Moon cakes are a well-known traditional snack of the Han nationality, which is deeply loved by the people of China. Moon cakes are round in shape and shared by the whole family, so they symbolize reunion and harmony and are a must-eat on the Mid-Autumn Festival. Ancient moon cakes were eaten as sacrifices in the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is said that the custom of eating moon cakes in the Mid-Autumn Festival began in the Tang Dynasty. At the time of the Northern Song Dynasty, it was popular in the court, but it also spread to the people. At that time, it was commonly known as "small cake" and "moon group". In the Ming Dynasty, it became a common dietary custom of the whole people. Today, there are more varieties and flavors vary from place to place. Among them, Cantonese-style, Beijing-style, Yunnan-style, Soviet-style and Chaozhou-style moon cakes are widely enjoyed by people all over China.

Dietary customs of the Mid-Autumn Festival on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. It is said that it originated in the Tang Dynasty. "Experience in Luozhong" once recorded: When the new scholar in the Mid-Autumn Festival gave a banquet in Qujiang, Tang Xizong had a moon cake given to the scholar. Su Dongpo, a great poet in the Song Dynasty, praised moon cakes with a poem, "Little cakes are like chewing the moon, and there are crisps and fillings in them", from which we can see that the moon cakes in the Song Dynasty have been filled with ghee and sugar. In the Yuan Dynasty, it is said that people used the opportunity of giving mooncakes to carry a note in them, agreeing on the night of August 15th and taking actions at the same time to kill and drive away Mongolian "Tartars". In the Ming Dynasty, the custom of eating moon cakes on Mid-Autumn Festival became more common. Ming and Shen Bang's Miscellaneous Notes of Wan Department contained: "The furniture of ordinary people is a kind of moon-made bread, which varies in size and is called moon cake." "Deliberation in Records" said: "In August, begonia and Hosta flowers were enjoyed in the palace. From the first day of the first lunar month, there are mooncake sellers, and from … to the 15th, every family offers mooncakes and fruits. ..... If there are leftover moon cakes, they should be collected in a dry and cool place and used separately at the end of the year, which is called reunion cake. " After Yuan and Ming dynasties, the custom of eating and giving mooncakes in Mid-Autumn Festival became increasingly popular, and mooncakes had the symbolic meaning of "reunion". From Qing Dynasty to modern times, mooncakes have made new progress in quality and variety. Different raw materials, preparation methods and shapes make moon cakes more colorful, forming Beijing-style, Soviet-style and Guangdong-style varieties with their own characteristics. Nowadays, moon cakes are not only unique holiday foods, but also exquisite cakes that are always available in the four seasons, which are very popular among people.

There are a lot of records about moon cakes since the Ming Dynasty. At this time, moon cakes are round and only eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is the main offering of the popular Mid-Autumn Festival in the Ming Dynasty. "A Brief Introduction to the Scenery of the Imperial Capital" says: "On the 15th of August, when the moon is sacrificed, the fruit cake will be round." "Home moonlight is located in the moon, worship to the moon, then burn moonlight paper, withdraw the supply, scattered family will be over. The moon cake bears fruit, and the relatives feed back, and the cake has a diameter of two feet. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole family sat around and ate moon cakes and fruits (offerings for the moon). Because the moon cake is also round and shared by the family, it gradually forms the implication that moon cakes represent family reunion.