December 22nd is a very important solar term in the Chinese lunar calendar -- "Winter Solstice," and it marks the shortest day and longest night of the year.

Tomorrow is Winter Solstice, so what should we eat?What are some food customs?In fact, the customs vary widely across different regions, with different foods consumed. Let's take a look at the dietary cultures of Winter Solstice.

Northern China:DumplingsandWontons

In Beijing, there is an old saying: "Eating dumplings on Cold Food Day and noodles on Summer Solstice."For people in northern China who have the custom of enjoying dumplings, it is also common to eat dumplings and wontons on Winter Solstice."Pinched ears" are a colloquial term for eating dumplings during Winter Solstice in Henan. Legend has it that this can prevent one's ears from freezing in winter.

Jiangnan:Rice Dumplings

There is an old saying: "Eating rice dumplings on New Year's Day means growing a year older."Rice dumplings are traditionally eaten during Winter Solstice, especially in the southern regions of China.Rice dumplings are also known as "rice balls," and eating them on Winter Solstice is called "eating rice balls on Winter Solstice.""Rice balls on Winter Solstice" can be used to pay respects to ancestors or given as gifts to relatives and friends.In old Shanghai, people were most particular about eating rice dumplings.They would taste new brewed sweet rice wine, glutinous rice cake, and sticky rice, then place a pile of meat on the plate for ancestor worship.Zhejiang: EatingRice NoodlesOn Winter Solstice day in Zhejiang and other regions, all family members gather, even those who have married daughters must return to their mother's home.Every household makes rice noodles.It is believed that eating buckwheat on Winter Solstice can clean the intestines of hair from pigs or chickens.Xiamen: Queuing up for

Sichuan Pepper DuckThe Xiamen people have a particular love for duck, which they eat all year round. On Winter Solstice, they enjoy Sichuan pepper duck.

As long as there is a stall selling Sichuan pepper duck on the street, it will be fragrant throughout the neighborhood.Sichuan pepper duck uses red-fleshed duck as its main ingredient. After frying the meat with sesame oil and stir-frying with old ginger (ginger mother) and rice wine, it is simmered to create a dish that is aromatic, spicy, and nourishing.Few people make Sichuan pepper duck at home, so on Winter Solstice day, many start queuing up for it.

Ningxia: Eating "Head and Shoulders"On this Winter Solstice day in Yinchuan, there is a custom to drink powder soup and eat lamb and noodle dumplings.Yinchuan people also have a special name for the lamb powder soup -- "head and shoulders."

The powder soup is made by cooking mushrooms and mutton, seasoned with salt, ginger, scallions, garlic, chili peppers, soy sauce, etc. When the soup boils, pieces of cut noodles and pre-soaked bean sprouts are added, along with spring onions, green onions, and coriander.A bowl of this colorful lamb powder soup is fragrant and makes one salivate.Noodle dumplings are made first and served in a separate bowl for worship. They also serve a bowl to neighbors as a sign of goodwill.For Yinchuan people, the noodle dumpling soup is unique in taste, spicy and aromatic, and has become a specialty snack.Hakka: EatingRice CakeOn Winter Solstice day in South Guangdong, every household celebrates as if it were New Year's Day. Each family prepares a sumptuous meal with slaughtered chicken, pig, and sheep.Rice cakes are the most traditional Hakka food during this festival, an indispensable dish on the table.Eating rice cakes on Winter Solstice is a custom passed down by Hakka ancestors, and every household makes them using glutinous rice and shredded radish. They wrap it in banana leaves before steaming.Rice cakes are served hot after being steamed and shared among family members to celebrate the harvest season.

Hangzhou: Eating

Glutinous Rice CakeOn Winter Solstice, Hangzhou people enjoy glutinous rice cake for all three meals. The morning meal is glutinous rice cake with sesame powder and brown sugar; noon includes stir-fried glutinous rice cakes with radish, winter bamboo shoots, and meat; dinner features a soup of meat and bamboo shoots in glutinous rice cake.Eating glutinous rice cake on Winter Solstice means growing taller every year for good luck.Taiwan: Nine-layered Rice Cake as Ancestral OfferingIn Taiwan, the tradition of offering nine-layered rice cakes during Winter Solstice is still preserved. On this day, people make chicken, duck, pig, cow, and sheep figurines from glutinous rice flour to symbolize good fortune and longevity, then steam them in a multi-layered steamer as offerings for ancestors.Mushroomsare cooked with mutton, seasoned with salt, ginger, scallions, garlic,chili peppers,，soy sauce, and other condiments. The broth is brought to a boil before the cut dough pieces and pre-soaked vermicelli are added.Next, chives, garlic sprouts, and coriander are added. Thus, one pot of colorful mutton hotpot is prepared, emitting an inviting aroma that makes people crave it.After making mutton hotpot noodles, a bowl should first be set aside for worship, and a bowl also given to nearby neighbors.Mutton hotpot noodle dumplings have a unique preparation method, tasting spicy and delicious. It has now become a specialty snack in Yinchuan.In Hakka: Eat on Cold Food DayEvery household eats radish cakes for Cold Food Day.There is the custom of "Cold Food Day greater than New Year's" in South Yue Hakka regions.For Hakka people, Cold Food Day is the second most important festival after Spring Festival. Each household slaughters chickens and pigs to prepare a rich festive meal.Radish cakes are the most representative Cold Food Day food with Hakka flavor, essential on the dining table.Eating radish cakes on Cold Food Day is a tradition passed down by Hakka ancestors. Before Cold Food Day arrives, every household will make radish cakes using glutinous rice and shredded radishes, then place them in banana leaves to steam.After steaming, everyone in the family should taste the freshly made radish cakes while they are still hot, sharing them as a celebration of bountiful harvests.Hangzhou: Eat three times a day on New Year's CakeOn Cold Food Day, people in Hangzhou enjoy eating various types of New Year's cake throughout the day.

For breakfast, they eat glutinous rice cake with sesame powder and sugar. At noon, it is stir-fried glutinous rice cake with Chinese flowering cabbage, winter bamboo shoots, and meat threads. In the evening, it is glutinous rice cake in a soup made of meat threads and bamboo shoots.Eating New Year's cakes on Cold Food Day symbolizes growing taller every year for good fortune.Taiwan: Nine-layer Cake for Ancestral Worship

In Taiwan, there is still the tradition of offering nine-layer cake to ancestors during Cold Food Day. On this day, people make glutinous rice flour into chicken, duck, pig, cow, and sheep shapes symbolizing good luck, fortune, and longevity, then layer them in a steamer for cooking and use them for ancestral worship to remember their ancestors.For the Hakka people, Winter Solstice is the second most important festival after the Spring Festival, and every household slaughters chickens, pigs, and sheep to prepare a rich feast.Rapeseed cakes are the most representative winter solstice food in Hakka cuisine and are indispensable on the table.Eating rapeseed cakes is a tradition passed down by the ancestors of the Hakka people. As Winter Solstice approaches, every household makes rapeseed cakes withsticky riceand shredded radish.bananaleaves.They are then placed in a steamer andsteamed.Rapeseed cakes should be eaten hot by everyone in the family after they are steamed, to celebrate the harvest day together.

Hangzhou: Three Meals a Daywith

glutinous rice cakes.In Hangzhou, people enjoy glutinous rice cakes for three meals on Winter Solstice. In the morning,sugarmixed with sesame powder is served with the cakes. For lunch, they eat stir-fried glutinous rice cakes with Chinese flowering cabbage,winter bamboo shootsand meat shreds.For dinner, they have a soup made of meat and bamboo shoot shreds with glutinous rice cakes.Eating glutinous rice cakes on Winter Solstice is meant to grow taller each year, for good luck.Taiwan: Nine-layer Cake Sacrifice

In Taiwan, there still exists the tradition of offering nine-layer cakes during the winter solstice. On this day, people use sticky rice flour to shape chicken, duck, pig, cow, and sheep figurines symbolizing blessings and longevity. These are then steamed in layers as a sacrifice to their ancestors, commemorating them.

In Taiwan, the tradition of using nine-layer rice cakes to worship ancestors on Winter Solstice is still preserved. On that day, people shape sticky rice into chickens, ducks, pigs, cows, and sheep symbolizing good fortune and longevity, which are then steamed in layers in a bamboo steamer to offer to their ancestors as a way of remembering their forefathers.