Food culture: Food customs of various places during the Lantern Festival
The festival food of the Lantern Festival was rice porridge or bean porridge topped with gravy in the Northern and Southern Dynasties, but this food was mainly used for Sacrifice is not even a festival food.
In the Tang Dynasty, Zheng Wangzhi's "Shanfu Lu" recorded: "Bianzhong is on a diet, Shangyuan oil hammer." The method of making oil hammer is quoted from "Taiping Guangji" and "Lu Shi's Miscellaneous Comments" A record of "Shangshi Order" in "Shangshi Order" is similar to the fried yuanxiao of later generations. The Lantern Festival diet of the Tang Dynasty was noodles. Wang Renyu's "Heritage of Kaiyuan Tianbao" records: The custom of making silkworms every year in the Yuan Dynasty was still left in the Song Dynasty, but the festival food was more abundant than in the Tang Dynasty.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, the so-called "lactose dumplings" appeared, which should be the predecessor of glutinous rice balls. By the Ming Dynasty, people called this glutinous rice dumpling "Yuanxiao". Liu Ruoyu's "Zhuizhongzhi" records the making of Yuanxiao: "The preparation method is to use fine glutinous rice noodles, walnut kernels, sugar, and roses as fillings, sprinkle with water and roll into balls as big as walnuts, which are also called glutinous rice balls in the south of the Yangtze River." During the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty, the "Eight Treasures Yuanxiao" specially made in the imperial dining room became a famous delicacy in both the government and the public. Ma Siyuan was a master of making Yuanxiao in Beijing at that time, and his powdered Yuanxiao was famous far and wide. Fu Zeng's "Shangyuan Bamboo Branch Poems" says: "Wooden walnuts are stuffed with sweet-scented osmanthus, and glutinous rice is like pearls washed out of well water. I heard that Ma's dripping powder is good, and they sell Yuanxiao in the wind." What is sung in the poem is the famous one. Ma’s Lantern Festival.
In the past thousand years, the production of Lantern Festival has become increasingly sophisticated. As far as noodles are concerned, there are glutinous rice noodles, sorghum noodles, yellow rice noodles and corn noodles. The fillings include sweet, salty, meat and vegetables, and everything you need. The production methods also differ between the north and the south. The Lantern Festival in the north is mostly made by hand-rolling, while the glutinous rice balls in the south are mostly kneaded with the palm of your hand. Yuanxiao can be as big as a walnut, and some can be as small as a soybean. The cooking methods include soup, stir-frying, steaming, etc. It is equally delicious with or without fillings. At present, Lantern Festival has become a snack that is available at all times. You can have a bowl at any time to satisfy your cravings
Lantern Festival customs across the country
[Hebei Province] Yongping During the Lantern Festival in Fufu, sick women gathered under the kiln and called it "pottery moxibustion". Sons and daughters cross the bridge, which is called "Dubai'e". There are also people who cut paper into nine paper ropes and tie them with their own hands to fortune-telling, which is called "knotting sheep intestines". Twelve noodle cups were also used to store oil in a pot and steamed. The amount of water accumulated in the noodle cups was used to predict the weather in that month. Jinghai County eats big steamed buns during the Shangyuan Festival. During the Lantern Festival in Qingyun County, men ask the Fifth Patriarch to teach them how to box and stick, while women ask Zigu for fortune-telling.
[Shandong Province] During the Lantern Festival in Zichuan County, people near water often put up river lanterns. Ningyang County sends lanterns to ancestral graves during the Lantern Festival. The Lantern Festival in rural Boxing has the custom of lighting up lanterns. A boy holding a lamp, going around the jujube tree six times and chanting "Duluo Dulao, bloom and bear dates" six times can make the jujube tree harvest abundant. Men, women and children in Ju County go for an outing in the wild on the 16th day of the first lunar month, which is called "walking to look old". It is said that walking once a year can keep you young forever.
[Henan Province] In Xiangcheng County, people eat wonton soup during the Lantern Festival, which is called "reunion tea." Use fire moxibustion on the stone turtle. If there is a river bridge in the local area, please cross it first. If there is no bridge, wooden planks are used to build a "overpass" several feet high, which is called "walking all diseases".
[Shaanxi Province] Fengxiang County entertains his daughter and son-in-law during the Lantern Festival, which is called "eating fifteen". They also send lamps and oil, which is called "adding oil". [Jiangsu Province] Wujin County, on the first day of the Yuan Dynasty, tied reeds into a torch of about ten feet and inserted it in the field. It was called "Zhao Tiancai" and was used to predict early misfortunes. The white color of the fire is water, and the red color is drought. On the first day of the Yuan Dynasty in Yixing, children wear ghost masks and jump with their feet bent and their shoulders raised, which is called "ghost jumping".
[Zhejiang Province] According to folklore in Hangzhou, the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the day when the heavenly officials of the Shangyuan Dynasty bestow blessings. People often fast, chant sutras, and go to Mount Wu to worship. The Lantern Festival in Haining County is most famous for its exquisite chrysanthemum lanterns. On the evening of the Lantern Festival in Shangyu County, people go to the Kantan platform to compete in martial arts. In Jiande County, if a family has a newly married daughter-in-law, they will set up a wine and sacrifice bed during the Lantern Festival.
[Jiangxi Province] Xinjian County residents visit tombs during the Lantern Festival and insert bamboos as lamps. Every township in Wan'an County worships Yuan Shenzhou during the Lantern Festival.
[Hubei Province] An old farmer in Yunmeng County (today's Jianghan) holds a torch to partially illuminate his fields on the Lantern Festival night, which is called "illuminating the dead silkworms." Children use field drums to greet the gods and predict events of the year. Wuchang's "Dragon Game" lasts for three days. All men, women and children in the village follow the dragon lantern to the neighboring village for a banquet, which is called "dragon for wine".
[Hunan Province] During the Shangyuan Dynasty, every family in Changde used pepper soup and added leeks, fruits and other things to entertain guests, which was called "seasonal soup". After visiting the dragon lantern in Xintian County, they burned the dragon lantern, which is called "send disaster".
[Sichuan Province] Sichuan Lantern Festival has the custom of "four stealings": "One steals glutinous rice balls, two steals greens, three steals eaves lanterns, and four steals reds." Except for stealing greens to strengthen the body, the rest are for food. customs. There is a custom of "scolding" in Kaixian County. During the Lantern Festival, people move benches outdoors and curse out all their usual grievances, and the person being scolded is not allowed to curse back.
[Fujian Province] Quanzhou lanterns are unique, including incense lanterns, folded paper lotus lanterns, silk palace lanterns, eight-knot lanterns and so on. On Lantern Festival night in Shaowu County, temples go around the area to welcome incense, which is called "Pure Street". In southern Fujian, there is a custom of children from two villages throwing stones at each other during the Lantern Festival. It is said that if the stones were not thrown, a plague would surely break out in that village.
[Guangdong Province] People in Xin'an County who gave birth to a boy last year celebrate the Lantern Festival with lanterns. During the Lantern Festival in Nanxiong, parents take the dragon's whiskers from the dragon lantern and tie them with their children. It is said that the children will be free from diseases.
He also took the remaining candles from the dragon lantern and shone them under the bed, as it was said that it could give birth to a precious child. When the people of Wenchang County steal green tea on the Lantern Festival night, those who succeed in stealing take it as a good omen to be scolded, and those who fail to steal take it as a good omen that they do not get scolded.
[Yunnan Province] Yunlong County welcomes three gods before the Lantern Festival and sets up tents along the street to offer sacrifices. On the day after the Lantern Festival in Maitreya Prefecture, people burn incense on the bridge, throw stones into the water, and then take water to wash their eyes. It is said that it can cure diseases.