1. Sugarcane: In Chaoshan area, beginning of winter wants to eat sugarcane and fried fragrant rice. Sugarcane can become one of the foods for "supplementing winter" because there has always been a folk saying that "beginning of winter eats sugarcane without hurting his teeth", which means that "beginning of winter" sugarcane is ripe and will not get angry after eating it. At this time, "eating sugar cane" can protect teeth.
2. Chestnut fried rice: Every solar term in Shantou pays attention to eating different seasonal foods. As the saying goes, "make up for one winter in three seasons, and there will be no disease in the coming year", "make up for it in beginning of winter" and eating fried rice with chestnut are unique customs in Shantou. Chinese herbal medicines used for nourishing medicated diet include ginseng, angelica, medlar, American ginseng, fish glue, pilose antler, Cordyceps, Poria, Astragalus, etc. The commonly used foods in medicated diet are black-bone chicken, partridge, pigeon, quail and duck.
3. Ginger Duck: In the south of China, people like to eat some chicken, duck and fish in early winter. On this day in early winter in Taiwan Province Province, mutton stoves and ginger ducks on the street supplemented the wedding content of winter restaurants. Many families will also stew sesame oil chicken and siwu chicken to supplement energy.
Other customs in early winter:
1. Brewing yellow wine: It is a traditional Shaoxing wine-making custom to start brewing yellow wine in beginning of winter that day. The low water cooling temperature in winter can effectively inhibit the growth of miscellaneous bacteria and make the wine form a good flavor in the process of low temperature and long-term fermentation. This is the most suitable season for wine fermentation. Therefore, Shaoxing people regard beginning of winter to beginning of spring in the second year as the most suitable time to brew yellow rice wine, which is called "winter brewing" to pray for happiness.
2. Sacrificing ancestors: In ancient times, people held activities to worship ancestors and heaven at the beginning of winter. Even the busiest farmers should take a day off at home, kill chickens and sheep, prepare seasonal products, on the one hand, worship their ancestors and fulfill their obligations and responsibilities to future generations; On the one hand, offering sacrifices to heaven, thanking God for the good harvest, and praying for good weather in the coming year; And the wine and food after the sacrificial ceremony can also reward the farmers who have worked hard for a year.
3. Winter swimming: In some places, the way to celebrate beginning of winter has also been innovative. In Harbin, Heilongjiang, Shangqiu, Henan, Yichun, Jiangxi, Wuhan, Hubei and other places, winter swimmers welcome the arrival of winter in this way. Winter swimming is people's favorite exercise in winter, whether in the north or the south.