Why do we eat dumplings during the Winter Solstice?

　　Why do we eat dumplings during the Winter Solstice?

　　Why do we eat dumplings during the Winter Solstice? If you don’t eat dumplings during the Winter Solstice, will your ears freeze off?

　　Every year on the winter solstice of the lunar calendar, dumplings are an essential holiday meal for everyone, rich or poor. As the proverb goes: "On October 1st, when the winter solstice arrives, every household eats dumplings. ”This custom was left behind in commemoration of the "Medical Saint" Zhang Zhongjing who gave up medicine during the winter solstice.

　　Zhang Zhongjing was a native of Gengdong, Nanyang. He wrote Treatise on Febrile Diseases and Miscellaneous Diseases, which is a collection of medical works and is regarded as a classic by doctors of all ages. Zhang Zhongjing has a famous saying: "Advance will save the world; retreat will save the people." ； Even if he cannot be a good minister, he should also be a good doctor. ”During the Eastern Han Dynasty, he served as the prefect of Changsha, where he visited patients, administered medicine, and practiced medicine in the lobby. Later, he resolutely resigned and returned to his hometown to treat his neighbors. It was winter when he returned home. He saw that the villagers on both sides of the Baihe River were sallow and thin, hungry and cold, and many of them had their ears rotten by the cold. So he asked his disciples to set up a medical tent and a large pot in Dongguan, Nanyang, and make "Quhan Jiaoer Decoction" to treat chilblains on the winter solstice. He put mutton, chili peppers and some anti-cold medicinal materials in a pot and boiled them. Then he took out the mutton and the medicinal materials, chopped them up, and used bread to make ear-shaped "Jiao Er". After cooking, he gave two "Jiao Er" and a large bowl of broth to each person who came to ask for medicine. People ate "Jiao Er" and drank "Qu Han Tang", their whole bodies became warm, their ears felt hot, and their frostbitten ears were cured. Later generations imitated the appearance of "Jiao Er" and wrapped them into food, also called "dumplings" or "flat food".

　　Eating dumplings during the winter solstice is to remember the kindness of "Medical Saint" Zhang Zhongjing's "Quhan Jiao Er Soup". There is still a folk saying in Nanyang that "if you don't bring dumpling bowls during the winter solstice, your ears will freeze off and no one will care".

　　The origin of eating dumplings during the Winter Solstice

　　Dumplings are a traditional food loved by our people. Its preparation method is to first use flour to make thin and soft dumpling skins, then chop fresh meat, cabbage, etc., mix with condiments as fillings, wrap them up, and cook until the dumplings float to the surface. It is characterized by thin skin, tender filling, delicious taste, unique shape, and you will never tire of eating it.