16 Crowd-Pleasing Recipes For Lunar New Year (That Are Just As Festive As They Are Delicious)

January 29 marks the start of the new year on the Lunar calendar — this year, the Year of the Snake. Lunar New Year is celebrated across many cultures, each with its own traditions and ways of saying "Happy New Year," like "新年快乐 (Xīnnián kuàilè)" in Mandarin, or "새해 복 많이 받으세요 (saehae bok mani badeuseyo)" in Korean. Still, one universal language is vital for all Lunar New Year celebrations: food!

Many Lunar New Year recipes and dishes carry rich cultural symbolism and showcase generational knowledge. Whether you’re honoring tradition or exploring something new, these 16 recipes offer delicious ways to ring in the new year:

1.Long Life Noodles (yī miàn, 伊面)

A plate of stir-fried noodles with vegetables and mushrooms, accompanied by two red envelopes, chopsticks, and raw mushrooms on a wooden table

2.Steamed Whole Fish With Fresh Ginger

Person using chopsticks to serve a whole fish garnished with scallions, surrounded by dumplings, sauces, and other dishes on a table
Person using chopsticks to serve a whole fish garnished with scallions, surrounded by dumplings, sauces, and other dishes on a table
Person placing whole fish on a bed of green onions in a large metal dish, preparing for cooking
Person placing whole fish on a bed of green onions in a large metal dish, preparing for cooking
A dish of cooked fish garnished with chopped green onions and ginger, being drizzled with a sauce
A dish of cooked fish garnished with chopped green onions and ginger, being drizzled with a sauce

Tasty / Via tasty.co

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Whole fish — like this steamed red snapper dish — is commonly eaten during the Lunar New Year for more than just its many health benefits. The word for fish in Chinese is 鱼 ( pronounced "yú"), which sounds like a word related to abundance, 余 (also pronounced "yú). Fish is served and eaten whole for the new year so as not to cut or sever the abundance it symbolizes.

If you are intimidated by working with whole fish, this recipe will surprise you with its ease and approachability. Steaming is a hands-off, quick cooking method, and the fish itself requires no butchering (as long as you remember to get it descaled by your fishmonger!).

Recipe: Steamed Whole Fish With Fresh Ginger

3.Sticky Toffee Persimmons Pudding Cake

A hand pours caramel sauce over a baked dessert in a round pan, with a persimmon and white bowls nearby on a marble surface

4.Korean Braised Short Ribs (Galbi Jjim, 갈비찜)

A bowl of braised beef with carrots and green onions on a white plate, placed on a dark napkin. Chopsticks are visible in the background

5.Chinese Fried Sesame Balls (jiānduī, 煎堆)

Hands holding a round sesame-covered pastry over a red plate with baked items and decorative paper in the background

6.Sanjana’s Momo (मोमो)

A plate of dumplings encircles a small ramekin filled with sauce, garnished with cilantro

7.Buddha’s Delight (luóhàn zhāi, 罗汉斋)

A bowl of noodle dish with various vegetables and mushrooms on a wooden table, surrounded by decorative gold ingots

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8.Citron Tea (Inspired by Yuja-Cha, 유자차)

Person holding a wooden spoon with lemon slices and honey above a jar filled with more lemon slices and honey
Person holding a wooden spoon with lemon slices and honey above a jar filled with more lemon slices and honey
Person sipping a drink from a glass with a straw in a kitchen; a mason jar with lemon slices is on the table
Person sipping a drink from a glass with a straw in a kitchen; a mason jar with lemon slices is on the table

Tasty / Via tasty.co

If, like me, you're battling the sniffles and other cold-related symptoms around New Year's, this tea concentrate recipe is just what you need. It’s a soothing way to celebrate the abundance of citrus this season while enjoying the healing benefits of vitamin C and the anti-inflammatory properties of its key ingredients: citron and honey. If you can't get your hands on any citrons, no sweat! Use lemons instead.

Also, this tea makes a thoughtful and beautiful homemade gift for the Lunar New Year, symbolizing health, warmth, and care for your loved ones.

Recipe: Citron Tea (Inspired by Yuja-Cha, 유자차)

9.Korean Rice Cake Soup (Tteokguk, 떡국)

Bowl of Korean soup with sliced rice cakes, beef, green onions, and seaweed garnish, on a wooden table with side dishes of kimchi and seaweed

10.Daniel’s Mandu (만두)

Hands are preparing dumplings with meat filling on a gray surface, using a spoon and small round wrappers. A bowl of beaten egg is nearby
Hands are preparing dumplings with meat filling on a gray surface, using a spoon and small round wrappers. A bowl of beaten egg is nearby
Chopsticks holding a dumpling over a bowl filled with neatly arranged dumplings
Chopsticks holding a dumpling over a bowl filled with neatly arranged dumplings

Tasty / Via tasty.co

Making dumplings for Lunar New Year is a cherished family tradition for many, and store-bought wrappers make it way more approachable for beginners and seasoned dumpling-makers alike. Gather some loved ones and celebrate the new year shaping these tofu, pork, and beef-filled mandu. Packed with aromatics like chopped ginger and kimchi, they’ll fill your home with a lovely aroma as you make some new memories. (And even if you can't fold them 100% perfectly, they'll still taste delicious no matter what. It's the thought that counts.)

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Recipe: Daniel’s Mandu (만두)

11.Tiger Prawns In Garlic Ginger Soy Sauce

Hands holding a plate of cooked shrimp garnished with herbs and sauce

12.Candied Sweet Potatoes (BáSī DìGuā, 拔丝地瓜)

Candied Sweet Potato

13.Sichuan Style Stir-Fried Chinese Long Beans

Cooked green beans with sliced red chilies and spices

14.Turnip Cake (lo bak go, 蘿蔔糕)

Sliced savory cake topped with diced green onions and bits of meat on a wooden serving tray

15.Money Bag Dumplings (fúdài húntún, 福袋馄饨)

Dim sum basket with eight flower-shaped dumplings, garnished with herbs, placed on a woven mat
Dim sum basket with eight flower-shaped dumplings, garnished with herbs, placed on a woven mat
Hands wrapping dumplings with yellow wrappers and green string beside a stack of unused wrappers on a wooden surface
Hands wrapping dumplings with yellow wrappers and green string beside a stack of unused wrappers on a wooden surface

The Woks Of Life / Via thewoksoflife.com

Making these vegetarian dumplings is a not-so-subtle way to manifest abundance and prosperity in the new year. Little parcels of stir-fried bamboo shoots and vegetables are wrapped in Hong Kong-style yellow dumpling wrappers and tied with blanched cilantro stems. So cute! This recipe is fairly flexible, and tofu skin or napa cabbage leaves can be used in place of dumpling wrappers for gluten-free money bags that are equally fortunate!

Recipe: Money Bag Dumplings

16.Chinese New Year Almond Cookies

A plate of almond cookies is arranged on a table next to a cup of tea. Crumbs and a cloth napkin are visible in the background

Feeling inspired to make dumplings or try one of these recipes for the Year of the Snake? Tell us about your Lunar New Year cooking adventures in the comments!