Kitchen Festival, also known as Xiaonian Festival, usually falls on the 23rd or 24th of the twelfth lunar month. Off-year sacrifice to the kitchen stove is a folk ritual to send the kitchen god back to the sky to report his work. On this day, people will worship the kitchen god and grandma by the kitchen stove. On both sides of the statue of Kitchen God, a pair of couplets will be affixed. The first one reads "God plays good deeds", the second one reads "Keep the lower world safe" or "Go back to the palace for good luck", and the banner reads "Head of the family". In addition, in order to make the Kitchen God speak well in front of the Jade Emperor, people put sticky honeydew melons or cakes on the Kitchen God's mouth, which means "sweet mouth", so that the Kitchen God can speak well in front of the Jade Emperor, and the family will be lucky again and again in the coming year, at least there will be no disaster.

The custom of this festival is:

Sacrifice to the kitchen god

The first task and custom of this day is to offer sacrifices to stoves! On the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, Kitchen God will report to the Jade Emperor. Therefore, before Kitchen God leaves, people will offer candy, water, boiled beans and grass to Kitchen God. Candy is "sweet to the mouth" after being eaten by the Kitchen God, so that the family can put in a good word in front of the Jade Emperor. Clear water, beans, grass, etc. They are all food and grass for the kitchen god to mount, which is convenient for the kitchen god to return to heaven.

Dust removal (cleaning)

Since it is Chinese New Year, it is to say goodbye to the old and welcome the new, because it is New Year's Eve soon after the festival of offering sacrifices to the stove, so it is natural to clean the house, commonly known as sweeping the dust. Clean up the house inside and outside, paste Spring Festival couplets, celebrate the New Year, hang lanterns and so on.

Make window decorations and paper cuts

Cutting window grilles is the main custom in the north, because the climate in the north is relatively dry, and window grilles are not easy to get wet and easy to preserve.

marriage leave

After the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, all the immortals returned to the sky. Without God, people think that "everything is forgiven". You don't have to choose a good date to marry a daughter-in-law or have a daughter after the year. This is called rushing to get married.

haircut

There is an old folk saying, "If you have money, you can shave your head for the New Year". Obviously, when welcoming the New Year, you should clean yourself up!

What should I eat on the Festival of Sacrifice to the Kitchen:

The most important food during the festival is candy. Because "twenty-three, honeydew melons are sticky, and the kitchen god wants to go to heaven", on this day, people will give the kitchen god sticky honeydew melons so that he can put in a good word in front of the jade emperor. Kitchen sugar is a kind of maltose, which is very sticky. The candy that is drawn into a long strip is called "Guandong Sugar", and the candy that is drawn into a flat circle is called "honeydew melon". In addition, you should also eat jiaozi on the day of offering sacrifices to the stove. There is a folk proverb, "Twenty-three, don't eat fried food, pour a pot on New Year's Day." Eating jiaozi means "sending jiaozi to the wind" on the festival of offering sacrifices to stoves.