make boiled jiaozi dumplings. Then we'll tumble them in a lots of soy sauce, vinegar, and chile oil.
Whether it’s the Year of the Cat or the Year of the Rabbit, I hope these tips help you to have a less stressful and restorative celebration.
Related posts:
- Simple Ways to Celebrate Tet: Easy, no-sweat things to do for Tet, such as a downloadable Tet couplet for your door, pointers on how to wish people “Happy New Year” in Vietnamese, Cantonese and Mandarin, and how to attract good luck for the New Year (xong dat)
- How to find a Tet Festival: Tips for locating these events, which hare typically advertised only in the Vietnamese community!
- Traditional Tet Flowers and Blossoms: My father used to cut blooming branches from trees he found in the neighborhood. You can clip like him, or buy, like me. This post tells you what to look for. Learn about the flowers like the one at the top of this post.
Food
- Special Foods for Tet Celebrations: What is typically eaten during this holiday? Great for menu planning.
- Banh Chung and Banh Tet: What are they and how do you eat these sticky rice cakes
- Pan-fried Tet Sticky Rice Cake Recipe (Banh Chung Chien)
- Chicken and Bamboo Shoot Noodle Soup Recipe (Bun Mang Ga)
- Download step-by-step photos of how to form and wrap banh chung Tet sticky rice cakes . The mold is my preferred method because it's much easier to get the square shape, a hallmark of the sticky rice cakes. The photos correspond to my detailed recipe for banh chung in Into the Vietnamese Kitchen (Ten Speed Press, 2006).
- Banh Chung Tet Sticky Rice Cake Recipe
- Candied Lotus Seeds Recipe
Steven says
Would it be too much trouble to post the pickle recipe please?
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Belinda @zomppa says
Wonderful tips! Have a wonderful, wonderful New Year!!
Simon Bao says
Andrea, I think planning and prepping and hosting a Tet New Year's Day dinner is equivalent to a Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. There are not many ways to simplify it and still keep it a feast worthy of the holiday.
BUT the Tet parties can be made easier. Everyone is familiar with BYOB, a big Tet party can be a BYODF, "bring your own damn food." Guests all stepping up and offering to cook a dish, or if your friends are like mine, offering to persuade a spouse or sister or mom or mother-in-law to cook it (i.e., a pot of Sup Mang Cua Tay, a pan of Com Chien Thap Cam), or some Cha Gio to be fried at the party. Others can always order some foods from Little Saigon shops (i.e. a big pan of Be Thui, or some Banh Bot Loc).
Non-Viets who are foodies and true cooks can always be provided reliable recipes for dishes that are within their grasp, like Banh Pate So or Goi Ga, or your own Coconut Pineapple cake.
And those non-foodie friends who one doesn't rely on for food can bring the Heineken, the ice, the coconut rum, the Absolut Citron, extra limes, the cans and bottles of tropical fruit nectars for the cocktails. The nearly useless and utterly unreliable ones can be asked to drop off red and yellow flowers 1-2 days in advance, and maybe this year they'll get it right.
Simon Bao says
Andrea, I'm interested in knowing how your Vietnamese visitors to this page feel about serving foods that are thought of as "TABOO FOR TET."
Does anyone personally object to serving or eating duck, squid, or shrimp at Tet?
Does anyone have a family or circle of friends for whom that taboo is still very much in effect, and those foods never show up at Tet?
Personally, I'm not aware of a superstitious cast to my character, and I would have liked to serve a Sup Nam Trang with shrimp at dinner on Thursday, I would have liked to serve a warm duck salad at dinner, and everyone else at table is non-Viet, so it shouldn't matter. And yet, I hesitate.
Sandy says
Unlike my mother, I don't do a lot of cooking for Lunar New Year. Since it usually falls on a school night, we usually end up having "regular" food for dinner.
But on a weekend day after New Year, my husband's family gets together, and everyone brings something (BYODF!). The relatives who live in Orange County usually purchase something in Little Saigon.
I was thinking of making dumplings, and your group activity idea is a good one.
Andrea Nguyen says
Steve: For the dua gop pickle recipe, do check out Into the Vietnamese Kitchen, which your library or bookstore may have. There are several pickle recipes in there. I typically don't post recipes from the book as it may confuse people who have and cook from the work.
Andrea Nguyen says
Simon: I just added your question about Tet taboos to the original post. As you can tell, I hedge my bets and pick and choose. What's the deal with the shrimp?
Simon Bao says
Andrea, you've never heard about the shrimp? I recall no food taboos from childhood, and we didn't have enough food for any taboos to even apply - but in adulthood I've been told not to eat shrimp during Tet (and not serve them to elderly venerables), or I risk moving backwards in the coming year, just as shrimp swim backwards.
But that sheds no light on taboos on squid, or why it's bad luck to eat duck.
I've never picked any fights with elders by pointing out there's probably shrimp in the Cha Gio and the Banh Bot Loc - but I'm always tempted.
Simon Bao says
Andrea, about cooking and serving whole animals for Tet, I'm vague on the details but I have been told it's less auspicious to be cooking just PARTS of animals, and more auspicious to cook and serve WHOLE animals. Some notion of thereby ensuring greater abundance in the year to come. I've also been told it's an insult to the ancestors to offer them only some parts of an animal, rather than the whole creature - and during the New Year we always invite the ancestors to "an Tet" with us, to "eat Tet" or to join in the feast with us.
Well, I can appreciate at least the intention and the aspiration represented by cooking and serving whole animals, and I always like to serve both a whole fish and one or more whole birds for dinner on New Year's Day. And few things put me in a such a happy mood as seeing some buddies walk in carrying a whole roast pig for Tet.
Steven Whiteman says
Andrea,
What is that flowering branch you have at the top of the article? It's flowers are really a beautiful shade of green. Happy New Year!
Steve
Michelle says
Thanks for the tips! My husband is Viet but since his family is all in SoCal, we don't celebrate it ourselves. But I've convinced him to start making an effort for our daughter so she can experience some of the fun of Tet herself. Of course, I'm stuck trying to find banh Tet in the East Bay which I've found to be impossible. (Hubs looked at me like I'd lost my mind when I mused trying to make it myself.) Ack! Instead we're just going to go to the festival in SJ and stuff ourselves there 🙂
Renee Lalane says
I love your blogs and your Enthusiasm for food. Keep up the good work and I will be a regular reader. Happy New Year
andrea says
You convince me to finally make my own banh chung and now you advocate for a lazy tet?! 🙂 Actually, we are having fun getting these together. The banana leaves smell so wonderful and the mung beans are steaming right now. My husband made a wooden mold last weekend, so I'm crossing my fingers that these come out OK. Thanks for your recipes and your inspiration!
Chúc Mừng Năm Mới!
Andrea Nguyen says
Simon: Ah-so, shrimp swim backwards. I guess there's no moon walking allowed for Tet too. Practicing a head to tail rigor for Lunar New Year does demonstrate a greater appreciation for the lives that feed us.
Steven: The flowers at the top are actually yellow but there's a slight greenish cast to them from the photo. They're called hoa mai in Vietnamese and somewhat hard to obtain in the U.S.
Michelle: Try the banh mi bakeries in Chinatown Oakland for banh chung, or cylindrical banh tet.
Andrea: LOL! Well, I advocate for making a mess of banh chung and freezing them for later! That's kinda like smart cooking.
CHUC MUNG NAM MOI everyone.
Sandy says
Regarding no squid - Steamy Kitchen (Jaden Hair) lists some Chinese superstitions, and explains that squid is equated with being fired. It reminds me of a Cantonese phrase where "cooked squid" means "you're fired" (Donald Trump tone of voice optional).
Jaden also mentions no tofu because of the white color. I recall my mother using fried tofu in the vegetarian dish; I think that was the only item that I would eat!
Simon Bao says
Two nice "Group Activities" for friends gathering for a meal during Tet come to mind right away. They are what we do in Philadelphia, though not typically for Tet.
One is a Lau, or Hot Pot. Assemble a good variety of ingredients and you can be sure of having something for everyone. And people can gather around the pot at table, or sit on the floor around the pot - and everyone gets to feed the pot, everyone gets to feast from the pot. There's a wide range of broths, meats, seafoods, veggies, easy to find a Lau one likes.
The other would be a Goi Cuon Ca gathering. Get one or more fresh whole fish (round fish) with reasonably flaky flesh -- and LARGE fish look a lot more festive than small ones -- roast them or broil them or grill them (plank grilling works real well). Have everyone gather around the table set with the whole cooked fish and all the fixings for salad rolls, and everyone makes and assembles their own fish & salad rolls. One volunteer at each end of the table can take responsibility for dipping the rice papers into water, and passing them to diners as needed. It's a leisurely meal and the menu can be fleshed out with some additional items if hosts are ambitious.
Mary says
Happiness is: a three-year old boy who's just been given a hammer and permission to bash open a coconut. Even better, it was to make candy!
Andrea Nguyen says
Sandy: Thanks for reminding of Jaden's informative post. I propose that Trump throw squid at the eliminated contestants!
Simon: Awesome ideas for DIY Tet meals. Talk about a good lazy person's sneaky strategy for the holiday... just kidding.
Mary: You are a brave mom. Hope the candied coconut ribbons were fun to make and eat. They're one of my favorite Tet sweetmeats.
randi says
Just a quick word to say that I love your dumpling book, Andrea, and have been using it regularly with my kids. Into the Vietnamese Kitchen is our next cookbook purchase. If I may, I see that Simon is from Philadelphia. May I ask where his favorite place to eat Vietnamese food is? I'm always jealous of all of the places that are mentioned in California and was thrilled that there may finally be a place to try closer to home. Thanks and keep the wonderful stories and recipes and comments coming.
Simon Bao says
This note is for Randi... I can give you a few *favorite* Viet restaurants in Phila, but I don't eat in enough of them anymore to know which are BEST.
FYI, you will not yet find in Philadelphia any kind of Vietnamese avant-garde, Modernista, fusionista, next-century or nouvelle cuisine restaurants. There's no "new age" food here, to use Viet slang from 1989. Not even a place offering any kind of "fine dining" or elegant atmosphere. The Viet community here is just too small, too insular, and too conservative to generate that kind of thing on its own. It may take Stephen Starr to create opportunities for that here.
Vietnam Cafe, 816 South 47th Street
My Forever Beloved works at Penn and so a lot of our friends live in University City and Spruce Hill -- Vietnam Cafe was therefore an easy favorite to adopt. The menu is completely conventional "VietnAmerican restaurant," but the dishes are reliable and the atmosphere is pleasing.
Vietnam Palace, 222 N. 11th Street
We Vietnamese are nothing if not loyal, recklessly loyal sometimes, and I'm loyal to the Palace, one of the Grande Dames of Vietnamese restaurants in Chinatown. I've been going to the Palace for as long as I've been in Philadelphia, and as I work near Chinatown I still haunt its tables. It offers conventional fare, but does it well. I loved it even back in the day when the interior was a bit grim and austere, and the lighting was severe. Right across the street from the Palace is Vietnam, at 221 North 11th, which is also a solid, dependable place. You're good to go at either place.
Nam Phuong, 1100 Washington Avenue
Located on that strip of Washington Avenue that constitutes South Philly's own Itty Bitty Little Saigon. Nam Phuong is a good reliable choice, a real stalwart. One doesn't go to Nam Phuong for cutting edge decor or atmospherics, just solid food.
QT Vietnamese Sandwich, 48 North 10th Street
Where I go when I to grab my lunch sandwich, when I neglect to pack my own. They have a wide variety of Banh Mi and they never fail. But being in Market East, it is a madhouse during the lunch hour rush.
Cafe Saigon, 827 Adams Avenue
Among the Viet restaurants and cafes north of Roosevelt Blvd, this place stands out, a great place to meet up with buddies on Saturday for great Banh Mi and cafe sua. Again, not noted for decor.
randi says
Thanks so much, Simon.
I am familiar with most of the places you mentioned and appreciate your reviews. I've been looking for great Banh Mi and since I live out near Jenkintown, Adams Ave is fairly close. Will definitely head there for lunch in the near future.
I went to Penn many years ago and don't get back to the campus too often, but will make a trip to try Vietnam Cafe, maybe with a kid or two in tow.
Simon Bao says
Randi, as you live up thataways, let me mention 1-2 more places that should be convenient.
Pho 75, 823 Adams Avenue (just north of the Boulevard)
One of countless Pho 75 restaurants across the land, a chain of pho shops, in a little strip mall with 2-3 other Viet shops, including Cafe Saigon mentioned above. Serves *only* Pho and beverages, not the best in the world but it's fine.
Pho Hoa, 501 Adams Avenue
I mention it in case you want Pho and also the chance to sample other dishes as well. The quality of the food is inconsistent, can sometimes be glorious, rapturous, transplendent... Or not. It's definitely NOT a place to bring one's beloved, one's mother, or one's boss. Physically the place needs a thorough scrubbing and a make-over.
Andrea Nguyen says
Randi: Thanks for your kind words on Asian Dumplings. I use the book lots too! Same with Into the Vietnamese Kitchen, which I just pulled out this morning.
Simon: Thanks for the Philly listing of Vietnamese joints. I'm surprised by your Pho Hoa description. They're a franchise and you'd think they'd keep up a certain level of hygiene. Yikes, that sounds awful.
Mary says
Andrea, The coconut candies were delicious. I find them addictive; now my son does, too. Talk about rewarding for him -- first a hammer, then a knife (plastic, so he wasn't too successful getting the meat out of the shell), and then candy at the end of it all! Manly cooking indeed.
l-arginine says
Thanks for an excellent article! I appreciate your insights and agree with what you wrote.
Yang says
That's a nice clarification of the cat/rabbit. Though, I still don't understand why it's a cat when there is also a Tiger in the calendar?
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Becky says
This is great!! I'm excite to find such a great resource for Tet. Reading about the food is making my mouth water...