By Zachariah Bryan Northwest Asian Weekly There are a lot of
things to prepare when celebrating the Lunar New Year (as
opposed to the Solar New Year, which is overrated), but perhaps
the most important is the food. There are tons of traditional
New Year’s dishes in China, from turnip cake and steamed chicken
to niangao and dumplings. However, this year, we’ll be focusing
on two other countries with strong traditions, Vietnam and
Korea. In Korea, the Lunar New Year is called Seollal, which
means the first day of the New Year. Koreans take their New
Year’s food seriously, setting up a table full of traditional
dishes and often holding a ritual for their ancestors. In
Vietnam, the New Year is called Tết Nguyên Đán, which translates
to “Feast of the First Morning,” but it is more commonly
referred to as Tết. In Vietnamese, to celebrate Tết (“ăn Tết”)
literally means to “eat Tết.” Can you guess that food might play
some kind of role here? Both countries have their specialty
dishes, which retain much of the symboli