Mid autumn festival lantern fish full#

The fillings are mostly sweet, but they could be savoury or made of minced meat as well.Ĭantonese mooncakes are not the only delicious mooncakes available for sale during the season. The shape is often round or circular, symbolising family togetherness and reunion. Depending on which part of China you hail from, mooncakes come in various flavours, though the most common flavour you see being sold in the markets is Cantonese (Southern Chinese). Mooncakes are sweet rich baked pastry filled with red bean or lotus bean paste. Mooncakes! Mention Mid-Autumn Festival and you immediately think of mooncakes. The festival falls between late September to early October. It usually falls on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar.

Other Asian cultures have their own harvest festivals too like Tsukimi and Chuseok. Mooncake fans are spoilt for choice!Ī harvest festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated by Asians and the Asian diaspora, for example the Chinese and the Vietnamese. Mooncakes appear in the supermarkets and restaurants, diverse and with many flavours. These days, where I live, Mooncake Festival preparations start even before the festival itself. Happy childhood memories are filled with beautiful lanterns, playing with candles and nibbling on lotus bean paste mooncakes.

Mid autumn festival lantern fish full#

Right after the scary Hungry Ghost Festival or Ghost Month, it is a lovely festival celebrating family gatherings, enjoying sweet mooncakes and admiring the full moon. Don’t be surprised to see friends like Thomas the Tank Engine, Dora the Explorer and Hello Kitty out around town.Of all the Chinese festivals, I love the Mooncake/Mid-Autumn Festival the most. Though traditionalists may scoff, the most contemporary Mid-Autumn Festival lanterns include designs with action heroes and toy brands. They’re plastic, solar-powered and fully reusable from year to year. These lanterns are representative of new modern designs you’ll see around major Chinese cities. When you’re done, you’ll have a great lantern in need of only a candle and a stick. These lanterns may be my favorite of the bunch, because they allow you both save time and preserve a DIY spirit by letting the kids do some decorating themselves. You’d accomplish the same thing with a lantern decorated with horses, fish or rabbits. This round lantern is very traditional, in the sense that it’s round like the moon and decorated with an animal symbol, in this case a dragon, for good luck. Just drop in a candle, attach a stick with a string and you’re ready to go. You’ll see these all over Chinese cities around Mid-Autumn Festival time (like the little girl in the post header). This paper accordion lantern design is both very simple and quite traditional. However, it is possible to find lanterns online that are faithful to some more traditional elements, if you look hard enough. Here in the United States, it’s difficult to find the colorful lanterns made from cellophane and wire that you’ll see in China. Buying a Mid-Autumn Festival lantern can be a great time saver. Lights are powered by batteries, as frequently as they are by candles. These days, you’re just as likely to see action figures, Hello Kitty and other children’s icons on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, as you are to see more traditional horses, fish and rabbits. You won’t be alone, however, if you choose to buy a lantern instead.