Laba Festival, which is the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month (the twelfth lunar month) every year, is also known as the "Dharma Treasure Festival", "Buddha Enlightenment Festival", "Enlightenment Meeting", etc. In northern my country, there is a saying, "Children, don't be greedy, it's the New Year after Laba Festival." Celebrating Laba Festival means the beginning of the New Year.
The traditional food customs of the Laba Festival include: soaking Laba garlic, making Laba vinegar, cooking Laba porridge, eating Laba beans, eating trumpet noodles, stuffing Laba vinegar, eating Laba tofu, eating ice, eating wheat kernel rice, etc. I think there are 7 worth mentioning among the many food customs of the Laba Festival. Let’s take a look with me:
One of the traditional food customs of the Laba Festival: Eating vegetarian dumplings dipped in Laba vinegar?
Laba Vinegar is one of the traditional Laba Festival delicacies. In northern China, there is a custom of soaking garlic in vinegar on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. The vinegar in which the garlic is soaked is called "Laba vinegar". "Laba vinegar" not only tastes mellow, but also lasts for a long time. Laba vinegar should be soaked until the first day of the Lunar New Year. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, eat vegetarian dumplings dipped in Laba vinegar, which means a year of vegetarianism and purity, and it also has a special taste.
Legend has it that the making of Laba vinegar began with Dukang. Du Kang was reluctant to throw away the wine vat when he was making wine, and mixed water into the lees (fermentation). After 21 days (vinegar making cycle), the aroma was emitted from the vat. Du Kang After tasting it, he found it was sweet and sour, so he forced the sweet and sour sweat out and put it in another place. Du Kang named it: seasoning paste and sold it in the market. It was very popular because it was mixed with distiller's grains. It was discovered on the 21st day after the water, and Du Kang gave the sauce a name: You plus 21st is vinegar, and it was discovered on the day of the Laba Festival. Later, people became popular in Laba to use Laba vinegar and eat vegetarian dumplings as a dip. Eat Laba vinegar.
?The second traditional food custom of the Laba Festival: Wheat porridge?
Wheat porridge is the "Laba porridge" of Qinghai people. On the 8th day of the twelfth lunar month, many rural areas in Qinghai To hold memorial ceremonies and celebrations, farmers eat wheat kernel porridge, which is called wheat kernel rice in some places.
The wheat kernels used in wheat kernel porridge are made from new wheat of that year, ground and peeled, or ice is used as a mortar, and the outer skin is repeatedly chiseled off in the ice mortar to winnow the wheat kernels. The night before, cook wheat kernels with beef, sheep, and pork, add green salt, ginger peel, pepper, grass fruits, fennel and other aniseed ingredients, simmer over low heat overnight, and cook the meat, wheat, and spices until they become emulsion-like. Among the spices, ginger peel and Zanthoxylum bungeanum are dry in nature and can dispel cold. In Qinghai, due to the high altitude, the temperature difference between day and night is more than 20 degrees. It is extremely cold in the morning and evening, so something to repel the cold is needed. This is why most Qinghai people add Sichuan peppercorns to their daily diet.
Qinghai legend says that the 8th day of the twelfth lunar month is the day when Sakyamuni attained enlightenment. Before attaining enlightenment, a shepherdess offered milk and made porridge from fragrant grains and fruits to the Buddha. The porridge was wheat. Ren porridge, later generations created this special delicacy in Qinghai people's diet, and it also became popular in restaurants.
?The third traditional food custom of the Laba Festival: Laba garlic?
As soon as the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month arrives, the Chinese New Year atmosphere becomes stronger day by day. In most parts of North China, on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, There is a custom of soaking garlic in vinegar, which is called Laba garlic. Laba garlic is brewed on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. It is a custom in North China. The ingredients are vinegar and garlic cloves. Pickled Laba Garlic is a traditional snack mainly popular in North China and is a festival custom of the Laba Festival.
According to the old man, the word "garlic" in Laba garlic has the same pronunciation as the word "suan". This is the day when various businesses collect their accounts and calculate their income and expenditure for the year to see their profits and losses. , including foreign debts and foreign debts, must be settled clearly on this day, which is what "Laba Calculation" is all about. On Laba day, a creditor who wants to pay a debt has to deliver a message to someone who owes him money, so he should be prepared to pay back the money.
There is a folk proverb in Beijing: "Laba rice porridge and Laba garlic are used to deliver letters to those who settle accounts, and to pay back debts." Later, some people who owed money to others used garlic instead of the word "calculate" to express taboo. , avoiding the word "settling" in this settlement of accounts. In fact, what you owe others must be paid back after all.
?The fourth traditional food custom of Laba Festival: Laba porridge?
On Laba day, some places in my country have the custom of drinking Laba porridge. Although the ingredients of Laba porridge are different in different regions, they are basically the same. They all include grains such as rice, millet, glutinous rice, sorghum, purple rice, and barley; beans such as soybeans, red beans, mung beans, kidney beans, and cowpeas; red dates, peanuts, lotus seeds, wolfberry, chestnuts, walnut kernels, almonds, longans, and raisins , ginkgo and other dried fruits.
The earliest Laba porridge was boiled with red beans. Later, it evolved and became more colorful with local characteristics. Zhou Mi, a scholar in the Southern Song Dynasty, wrote "Old Wulin Stories": "Using walnuts, pine nuts, milk, persimmons, chestnuts, etc. to make porridge is called Laba porridge."
The custom of drinking Laba porridge during the Laba Festival originated from Buddhism. The eighth day of December is the day when the Buddha Sakyamuni became enlightened. In order not to forget the sufferings that the Buddha suffered before he became enlightened, and to commemorate the Buddha's enlightenment and becoming a Buddha on the eighth day of December, the ancient Indians ate mixed food on this day. Porridge as a souvenir. Generally, the Buddhist porridge in temples is delicious and plentiful to meet the needs of the faithful men and women who come to the temple to attend commemorative ceremonies. Some believers come here specifically for "porridge" and believe that the porridge offered to the Buddha in Laba is auspicious. They not only eat it themselves, but also take it home for their families to enjoy. Year after year, the tradition of making Laba porridge in temples has spread widely to the people. As a result, the custom of drinking Laba porridge during the "Laba Festival" has gradually formed in northern my country.
?The fifth traditional food custom of the Laba Festival: Laba Tofu?
Laba Tofu is one of the traditional folk snacks in Yixian County, Anhui Province, and is also a festival customary food. On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, every household will dry tofu. Folks call this kind of sun-dried tofu "Laba Tofu".
Laba Tofu It is said that in ancient times, a couple lived a loving life. The man went out to do business, and the woman worked as a prostitute at home. On the day of the Laba Festival, my wife, who had just bought tofu and was going home to cook, received an invitation from a relative far away to make a wedding dress. Don't put the tofu on the stone mill in front of your door before leaving. As a result, it took two or three months before returning home. When I entered the door, I found that the tofu on the stone mill had become golden and hard, and I could still smell the aroma. I cut it and tasted it. My friends who were traveling with me all thought the tofu was delicious, dry and easy to carry, and praised it repeatedly. My husband was so happy that he called it "wife tofu". The pronunciation of "wife" in Yixian County is very similar to "Laba", and it is during the Laba Festival. It was discovered at that time. Over time, this tofu was also called Laba tofu by everyone. Laba tofu is dried on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month.
Traditional Food Customs of the Laba Festival No. 6: Laba Ice?
Eating ice during the Laba Festival is a custom in some areas. There is a saying called "Laba Ice, you will not be a bad person if you eat it". It is the custom of eating ice during the Laba Festival. Due to the cold winter, most of the foods eaten are hot and irritating foods. People are prone to various symptoms of irritation, and eating ice can achieve the effect of moisturizing and reducing internal heat. On the day of Laba Festival, if you eat some ice appropriately, you can not only enjoy the fun out of season, but also join in the excitement of the festival. ?
As the saying goes: "On the seventh and last day of the Laba Festival, you will freeze to death and beg your flowers." As we all know, the most common custom of the Laba Festival is to drink Laba porridge, but eating Laba ice is also an important part of the traditional customs of the Laba Festival. As the saying goes, "Whether it will be successful in the coming year depends on Laba Bing first." In the early morning of Laba day, people go to rivers and springs to smash ice and carry it home, which is called "Laba ice". Whoever gets up early and hits the ice first will have better luck. It is said that Laba ice can cure all diseases. The ice brought on this day must be kept for a long time so that the children can have a happy time eating ice. Of course, adults eat it too. Interestingly, no matter how you eat, you won't get diarrhea. On this day, women have to mix dough with "Laba ice", peas and highland barley.
On the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, water is filled in a basin. When it is Laba Festival, the water in the basin freezes, and then the ice cubes are broken into pieces for consumption. There is a saying that during the Laba Festival If you eat ice cream on this day, you won’t have stomachaches for the next year. ?Eating Laba ice is also an important part of the Laba Festival. As the saying goes, "Whether it will be successful in the coming year depends on Laba Bing first."
The seventh traditional food custom of the Laba Festival: Laba noodles?
Laba noodles are the seasonal food of the Laba Festival. Local traditional pasta is popular in the Guanzhong area of ??Shaanxi Province. In the Chengcheng area in the Weibei area of ??Shaanxi Province, porridge is generally not eaten during the Laba Festival. Every year on the morning of the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, every household has a bowl of Laba noodles.
Since Fubei’s Laba noodles are called Baijia noodles, you can’t enjoy them alone. When the noodles are ready, the first bowl is dedicated to the Kitchen God, who is the most important person for the people. The second bowl is dedicated to the God of Wealth, praying for wealth and blessings. The third bowl is dedicated to the ancestors, wishing prosperity for the family and a full family of children and grandchildren. Then pour the three bowls of noodles back into the pot and stir evenly. Mother then filled out many more bowls and asked us brothers to carry them with both hands and share them with the neighbors. Sometimes my own noodles are slow in making, and before I go out, other friends have sent their own Laba noodles to my house. Everyone said to each other that the harvest was abundant, and they exchanged hot noodles and began to enjoy them. My family members will eat in an orderly manner according to their age and age. Girls and young wives would sit at the door of the kitchen to eat. From time to time, they would check whether the old man and the children had finished their meals, and serve them in time. With a bowl of steaming Laba noodles, the family would sometimes gather around the stone table and enjoy it in the sun. Sometimes they would squat on the mound at the door with their neighbors and chat while eating. When encountering strangers passing by, the villagers will fill a bowl of Laba noodles to warm them up and ward off the cold, and send them blessings and friendship. Just as the poet described:
When the pot is boiled, you will enjoy the fragrance of all kinds of vegetables.
It doesn’t cost much sugar to use grated grains and clear salt.
Sitting together in the morning sun and sipping together,
Everyone is warm-hearted.
Laba noodles are a traditional delicacy on the Laba Festival in the Guanzhong area of ??northern Shaanxi. Because Shaanxi is delicious in pasta, they usually do not drink Laba porridge during the Laba Festival and use Laba noodles instead of Laba porridge. The meanings of Laba noodles and Laba porridge are the same. They are mainly to commemorate the Buddha's practice and become a Buddha and remember the sufferings that the Buddha suffered. They also have the meaning of exorcising ghosts and warding off evil spirits.
The traditional festival of Laba Festival provides people with a channel for families to communicate with each other and maintain family ties. In the process of preparing for or during the festival, people deepen the traditional concept of "home" and feel the deep warmth.