10 Symbolic & Traditional Foods for Chinese New Year in 2025

The Lunar New Year, commonly referred to as Chinese New Year or the Spring Festival, is a key festival in China’s calendar. It is celebrated as a public holiday in China as well as in various other Asian countries. There is a rich history of myths and traditions associated with the New Year, many of them revolving around food. 

Various foods and dishes are enjoyed during the celebrations, with a few symbolic delicacies considered to be particularly auspicious. If you want to participate in some tasty Lunar New Year traditions, head to your favourite online Chinese supermarket to find a range of treats linked to the New Year.

When is Chinese New Year in 2025? 

In 2025 – the year of the snake – Chinese New Year begins on the 29th of January. The celebrations usually last for 15 days, with each day having a name and meaning. The last day of the festivities is known as the Lantern Festival and marks the end of this celebratory period.  

Symbolism During Chinese New Year

This is a period of renewal, growth and success, which is highlighted through the symbolic use of colour, animals, flowers, traditional Lunar New Year food and more. The holiday is also seen as a time to gather with your family, with many partaking in the tradition of holding a ‘reunion dinner’ on New Year’s Eve. 

Red is especially symbolic during this time, as it is a lucky colour. Red decorations are embraced, and red envelopes with money are given as gifts to bring happiness and luck for the new year. 

Traditionally, red has also been used to scare away the monster Nian, along with the use of fireworks – which are still heavily abundant during the celebrations today. 

Peach and plum blossoms are also commonly seen during the festival, often decorating people’s homes as they symbolise reliability and longevity. 

What Foods to Eat on Chinese New Year

Many foods and dishes in Chinese culture have symbolic meanings, often linked to legends originating thousands of years ago. During Chinese New Year, the foods eaten tend to symbolise things like good fortune, luck, wealth, longevity and happiness to help set you up for a great year ahead. 

Traditional Chinese New Year Food 

Here are some of the top dishes and foods that are enjoyed in celebration of Lunar New Year. 

1. Nian gao
2. Tang yuan
3. Dumplings
4. Spring rolls
5. Fish
6. Chicken
7. Shrimp
8. Longevity noodles
9. Eight treasure rice pudding
10. Tangerines

1. Nian Gao / Sweet Glutinous Rice Cakes – Success 

Also translated as New Year cake, nian gao is a sticky cake made from glutinous rice flour. These cakes can be made sweet or savoury and are often given as New Year’s gifts to promote prosperity.

Nian gao can be eaten all year round but is commonly enjoyed in the New Year because ‘nian gao’ sounds the same as ‘higher year’, symbolising gaining a higher position or becoming more successful in the coming year. 

2. Tang Yuan Sweet Rice Balls – Family Reunion

Made with a chewy glutinous rice dough that resembles mochi, these sweet dessert balls are filled with black sesame or red bean paste, among various other variations. 

Because of its round shape and the way ‘tang yuan’ is pronounced, this dish symbolises family reunion and togetherness, another important theme of the Lunar New Year. Despite its special significance during the New Year celebrations, tang yuan is often enjoyed all year round. 

3. Chinese Dumplings – Wealth 

Dumplings are frequently eaten for special occasions but are particularly significant during the festival. The Chinese name for dumpling sounds similar to the words ‘exchange’ and ‘midnight hour’, so the food is used as a symbol for switching from the old to the new.

The dumplings themselves are prepared in the shape of Chinese ingots, signifying wealth. It is believed that the more dumplings you eat, the more money you will gain in the coming year. While the exact fillings are down to taste, all dumplings for the New Year will contain eggs, as the golden colour of the yolk is again symbolic of money and wealth.

To further this connection with money, a coin may be added to one of the dumplings, and whoever eats that dumpling is said to have good luck for the coming year.

To set yourself up for a successful year, why not try making your own Chinese dumplings with our Jiaozi dumpling recipe? 

4. Spring Rolls – Wealth

Spring rolls are named after the Spring Festival (aka Lunar New Year), as they are commonly prepared during this time and infused with additional meaning. Also symbolising wealth, these crispy rolls are fried until they take on a golden colour to emulate bars of gold. 

Fillings for spring rolls can vary depending on region and personal preference, but they usually contain some combination of meat and vegetables wrapped in a thin dough wrapper. 

5. Whole Fish – Increased Prosperity & Abundance

In China, fish is representative of extra wealth and increased prosperity, as the word fish is pronounced the same as the word for ‘surplus’ or ‘abundance’. Therefore, fish will be served at many New Year’s celebratory meals to represent having more than enough food and money for the year to come. 

In keeping with the idea that the fish brings ‘extra’ to the family, half of the fish will be enjoyed for dinner, while the second half will be eaten the following day. The fish is typically served whole, with the head and tail still intact. Different regions have different fish-based traditions, with carp being a popular option in the Northern provinces, for instance.

6. Whole Chicken – Good Luck 

When said, ‘chicken’ sounds like a word meaning ‘good luck’ or ‘prosperity’, so it is often incorporated into New Year’s meals and reunion dinners. Serving the chicken whole is also significant as it can represent unity and togetherness while offering the whole group good luck for the coming year. 

Traditionally, chicken is offered to a family’s ancestors, extending the sense of togetherness. Some traditions also see significance in the feet and wings of the chicken. The chicken feet, considered a delicacy by many, are thought to help people grasp onto wealth, while the wings represent flying higher and progressing.

7. Shrimp & Prawns – Happiness

In Cantonese, ‘shrimp’ sounds like laughter, meaning it’s popular to eat during the New Year to signify happiness, liveliness, joy and good fortune. Like with dumplings, the more you eat, the happier your new year will be. 

8. Longevity Noodles / Changshou Mian – Longevity

While noodles are commonly enjoyed in China and other Southeast Asian countries throughout the year, during the Lunar New Year, they take on increased significance. Longevity or changshou mian noodles are longer than everyday noodles and represent wishes for a long, happy life. 

As part of this, the noodles cannot be cut, and chewing must be avoided, as this can be seen as cutting your life short. Therefore, a lot of slurping will be required when eating this dish!

Extra meaning can be added to the dish via the ingredients that top the noodles. For example, the addition of eggs will symbolise having a big, happy and healthy family, whereas seafood is representative of wealth and fortune.

9. Eight Treasure Rice Pudding – Prosperity 

This dessert embraces eight different fruits, nuts or seeds, adding them to a sticky rice dish for a sweet, rich treat. Eight is considered an auspicious number because it sounds like another word that means to be rich or to thrive. 

Each of the eight ‘treasures’ can symbolise something different, with certain ingredients indicating well wishes for happiness, unity, luck, balanced life and more. 

10. Tangerines & Oranges – Good Luck & Success 

Fruit like oranges and tangerines are often given as gifts during this period as their name, colour and shape all contribute to strong symbolism, representing luck, success and good fortune over the next year.

Their bright orange colour tends to be interpreted as golden, also connecting them with wealth and renewed prosperity. 

Food can be such a big part of what makes a celebration so special – we hope you enjoy some of these symbolic foods during the Lunar New Year festivities! If you’re missing any ingredients, snacks or drinks for your upcoming celebrations, browse our online Asian grocery store to find what you need.

Written By:

Sara Yang

Sara is based in the UK but loves nothing more than creating and sampling dishes from all around the world. Her favourite is Asian cuisine and she hopes to inspire more people in the UK to try authentic East Asian dishes.