Date: Sun 19-Dec-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

Chinese-Year-Rabbit-DK

Full Text:

Welcome To The (Chinese) Year Of The Rabbit

(with photos, cookbook covers)

BY KAAREN VALENTA

The Chinese New Year 4697, the Year of the Rabbit, happiest sign of the

zodiac, began on Tuesday.

The two-week festival marks the start of the Chinese lunar calendar and is the

most important holiday for millions of Chinese and other Asians around the

world.

Legend has it that, many millennia ago, Buddha summoned all of the animals of

the world and promised to name a year after each beast in return for its

homage. Only 12 complied, and they came in this order: Rat, ox, tiger, rabbit,

dragon, serpent, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog and boar. People born in

rabbit years (1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999) are said to be

talented, affectionate and seekers of tranquility.

Ancestral worship is the most important part of this annual celebration.

Chinese around the world pay homage to the departed spirits either at their

temples or before ancestral tablets set up in their homes. They pray for

peace, health, wealth, and a long life.

A family feast usually is held to reaffirm kinship and pay respect to the

heads of households. Families often dine elbow-to-elbow at round tables to

create a circle symbolizing unity and caring. The head of the household sits

facing the doorway, to greet newcomers. The most senior diners are served

first; children generally serve their elders.

In Newtown, there is a traditional family-style New Year's Eve celebration

each year at Dynasty restaurant or the Main Moon by owners James and Kim Lam.

The 12-course meal begins with sweets, candies and sugar cakes that symbolize

wealth and good fortune. On Monday evening, ginseng soup, a restorative broth

with pieces of chicken and the cooked root, preceded platters of Peking duck:

slices of duck with crisp cooked skin, scallions and hoison sauce and are

rolled into thin Chinese pancakes.

Platters full of peppered prawns on long wooden skewers quickly followed. Then

pork with chunks of bamboo shoots, pea pods and long beans in a rich brown

sauce.

A whole fish, signifying prosperity, is often served as the centerpiece of the

meal at Chinese banquets. Monday evening was no exception as platters of sea

bass, steamed and served in a ginger sauce topped with a julliene of

scallions, emerged from the kitchen, followed by thick fish steaks cooked with

a crisp coating and succulent sauce.

Platters of Hong Kong steak and steamed Chinese greens soon lined the long

banquet table. Then came mounds of glistening Eight-Treasure Rice Pudding:

rice molded in a sugar syrup and sparked with slivers of dried Chinese red

dates. "Eight-treasure" is a reference to the eight treasures in Buddhism that

guard and enrich one's life. Along with this dish were served pieces of sweet

steamed dough, made of gluten, a Chinese equivalent of fried dough.

Tangerines, a symbol of good luck, completed the meal.

Culinary Celebration

On cable television, rising culinary star Ming Tsai, whose combination of

Eastern and Western traditions recently earned him a nod from Esquire as "Chef

of the Year," will host the Food Network's Ming-A-Thon on Saturday, February

27, from 8 pm to midnight. In addition to back-to-back episodes of his popular

series, "East Meets West," the critically acclaimed chef will host reports

spotlighting the Chinese New Year festivities in Hong Kong.

The Ming-a-Thon also will give viewers a chance to experience the Far East in

person via a watch and win sweepstakes. Throughout the evening viewers will

have opportunities to enter the contest on the network's web site

(www.foodtv.com). Five lucky winners will receive grand prize packages of

trips for two to Hong Kong, including airfare, hotel and meals.

Several cookbooks have been published recently that focus on Chinese and other

Asian cuisine and featured recipes appropriate for any Chinese New Year

celebration. Yan-Kit's Classic Chinese Cookbook (DK Publishing, 1998,

softcover, $13.95) is filled with beautiful color photographs of the finished

dishes as well as step-by-step photos of food preparation and cooking

techniques. Even the clumsiest cooks could produce mouth-watering dishes from

the simple, well-illustrated directions in this book.

A similar book, The Classic Asian Cookbook , (DK, 1998, hardcover, $22.95)

features classic Chinese dishes like Peking Duck as well as recipes from other

Asian cuisines. DK books are among the most beautiful cookbooks on the market

today (check the DK Publishing website at www.dk.com).

Every Grain of Rice (Clarkson Potter Publishers, 1998, hardcover, $25) is a

blending together of favorite Chinese recipes with personal recollections from

the two authors, Ellen Blonder and Annabel Low, of their Chinese-American

childhood in California. A list of suggested menus and delicate color

illustrations by Ms Blonder complete this primer on homestyle Chinese cooking.