Auspicious Steamboat Ingredients For A Prosperous Chinese New Year

Just a few days away from the Chinese New Year, have you thought of the foods you will share with your family? A classic Chinese Steamboat surely should be noticed!

In tradition, Chinese families have a steamboat dinner on Chinese New Year's Eve as part of their reunion dinner. The steamboat symbolizes a family reunion because the steamboat pot, which is usually round in shape, signifies the word 'reunion' in Chinese.

Also, it is very easy to prepare, easy to eat, and it can accommodate a large number of people. It does not need constant cooking as most ingredients are raw, so it does not require continuous cooking. During the preparation process, there is no doubt that a lot of work is needed, but once everyone has sat down, it is a matter of self-service, and there is only the need to top up the stock/soup when necessary.

While waiting for the food to be prepared, this is an excellent opportunity to catch up with each other and share experiences, reconnect with each other, and care for each other while enjoying the delicious food on the table. This allows family members to focus more on the meal on the table rather than being busy in the kitchen.

So if you include Steamboat in your family dinner, ensure that these Auspicious Ingredients will make the dish delectable to share with everyone.

Dumplings

There is no doubt that dumplings are the essential food item at Chinese New Year dinners, as the food is believed to bring fortune and wealth to diners.

Seafood

If there is one primary ingredient in a steamboat, it has to be seafood. Whether thinly sliced slivers of fish, such as garoupa, tilapia, salmon, cod fish, halibut, monkfish, sea bass, or even yellowtail, the fish will make a tasty steamboat since it adds flavor to the broth.

It is also believed that seafood represents prosperity and that adding it to your steamboat on the eve of the New Year signifies the beginning of a prosperous year. You can add other types of seafood to your steamboat, such as prawns, squid, scallops, cuttlefish, lobsters, clams, crayfish, mussels, oysters, etc.

Tofu

Tofu puffs, or "taufu pok," are a healthy and tasty addition to your steamboat, whether you prefer local or Japanese tofu, meat-stuffed or fish-stuffed "Yong Tau Fu."

Baby and toddlers can enjoy steamboat with their entire family because it is high in protein and easily digestible.

Eggs

You can thicken and cream your steamboat broth even more by adding eggs. It is as simple as cracking the eggs into the broth and pouring them into it when it is frothing. It will give you a hearty slurp every time you take a sip from your soup spoon. In addition, you can boil the quail eggs separately and put them into the broth.

As a symbol of growth, fertility, and vitality, eggs represent the renewal of life.

Assorted Fruits and Vegetables

You can add anything you like to your steamboat, whether leafy greens or root vegetables. Fruits and vegetables are a healthy addition to your steamboat, and almost any vegetable will do. There are many popular vegetables, such as Chinese lettuce, cabbage, spinach, bok choy, watercress, kale, broccoli, mustard greens, eggplants, bell peppers, corn, tomato, summer melon, and so on.

Mushrooms

Mushrooms are an excellent ingredient in every steamboat, whether fresh or dried Chinese mushrooms, Japanese mushrooms, Shitake, Maitake, Enoki, Shimeiji, Portobello, or button mushrooms.

For health-conscious foodies, mushrooms are another healthy choice. They don't need to sit in the broth for a long time, just a few minutes, and they're ready to eat.

Noodles

In Chinese culture, noodles are considered a symbol of longevity and are usually served at the end of a feast since they are generally filling. The most popular noodles among the Chinese are yellow noodles, vermicelli, kuay teow, and tang hoon.

There are many types of soups made worldwide, but the most popular is the clear Chinese soup, which is best made by adding chicken or fish stock, preferably from your own kitchen, to enhance the flavor of all the other ingredients.

Tripe and Meat

As one of the steamboat's more popular and delicious dishes, tripe is more of an acquired taste since it is derived from the stomach lining of animals such as sheep, cows, goats, pigs, and deer. Once cooked in the steamboat, it has a unique taste, making this meal even tastier.

For those who do not like tripe, you can substitute thinly sliced fresh meat from beef, chicken, lamb, or pork for the tripe. It is the choice of meat you use that defines the flavor of the steamboat. Make sure the meat you use is thinly sliced before you cook it in the broth to enjoy it almost immediately.

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