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12 Snacks We Love to Eat at

Chinese New YearFEATURES/

16FEBRUARY 2015

Orion Chanlooks into the history of your favourite childhood

snacks.1

The Lunar New Year is a time of celebration, a joyous period for people to come

together to celebrate old traditions and look forward to the future. And what is a

celebration without food?

During Chinese New Year, a visit to a friend or relatives house will usually include

endless snacking. This year, we decided to take a look at the history behind these

familiar Malaysian snacks that many of us remember from our childhood. Youll never

look at a love letter the same way

White Rabbit Candy

These milky sweets with edible wrappers may be the top-selling sweets in China

today, but you might be surprised to know they have a somewhat Western origin.

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In 1943, a merchant from the ABC Candy Factory in Shanghai tried a milk candy

from England, and was delighted at their taste. Soon, his factory started

manufacturing their own version of the candy. It was a Mickey Mouse operation, quite

literally: the original candies featured the popular Disney character. In the 1950s,however, foreign symbols fell into distaste with the Chinese government, and the

candies were changed to feature a white bunny.

Wang Lao Ji / Wang Lo Kat

Now this is a tea with a history! This beverage, made from mint, honeysuckle and

other herbs, dates back nearly 200 years to the Qing Dynasty in the Guangdong and

Guangxi provinces. It is thought to have been invented by a doctor, Wong Chat Bong.

However, a Hong Kong company licensed the drink in 1995 and started selling it in

the iconic red cans. From 2005, the drink became hugely popular and now, there is

a trademark dispute over the name in mainland China.

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Haw Flake

These thin, Frisbee-like candies are made from the haw, or the fruit of the Chinese

hawthorn tree. The haw is a pretty versatile fruit, which can be eaten fresh, used in

soups or sweet dishes, or even as a medicinal ingredient. However, they are bestknown for the candied version a staple snack of many Malaysian childhoods.

In some parts of America, haw flakes have taken on a new use: conmen have

discovered they are exactly the right shape and thickness tofool parking meters!

Haw flakes were also traditionally given to children for the de-worming of parasites

from the digestive tract. Best not to dwell on that next time you eat a haw flake.

http://www.dgate.org/~brg/hawflakes.bak/161727.htmlhttp://www.dgate.org/~brg/hawflakes.bak/161727.html

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!inea""le Tart

These festive cookies are a mainstay of Malaysian celebrations, eaten during Hari

Raya, Chinese New Year and Deepavali alike. Pineapples have often been

considered auspicious in Chinese culture: in Hokkien, they are called ong lai, which

also sounds like the word for auspicious, and their golden hue has often been

associated with money.

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#ian $ao

This delicious glutinous rice cake is a popular Chinese New Year dessert. Eating

them is considered auspicious, as the name nian gao sounds a lot like the Chinese

for higher year, implying that eating them will elevate your status this year.These cakes are also offered to the Kitchen God, who legend has it, returns to

Heaven before every Chinese New Year to report to the Jade Emperor on every

households activities. These cakes will stick his mouth shut, therefore making any

badmouthing impossible!

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K%ih &angkit

These chalky cookies are made of tapioca flour and coconut milk, and are a

delicious Nyonya delight. Their name (bangkit meaning rise) comes from the fact

that these cookies rise during their baking.These treats were originally used as altar offering during ancestor worship, before

being made into the shape of currency, and then into the animal shapes we all love.

Sesame seeds are often sprinkled on them to represent fertility. These days, they are

a common sight at Chinese New Year markets.

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Lo'e Letter (K%ih Ka"it)

These sweet snacks are believed to have originated from the Dutch or Portuguese,

who assimilated their cake baking techniques into various Southeast Asian countries

through conquests and travels since the 14th

century. Thats why these snacks aresometimes called Kuih Belanda.

Popular lore has it these biscuits were used to as a method for thwarted lovers to

pass romantic messages to each other, hence the name. Their edible quality made it

easy for any evidence of a tryst to be quickly destroyed, while consuming the cookies

meant the message had been taken to heart. Dang, these ancient lovers really had

game!

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!ean%t Cookie

In Chinese culture, the peanut is supposed to represent longevity.

Additionally,sheng,the second word in their name (huasheng), means to give birth,

thus symbolizing the wish for many children. Any married woman whos attended aChinese New Year gathering with chatty aunties will certainly testify to how popular

this wish is among relatives.

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K%ih &ah%l%

According to history, the name of this fluffy cake derives from the phrase buah

tangan daru hulu (small gifts from the headwaters). This was because they were

often presented by Malay travellers, who often travelled by water, as gifts to theirguests.

This delicious Malay snack has often been called a local equivalent of the French

madeleine pastries. They are believed to have first been brought into Malaya by the

Javanese people from Bangkahulu, Indonesia. Chinese New Year versions of the

cake are often shaped into fish, because the Chinese word for fish sounds like the

word for abundance.

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&ak Kwa

These dried meat strips are considered to be a Hokkien delicacy, and are believed to

have originated from the Fujian province of China. Due to high levels of poverty, meat

was considered to be a luxury, only eaten during Chinese New Year. Any meatleftover from these meals would be preserved by slicing them into thin sheets and

marinating them with sugar and spices, before air-drying the slices and cooking them

over a hot plate.

When this delicacy was brought to Singapore and Malaysia by immigrants, it adapted

to local tastes. Instead of air-drying the meat, it would instead be grilled over

charcoal, creating a smokier flavour. Thats how the bak kwa we love and know was

born.

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Honey*o+b &i*%it

These twisted treats go by many names, and are popularly called matt fung dao in

Cantonese. In Malay, they are known as kuih ros (due to their rose shape) or kuih

goyang (shake) due to the practice of shaking them off their moulds after dippingthem into hot oil. They are believed to have been adapted from an Indian kuih called

achappam. In Chinese lore, they are said to represent family togetherness.

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,itaoy Soya -ilk

Another staple of Malaysian childhoods, this soya bean drink actually originates from

Hong Kong. The company was founded in 1940 by a Dr Kwee Seong Lo, who

developed the drink as a milk alternative. At that time, many citizens suffered frompoverty and malnutrition, due to high prices of milk. Dr. Kwee wanted to save the

people from a nasty death, and so developed soy milk after discovering many of

them were lactose intolerant.

Dr Kwee would originally deliver his soya bean milk to peoples houses via bicycle,

before eventually selling it in retail outlets. Today, Vitasoy products are sold in 40

markets around the world, and are also available in other flavours such as red bean,

taro and chocolate.

Image credits: Twinkle Moon Bunny, G Vos,Asiansupper, Choo ut

!hing, !is, "ei#lin $iew, %anny Choo, &asp'erri,Arshe(eld)

Read thi ne.t KL0 &et &akerie

Tags:chinese new ear,k!ih,pineapple tarts,snacks

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