There are different customs in winter solstice in the north and south of China, and through historical development, a unique seasonal food culture has been formed. Some places in southern China have the custom of eating and drinking in winter solstice. In most places in the north, there is a custom of eating jiaozi from winter solstice, and eating jiaozi has become the custom of most northerners in China from winter solstice. The ancients celebrated the winter solstice, which is one of the "eight major festivals of the year". There are many kinds of food in the winter solstice festival.

1, mutton soup

Every winter, we eat mutton everywhere from Sunday to Sunday. As the saying goes, "three nine supplements one, winter", and warm mutton is regarded as a good tonic in winter. For ordinary people, eating mutton is one of the main ways to supplement the cold in winter. Traditional Chinese medicine and medicine pay attention to "four seasons and five supplements", among which "nourishing" in winter is a timely tonic method. Eating mutton in winter solstice is to keep out the cold and nourish.

2. Tangyuan

Winter solstice jiaozi, also known as Winter Festival Pill, Winter solstice meatball, etc. It is very old to eat glutinous rice balls in the winter of solstice. After jiaozi is wrapped up, it is necessary to offer sacrifices to the gods and ancestors, and then the whole family will eat around. This is called "adding years". The winter solstice group can be used to worship ancestors or give gifts to relatives and friends. There is a saying in Chaoshan that "one year later, we will eat the Winter Festival Yuan", among which "Winter Festival Yuan" is the glutinous rice balls. Eating jiaozi on the solstice in winter is particularly popular in the south of the Yangtze River, and there is a folk saying that "eating jiaozi is one year older".

The custom of expanding the information of winter solstice;

Many places in southern China will celebrate the winter solstice. The southern coastal areas, such as western Guangdong, Chaoshan and parts of Zhejiang, continue the traditional custom of ancestor worship. Every household is dedicated to ancestor statues, memorial tablets, etc. Go to the hall at home, place an altar, set up incense burners, offerings, etc. In some places, while offering sacrifices to ancestors, they also offer sacrifices to gods, land gods and deities, so as to make the next year's weather favorable and the family prosperous.

In many parts of northern China, it is a custom to eat jiaozi every winter solstice. According to legend, Zhang Zhongjing, a medical sage, saw a frozen person when he retired in his later years, so he wrapped mutton, some cold-dispelling herbs and dough into the shape of ears, made a medicine called "Quhan Jiaoer Decoction" and gave it to the people. Later, on the solstice of winter, people imitated eating and formed a custom.