PapercutsofYearoftheRoosterXINHUAWhatdoNigerianPresidentGoodluck
Jonathan,AmericanpopstarBeyoncéGiselleKnowlesandRussianEmpressCatherinetheGreathaveincommon?Theanswerisanyone’sguess,youmightsay.Butanywell-readChinesepersonwouldprobablytellyouintheblinkofaneye:allwerebornintheirrespectiveYearoftheRooster,andthusallsharethesameChineseastrologicalsign.
Overthelastfewweeks,doorsaregettingdecoratedwithpoeticcouplets,fireworksandfirecrackersarebeingsoldeverywhere,andthestrongfragranceofdumplingsisfillingtheair,thereisnomistaking-thewholeofChinaisnowbusypreparingforthecelebrationsoftheSpringFestivalandthecomingofthe2017YearoftheRooster.
Ifyouhappentobeborninanyofthefollowingyears:1945,1957,1969,1981,1993,2005,and2017,thenyoutoohavetheroosterasyourChineseastrologicalsign.AndtheYearoftheRooster(January28,2017-February15,2018)mightjustbeoneofthemostimportantyearsinyourlife.
Cockylikearooster
TheChinesezodiacisacyclicalsysteminwhicheachyearisassociatedwithoneofthe12animalsthattaketurnsoveraperiodof12yearsinthefollowingorder:rat,ox,tiger,rabbit,dragon,snake,horse,sheep,monkey,rooster,dogandpig.ItwasthetraditionalwayinancientChinatocounttheyearsandrecordaperson’sage.Indeed,ifyouknowaperson’sapproximateageandzodiacanimal,youcaneasilycalculatehisorherbirthyearandexactage.
SimilartotheWesternhoroscope,peoplebornintheyearofagivenChinesezodiacanimalarebelievedtosharesimilartraitsintheirpersonality.It’ssaidthatpeoplebornintheYearoftheRoosteraredetermined,brave,andperseverant,withastrongsenseoftimekeepingandresponsibilityatwork.
Moreover,roostersaretalkative,outspoken,andfrank.Theyenjoybeingthecenterofattentionandstrivetoalwaysappearattractiveandbeautiful.Muchlike1981-bornBeyoncé,theyenjoythespotlightandknowhowtomakeuseoftheircharm.
Withtheirstrongcharacter,roostersarealsobornleadersandenjoytakingtothestageandvoicingtheiropinions,whichissomewhatreminiscentofPresidentJonathanandCatherinetheGreat.Onthedownside,roostersaresometimesoverlyboastful,andwillmakesureyouarefullyawareoftheirlatestaccomplishments.
Funwithpuns
InChina,theYearoftheRoosterishighlyanticipatedbyall,becausethewordforroosterinChinese(ji)ishomonymouswith“auspicious.”Therefore,whencongratulatingeachotherontheNewYear,Chinesearefondofusingpunstoconveytheirhopethatthecomingyearwillbringthemgoodfortune,joyandhappiness.
Morethanthat,everypartoftheroosterhasitsassociatedexpressionanditsimpliedmeaningintheChineselanguage.Cockscomb,forexample,means“stavingoffadisaster,”whilecockcrowhasthemeaningof“evilspirits,”butisalsohomophonicwith“highofficial”and“gettingapromotion.”
Chickensarealsopartofthefun.Acharredchickenfeatherisassociatedwithanemergency,andaletterwithachickenfeatherattachedisusuallytakenasasignofurgency.
Alsoonthemenu
FamouschickendishesarealsoanintegralpartofSpringFestivalcelebrationsinmanypartsofChina.Chickenarepreparedinmanydifferentways,includ-ingdeep-frying,steaming,roasting,stewing,andboiling.Chinesepeoplebelievethatnearlyallpartsofthechickencanbeeaten.Asamatteroffact,chickennecksandfeetarehighonthelistofChinesepeople’sfavoritesnacks.
Duetoregionaldifferencesindietarycultureandcookingtechniques,eachpartofChinahasdevelopeditsuniquechickendishes.AmongthemostfamousareChongqingchickenfeetwithpickledpeppers,SichuanKungpaochicken,Xinjiangspicyhotchicken,JiangsustyleBeggar’schickenandGuangdongwhiteslicedchicken.
Butwhiletherestofusarefeastingonthesedeliciousdishes,peoplewhowerebornunderthesignoftheroostershouldbeespeciallycareful.AccordingtotheChinesetraditionalbelief,theyearofone’sbirthsign,whichcomesaroundevery12yearsaccordingtothezodiaccycle,isoneofbadluck.
Itisrecommendedforroosterstotakeafewprecautionstoensurethattheiryearisnotabadone.Towardoffanydangersthatmightbefallthem,Chinesepeopletraditionallybelievethatwearingthecolorredcanhelp.RedisoneoftheluckiestcolorsinChinesetraditions,standingforloyalty,successandhappiness.
Redbelts,redsocks,redshoes,andevenredunderwearareallindispensableitemsofclothingforroostersin2017.However,beawarethatforthisruletowork,youneednottobuytheitemyourself-ithastobeboughtbyaspouse,familymember,orafellowroosterfriend.
Commentsto
LifestyleFoodWorthCrowingAbout
•Kungpaochickenisaspicystir-frydishmadewithchicken,chilies,Sichuanpeppers,peanuts,andvegetables.ItisatraditionalSichuandishthatcanbefoundthroughoutChina.Thechickenmeatistenderandsmooth,andtheflavorcanbeeitherspicyormilddependingonhowmuchchiliisadded.
•XinjiangspicyhotchickenisatraditionalXinjiangdishmadefromchicken,potatoes,onions,bellpeppers,chilies,garlicandginger.Itisusuallyservedwithnoodlesonalargetray.Itsrichflavorandheartinessquicklymadethedishalocalfavoriteoftheregion,anditcannowbefoundeverywhereinChina.
•Beggar’schickenisafamousHandishoriginallyfromeastChina’sJiangsuProvince.Thechickenisusuallystuffed,wrappedinlotusleaves,androastedinanovenorunderagrillforabouttwohours.Theresultisanaromatic,crispandtenderchickenmeatwhichisnowconsideredastapleofChinesecuisine.
•WhiteslicedchickenoriginatesfromsouthChina’sGuangdongProvince.Thechickenisslowlyboiledinitsentiretywithginger,onionsandcilantrostems.Duetotheslowcookingprocess,thechicken’sskinremainsnearlywhite,whilethemeatistenderandflavorful.
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