Take a bite of New Year tastes

Mutton soup, roast duck and dumplings are the three favorite New Year dishes for Jinan residents. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Mutton soup, roast duck and dumplings are the three favorite New Year dishes for Jinan residents, China’s largest consumer review website Dianping released on Jan 17.

According to the report, Jinan residents prefer traditional Northern Chinese recipes during the Spring Festival, specifically dishes such as roast duck and dumplings.

Non-native cuisines have also seen an uptick in the number of searches in recent days, with sukiyaki, a variety of hot pot from Japan, taking the lead by doubling its searches, and xiaolongbao (steamed buns), luosifen (snail rice-flour noodles), xiaodiao litang (pear soup) and huajiaoji (fish maw and chicken soup) closely following.

Hot pot bridged the generational gap and became the most popular choice for all ages as their midnight extra meal. Hot pot with coconut chicken, beef and mutton as the main ingredients, which are believed to be nourishing and good for health, were the most recommended.

Jinan residents also proved more willing to pay for large family reunion dinners on the eve of the Chinese New Year on Jan 24 at local restaurants, with the number of orders rising 60.2 percent year-on-year and the average cost per person reaching 118.4 yuan ($17.3).