The Year of the Rat is Coming! 5 Easy Ways to Prep and Celebrate

“Tết is on a weekend this year. It’s going to be crazy,” my mom said. She’s right about January 25, 2020. Things will be crowded and festive in Little Saigons abroad. I'm sure it'll be fun in Vietnam.

Lunar New Year — called Tết Nguyên Đán in formal Vietnamese, 春节 Chūnjié in Mandarin Chinese, Seollal in Korean, and Losar in Tibetan — is an important holiday for those who observe it. It’s traditionally a Spring festival, a time of renewal, an opportunity to reset. 

Notes on the Year of the Rat

But does the “Year of the Rat” sound sort of yucky to you? It’s an awkward translation. The Chinese character for rat and mouse is the same —  鼠 (shǔ). Similarly, chuột means rat and mouse in Vietnamese. My oldest sister was born in the Year of the Rat, but I’ve always casted her as a cuteish mouse. Regardless, rats and mice are considered cunning, clever, and determined.

As the story goes, the Rat was the first animal in the Chinese zodiac because he schemed his way to finish first in a race set up by the Jade Emperor to determine who would guard the Heavenly Gate. Rat cheated the Ox to cross the finish line a hair faster. Then came the Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat/Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. 

The image above comes from a sweet pictorial slideshow of Chinese Zodiac Calendar story at Topmark, a UK-based educational website. Share the entire thing with kids and/or adults. I was charmed. 

Gearing up for January 25, below are five ways I’m preparing to celebrate. You don’t have to do all five to usher in the new year. Pick what you feel is manageable to ready you for new beginnings. 

Clean House

This year, with the new decade beginning, I made changes to my living space. For example, I’ve been cleaning my office of fifteen (15!) years of accumulation. After I finish this post, I’m readying it for a new coat of paint. 

We’re also tidying up the house for an exciting kitchen renovation, which I’ll keep you posted about. That means discarding weird ingredients I’ve kept too long (the soy sauce and fish sauce collections are staying!). 

Finish To-Do Lists 

I try to take care of outstanding paperwork before Tet arrives. That entails invoicing, following up on outstanding emails in my to-do folder, gathering up receipts from the past year so filing taxes go smoothly, and feeding my garden beds. With those things done, I have a clean slate for the Year of the Rat!

Decorate 

With the laborious part done, holiday decor is in order. A pile of tangerines or oranges, flowering branches, pots of blooming chrysanthemums, Chinese New Year wall hangings inviting good luck. Red and gold touches around the house add cheer. They’re dorky and corny but letting loose is the point. 

Cook and Share

Focusing on food on and around Tet is a major part of the holiday. Next week, I’ll be making a batch of banh chung (“baahn choong”) -- Vietnamese Tet sticky rice cakes. They’re required in our home. Helpful banh chung links:

• How to make banh chung
• How to cook, cut and eat banh chung (this applies to store bought ones!)

Other favorite Viet Tet foods include kho -- braised and simmered dishes cooked with caramel sauce. They keep well so people made lots for easy eating during Tet. Plus, families like my mom’s butchered a whole pig for Tet and parts such as the ribs went into a batch of kho. The classic southern pork and eggs simmered in caramel sauce (thit heo kho trung) can be made in an Instant Pot, as detailed in Vietnamese Food Any Day on page 133; you can use a regular pot on the stove too! 

I’ll also make Chinese dumplings because it’s a fun group project. I adore them poached (see this Sichuan recipe) and cozily served with soy sauce and chile oil; add vinegar for tang, if you wish. I just came up with this recipe for Eating Well.

Or, go rich and make pot stickers like these. You may also stay lean via a steamed Korean shrimp mandu recipe. For the wow factor, make a batch of Shanghai soup soup dumplings! To celebrate Tibetan Losar, make momos like the ones below from recipes in my Asian Dumplings cookbook.

Finish things off with a lucky new year sweet, such as this buttery peanut cookie or my modern take on Chinese almond cookies. 

Send Good Vibes!

Whatever you do to say farewell to the Year of the Pig and usher in the Year of the Rat, send good vibes to family and friends. Make a Tết holiday card, for example. My dad created this virtual card to email family and friends. He told me to share it on social media on his behalf!  

He found a great deal on the ceramic mice at Amazon and created living sculptures from them, part of the artwork he's been doing. What does the Vietnamese say?

Xin cầu chúc Năm Mới Canh Tý được tràn đầy Ơn Phúc, An Bình, Sức Khỏe và một Điều Như Ý.
May the New Year of the Rat fill you with blessings, peace, health and all other things you desire.

Gia đình Nguyễn Quốc Hoàng
Nguyen Quoc Hoang and Family 

Yes, you can crib from my 90-year-old dad. Consider it his Tết gift to you!

It's raining right now in Santa Cruz but next week, there's usually a pause in the action and blooms start appearing in the neighborhood's plum trees. Look for Nature's changes in your hood to signal new beginnings!

Happy Tết to You and Yours!