The Chinese Lunar New Year is coming up. Time to see reds, fireworks, dancing dragons, and of course everyone’s favorite delicacy, tikoy (sticky rice cake) or the Chinese New Year Pudding. This and other Chinese food delights make the Filipino-Chinese celebration of the joyous event unique from its Asian counterparts.

The sweet tikoy is made from grounded rice flour, wheat starch, lard, water, and sugar. The sugar type determines the color of the pudding. That’s why when you go the stores, you have a choice of brown or white tikoy.

Making one of these puddings is arduous and involves steaming for two hours. Good thing we now have the convenience of buying them in the local grocery especially during the Chinese New Year.

But the tikoy we buy is not ready to eat. They are sliced into small pieces, dipped in egg and fried. Here’s a simple tikoy preparation:

• Chill the tikoy in the fridge for a few hours to make it firmer for easier to slicing.
• Sliced the tikoy to about 1/2 - 1/4 inch thick.
• Dip the sliced tikoy pieces in a beaten egg for coating.
• Fry on low to medium heat in a pan with a little oil for a few minutes.

The sticky tikoy is thought to seal the kitchen gods’ mouths, so they can’t report the family’s misdeeds to higher deities. And that’s why it is an ever present delicacy in the Filipino Chinese household.

Pancit for Loooong Life

In China and other countries with huge Chinese population, the Longevity Noodles and whole chicken are the common denominators on Chinese New Year tables.

Here in the Philippines the longevity noodles is represented by the humble Pancit — sauteed glass noodles with vegetables. The Filipino tradition of serving Pancit Canton or Pancit Bihon on special occasions find its root to the Chinese belief that these noodles will bring long, prosperous life.

That’s why preparing pancit is a must during birthdays, weddings, and important family events. And you can be sure they will grace the tables this Chinese New Year.

Hopia Like It…

Hopia, on the other hand is a popular Filipino bean filled pastry originally introduced by Fujianese immigrants in urban centers of the Philippines, i.e. Binondo. Hopia is a widely-available inexpensive treat available in the bakeshops, groceries and the streets around Manila.

There are two types: the flaky type which uses Chinese puff pastry and the cake dough type which uses a soft cookie dough similar in texture and taste to the wrapper dough for fig newtons.

The most popular flaky hopia is Hopia Mungo, filled with sweet split mung bean paste. Hopia Baboy, meanwhile is filled with candied winter melon, flavored with green onions and enriched with candied pork fat.

The Hopia Ube made from purple yam paste is traditionally served during Christmas. It has a unique color and flavor that has in recent years made it popular among hopia lovers

The cake dough type hopia also called Hopiang Hapon, which is usually filled with sweet adzuki bean paste and when formed into round cakes look similar to small moon cakes served during the Chinese Autumn Festival.

So there you go, Chinese delicacies that has embraced Filipino flavors and loved by many Filipinos. It’s okay to feast on them not only during the Chinese New Year, but the whole year round.

Kung Hei Fat Choi!