Page 8 - BACGG CNY Flipbook V2 03032021

Significance of Jai Recipe
There are many ways to make lo han jai. Here is "May's way". This video is from
2008 when May Chan was 79 years young. She shares stories of Chinese New
Year customs, how she celebrated as a little girl in the 1930's, and demonstrates
how to make a special seasonal dish - lo han jai. Chinese jai is traditionally eaten
on the first day of the Chinese New Year to welcome luck and prosperity. It
originally has over 30 ingredients, but this recipe was adapted to our families
preference. May uses no "recipe" of measured amounts. She flavors to taste, a
skill learned from cooking for her family for 70 years. However, in this video she
shares all jai ingredients in Chinese and English to help you prepare a shopping
list. The blue cheungsam dress she wears is silk from Hong Kong. The Chinese
jacket was worn in 1950 after her wedding to serve tea to her parents and new
in-laws. Today at 92, the smell of home cooked traditional village food no longer
fills mom's kitchen, but her good humor and kind heart still is present...and tasty
memories from this home video.
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