Moonlynn Tsai and Yin Chang are joining TODAY to share lucky Lunar New Year recipes to bring good fortune into the Year of the Tiger. Tsai and Chang are the cofounders of Heart of Dinner, an organization dedicated to delivering meals to fight food insecurity and isolation for East Asian American elders throughout NYC. They show us how to make whole steamed fish with aromatics, sautéed bok choy with garlic and a fresh fruit plate.
In Chinese, the word "fish" is pronounced "yu," which is phonetically similar to the Chinese word "surplus." We would enjoy this dish growing up with our families, especially during Lunar New Year, as it symbolized us wishing our loved ones all the abundance, wealth, prosperity and good wishes for the new year.
On Lunar New Year, leafy greens like bok choy, served whole, symbolizes wishing our parents long lives.
Citrus fruits like pomelos and tangerines symbolize wealth, luck and status. Citrus fruits with their leaves and stems still intact also symbolize wholeness and balance. Our families love eating citrus fruits in general because they're a refreshing way to wrap up a decadent feast.
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