Since ancient times, all ethnic groups in China have liked to combine food with festivals and ceremonial activities. Festivals, births, funerals, weddings and birthdays, and banquets are the most concentrated expressions of food customs and cultural styles. , the most distinctive and interesting activities.

During festivals, corresponding food and custom activities are used to strengthen family ties, adjust the rhythm of life, and express people's pursuits, aspirations and other psychological, cultural needs and aesthetic awareness. For example, the Dragon Boat Festival is held on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month every year. People eat rice dumplings to commemorate Qu Yuan. Another example is that in the old days of China, the seventh day of the seventh lunar month was the Qixi Festival. At that time, people would use begging fruits (various carved fruits, melons, flower dots, etc.) to worship the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, and beg the Weaver Girl for the skills of female workers, showing people's respect for the virtues of hard work and intelligence. of admiration. There are also eating dumplings, glutinous rice balls, rice cakes during the New Year, and moon cakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which all express people's best wishes for family reunion and the health of their loved ones.

Drinking, eating and drinking during the traditional festivals of ethnic minorities are even more colorful, and there are rich festival foods, such as Manchu dumplings, Hui oil and steamed buns, Zhuang rice dumplings, and Uyghur mutton noodles. Rice, aquarium fish wrapped with leeks, etc. There are also various forms of entertainment activities. For example, the Axi dancing to the moon of the Yi people in Yunnan, the Mu Nao Zong singing of the Jingpo people, the Naadam of the Mongolian people, and the water splashing and dragon boat racing of the Dai people are all food custom activities that combine entertainment with delicious food.

In Han Chinese areas, banquets generally follow the rules of "couples for happy occasions, singles for funerals, eight for weddings, and nine for birthdays." Banquets of the Hui people usually consist of eight or twelve dishes, and odd numbers are avoided. When the Dongxiang people entertain guests with a chicken, they divide the chicken into thirteen pieces. The piece with the tip is the most valuable and is usually dedicated to the respected guests. When the She people worship their ancestors, they pay attention to two glasses of wine, one cup of tea, three meat and three vegetarian dishes and six dishes.