Jai - Special Chinese New Year Dish

Jai

Chinese food is a cornerstone of Chinese New Year celebrations, with many traditional dishes served during the festivities. Jai, or Buddha’s Delight, is one of the most popular dishes served during this time. It consists of a variety of vegetarian ingredients and is considered to be a vegan Chinese dish. Common ingredients of Jai include lily buds, dried lotus seeds, mushrooms and black moss. Other ingredients may include bean curd, bean thread noodles, bamboo shoots, dried gingko nuts, carrots, bamboo pith, chestnuts and dried beancurd sheets. Jai is usually served with either a light sauce of oyster sauce and sesame oil, or a Yu-hsiang sauce which contains garlic, sugar, vinegar and chili pepper. Jai is a symbolic dish as it contains a variety of ingredients, each with its own meaning. It's thought to bring good luck in the new year as it noticeably increases in size after being cooked.