Celebrating Chinese New Year at home? Learn more about Lunar New Year traditions and try some of these delicious and easy recipes to celebrate Lunar New Year.
Lunar New Year 2025 is just around the corner, bringing with it vibrant celebrations, rich traditions, and of course, delicious feasts!
Around the world, more than 2 billion people celebrate Lunar New Year. This year, the festivities begin on January 29, 2025, marking the start of the Year of the Snake.
The celebration lasts for 15 days, culminating in the Lantern Festival on February 12, 2025.
Families around the world will come together to honor ancestors, welcome good fortune, and embrace the promise of a prosperous new year.
I'm Filipino-American, and grew up enjoying the Chinese New Year celebrations in our local Asian American community. I've always loved the feasts, the parties, the traditions, and learning about ways this holiday is celebrated in different countries and cultures.
Whether you celebrate Lunar New Year every year or are new to the festivities, this holiday is a fantastic time to learn about different cultural traditions, enjoy symbolic foods, and participate in joyful gatherings.
Let’s dive into the fascinating history, global celebrations, must-try dishes, and key customs that make Lunar New Year such a beloved holiday!
Jump to:
- The origin of Lunar New Year
- Where Lunar New Year is celebrated
- Popular foods for Lunar New Year
- Other Lunar New Year traditions
- ๐ฉ๐ปโ๐ณ FAQs
- Things to avoid during Lunar New Year (bad luck!)
- Easy recipes to make for Lunar New Year
- Easy Recipes to Make for Lunar New Year
- ๐ณ Kitchen tools and equipment
- More Asian recipes
The origin of Lunar New Year
Lunar New Year dates back over 4,000 years and is rooted in ancient Chinese agricultural society.
Traditionally, it marked the end of winter and the beginning of spring, a time to clear out bad luck and welcome prosperity.
According to legend, the holiday originated as a way to scare off the mythical beast Nian, who would attack villages at the start of the new year. Loud noises, bright red decorations, and fireworks were used to drive it away—customs that continue today!
Where Lunar New Year is celebrated
Lunar New Year is celebrated across East and Southeast Asia, as well as in communities worldwide. Countries that mark the occasion with grand festivities include:
- China (Spring Festival) - try some of our Chinese recipes on the blog.
- Vietnam (Tết)
- South Korea (Seollal)
- Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia
- Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau
- The Philippines - we have a lot of Filipino recipes on the site for you to try!
- The United States, Canada, Australia, and the UK - Chinatowns and large Asian communities host public celebrations. They're wonderful and I highly encourage you check them out in your community!
Popular foods for Lunar New Year
Now we get to my favorite part of any holiday: the food!
Food plays a huge role in Lunar New Year, with each dish symbolizing good fortune, happiness, or longevity. Here are some must-try dishes:
- Dumplings – Recipes like Pork and Shrimp Wontons in Chili Oil and Wonton Noodle Soup represent wealth and prosperity
- Longevity noodles – Symbolize a long life. Try this Easy Shrimp Lo Mein!
- Spring rolls and lumpia – Resemble gold bars for wealth. Try our popular Filipino Lumpia Recipe.
- Sweet chili dipping sauce – Enhances flavor and symbolizes good relationships (Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce)
- Fried rice – Represents completeness and good luck. We have a lot of fried rice recipes on the blog! Start with our Shrimp and Chicken Fried Rice recipe.
Other Lunar New Year traditions
- Red Envelopes (Hóngbāo/Lì xì) – Elders give red envelopes filled with money to children and unmarried adults for good luck.
- Family Reunions – The most important gathering of the year, often celebrated with a grand feast.
- Dragon and Lion Dances – Performed to chase away evil spirits and bring good fortune.
- Fireworks and Firecrackers – Used to scare away bad luck and welcome prosperity.
- Cleaning and Decorating – Homes are thoroughly cleaned before the new year to sweep away bad energy, and doors are adorned with red couplets for blessings.
- Lantern Festival – Marks the end of the celebrations with glowing lantern displays and sweet rice balls (tangyuan) symbolizing family unity.
👩🏻🍳 FAQs
Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival, is the specific name given to the celebration in China. Whereas Lunar New Year is the more general name for the celebration as it is celebrated around the world by many cultures who use the lunar calendar.
The Snake represents wisdom, intuition, and transformation. People born in Snake years are often intelligent, charming, and strategic.
Red symbolizes good fortune, happiness, and prosperity. It is believed to ward off evil spirits and bad luck.
No! Many Asian cultures celebrate it under different names and traditions, including Vietnamese Tết and Korean Seollal.
Washing hair or clothes is believed to wash away good fortune at the start of the year.
Oranges, tangerines, tea, or a red envelope with money (for children) are great choices.
It’s best to avoid black and white, as these colors are associated with mourning in many Asian cultures
Things to avoid during Lunar New Year (bad luck!)
- Avoid unlucky numbers – The number 4 (which sounds like “death” in Chinese) should be avoided in decorations or gifts.
- Avoid sweeping on New Year’s Day – It symbolizes sweeping away good luck.
- Don’t break dishes – Breaking things is considered an omen for misfortune.
- No negative words or arguments – Keep the atmosphere positive to ensure a good year ahead.
- Don’t lend or borrow money – Financial transactions should be avoided to prevent financial struggles in the new year.
Easy recipes to make for Lunar New Year
Easy Recipes to Make for Lunar New Year
Fish recipes
Fish is considered good luck to serve at Lunar New Year. It is said to increase prosperity in the year to come.
This Trout Meuniere is a riff on Julia Child's famous Sole Meuniere. It's easier to make at home than you might think! And, whole fish is said to be a dish that brings prosperity in the new year.
Cooking fish in the air fryer is fast and easy. This air fryer teriyaki salmon dish is full of flavor but cooks in a fraction of the time.
A nourishing teriyaki salmon bowl makes for a hearty lunch or dinner. Pack it with your favorite veggies for yummy crunch in every bite.
Crispy prosciutto surrounds succulent halibut and is topped with briny, tangy capers. This meal looks fancy but is easy to make at home!
Pan-seared sea bass is topped with a bright and fresh vegetable relish. This is great for a smaller dinner party or date night in.
Poached halibut in white wine sauce is an elegant yet simple recipe that's perfect for o date night at home!
Longevity Noodles
Noodles are traditionally served during Lunar New Year. Unbroken long noodles represent a long life.
Pancit is a classic Filipino noodle dish that can be made in several different ways and often reflects the traditions of different regions. This Pancif Canton noodles recipe is hearty and satisfying to serve as either a side dish or the main course.
This classic beef lo mein recipe is full of crunchy vegetables and a simple sauce.
You can make these pork and peanut dragon noodles as spicy or as mild as you like by simply adjusting the chili oil amount. It's SO good, and easy to make in minutes!
This easy shrimp lo mein recipe is a reader favorite, and it's so easy to make in about 20 minutes.
If you like firmer noodles and less sauce, try this easy Prawn Chow Mein recipe.
Shrimp
Shrimp represents happiness in some cultures, so shrimp is often eaten and served during Lunar New Year to attract joy and good fortune in the coming year.
Bang Bang Shrimp may not be as traditional as other Asian-inspired shrimp dishes, but it's an absolutely mouthwatering recipe that is irresistible!
Spring Rolls
Fried spring rolls are said to look like gold bars, so it's popular to serve spring rolls of any kind during Lunar New Year.
These crispy Filipino Lumpia fried spring rolls are irresistible and always a crowd pleaser at any celebration! They are the #1 requested dish to any holiday gathering we have!
Dumplings
Dumplings of all kinds are a longstanding traditional Chinese New Year food. There is a legend that states the more dumplings you eat during Chinese New Year, the more wealth you will attract.
These pork and shrimp wonton dumplings are full of big flavors and are delicious as a side dish or the main course.
Making restaurant quality wonton noodle soup at home is easier than you might think!
Whole Chicken
A whole chicken is said to symbolize unity and wholeness, bringing good luck to you from the beginning of the new year to the end.
Enjoy bright citrus flavors in this whole roast chicken recipe that's simple and easy to make.
Did you know that you can cook a whole chicken in your air fryer? This is one of the easiest ways to cook a whole chicken!
You can't go wrong with a classic herb roasted chicken with roasted vegetables.
Vegetables
Vegetables symbolize renewal and positive energy.
This crunchy Asian Carrot Cucumber Salad is a delicious side salad to go with almost any main course dish.
These vegan vegetable rolls are packed with healthy vegetables and thin cold noodles. A delicious lunch, appetizer, or side dish.
You get lots of veggies in every bite with these healthy rainbow salad rolls!
🍳 Kitchen tools and equipment
Ready to make these recipes? Here are the kitchen tools and equipment you'll need:
- Wok - Some of these recipes are best made in a quality wok pan.
- Slow cooker - To make any of the slow cooker recipes on this list, I rely on the CrockPot MyTime Slow Cooker.
- Instant Pot - For the recipes that involve electric pressure cooking, I love using both the classic Instant Pot and this Ninja Foodi 8-Quart Deluxe Pressure Cooker/Air Fryer.
- Air fryer - This Ninja Dual Zone air fryer is our every day use air fryer that we love.
Celebrate Lunar New Year 2025 with joy and prosperity!
Lunar New Year is a time of joy, renewal, and togetherness.
Whether you’re celebrating with a feast, giving red envelopes, or watching a lion dance performance, it’s a beautiful opportunity to embrace tradition and welcome good fortune.
Try making some symbolic dishes at home with these festive recipes, and may your Year of the Snake be filled with happiness, health, and prosperity!
How will you celebrate Lunar New Year 2025? Let us know in the comments!
More Asian recipes
Did you make any of these recipes? Don't forget to leave a 5-Star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating and comment below letting us know which one you made and how it turned out. Thank you!
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