The top ten must-eat foods during the Winter Solstice are: dumplings, glutinous rice balls, egg noodles, mutton soup, Lei Yuan, mochi, winter wine, red bean glutinous rice, nine-layer cake, and sweet potato soup.

1. Dumplings

Every year on the winter solstice of the lunar calendar, dumplings are an essential holiday meal for everyone, rich or poor. A proverb goes: "On October 1st, when the winter solstice arrives, every household eats dumplings." This custom was left to commemorate the medical sage Zhang Zhongjing who gave up medicine during the winter solstice.

2. Tangyuan

Eating glutinous rice balls during the winter solstice is especially popular in Jiangnan. There is a folk saying that "eating glutinous rice balls makes you one year older". Tangyuan is also called glutinous rice balls, and eating glutinous rice balls during the Winter Solstice is also called "winter solstice dumplings". The Winter Solstice group can be used to worship ancestors, and can also be used to exchange gifts with relatives and friends.

3. Egg noodles

Eating Winter Solstice noodles is a custom in northern Anhui during the Winter Solstice. "Winter Solstice Noodles", commonly known as "Dried Noodles", is one of the types of noodles and is traditionally handmade by local people. The hand-made noodles are made with great care and are made of high-quality wheat.

4. Mutton Soup

The custom of eating mutton during the Winter Solstice is said to have started in the Han Dynasty. According to legend, Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, ate the mutton cooked by Fan Kuai on the day of the winter solstice. He thought it tasted particularly delicious and was full of praise. Since then, the folk custom of eating mutton during the Winter Solstice has been formed.

5. Making round

Making round is the highlight of the Winter Solstice. "Yuan" means "reunion" and "perfection". Compared with the glutinous rice balls eaten on weekdays, Linhai people's The Winter Solstice Circle is not only rich in content and different forms, but also has profound meaning.

6. Mochi

Mochi is a famous snack in southern Fujian, among which Nan'an Yingdu is the most famous. Its raw materials are fine glutinous rice, lard, sesame, peanuts, Rock sugar, etc. Mochi is sweet and delicious, and it resists hunger after eating. It has a sweet and smooth texture, and is soft, tough and slightly icy. The finished product is bright white in color, smooth, tough and transparent.

7. Winter winemaking

Traditional Gusu people drink winter wine on the night of the winter solstice. Winter wine is a kind of rice wine brewed with osmanthus and has a pleasant aroma. In the supermarkets in the streets and alleys of the ancient city of Suzhou, winter wine is piled up like a "hill". Winter wine, which is only brewed once a year, is fragrant, sweet and refreshing.

8. Red bean and glutinous rice

In the Jiangnan water towns, there is a custom of the whole family gathering together to eat red bean and glutinous rice on the night of the winter solstice. According to legend, there was a man named Mr. Gong whose son was not successful and committed many evil deeds. He died on the winter solstice. After his death, he turned into a plague ghost and continued to harm the people. However, this plague ghost is most afraid of red beans.

9. Nine-layer cake

Nine-layer cake is a sweet rice cake with exquisite workmanship. The folk method is to soak white rice, grind it into gouache with a stone mill, stir it into a slurry, add sugar water, put a thin layer of gouache on a copper plate, heat and steam it, and then add powder layer by layer to nine layers. The steamed nine-layer cake has distinct layers, is soft and delicious.

10. Sweet potato soup

In Ningbo’s traditional customs, sweet potato soup is one of the must-eat delicacies during the winter solstice. "Fan" and "fan" have the same pronunciation. In the understanding of Ningbo people, eating sweet potatoes during the winter solstice means "turning over" all the bad luck in the past year.