What does Cixi eat on the winter solstice?

Cixi eats rice cakes on the solstice, and Hangzhou people like to eat rice cakes on the solstice, from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties to the present.

Every year on the solstice of winter, it is auspicious to cook three meals of rice cakes with different tastes and eat rice cakes on the solstice of winter. In Sichuan, it is the solstice to eat mutton soup in winter, and mutton is the first tonic in winter. In the area around the two lakes, red beans and glutinous rice must be eaten on the solstice in winter. In many parts of northern China, it is a custom to eat jiaozi every winter solstice.

Cantonese people eat barbecue and ginger rice on the solstice in winter. On this day, most Cantonese people have the custom of eating meat and "adding vegetables" during the winter solstice. In Chaoshan area, there is a folk saying that "Winter Festival Pills, once eaten, celebrate the New Year", commonly known as "Adding New Year". Hakkas believe that the taste of water is the most mellow in winter solstice, so it has become a custom for Hakkas to make wine in winter solstice.

In some areas in the south, eating the winter solstice ball is more popular, which means reunion. On the morning of winter solstice, every household grinds glutinous rice flour, and uses sugar, meat, radish, fruit and shredded radish as stuffing to make winter solstice meatballs, which are not only eaten at home, but also given to relatives and friends as a symbol of blessing. In fact, eating jiaozi on the solstice in winter is a traditional custom in China, which is more common in Jiangnan. There is also a folk saying that "eating jiaozi is one year older".

Winter solstice is one of the "24 solar terms". "Twenty-four solar terms" and "December architecture" are the basic contents of the official calendar, which were concluded in ancient times. According to ancient records, Emperor Tiandi began to determine his age in the name of cadres and branches. "Twenty-four solar terms" is a special festival in the calendar, indicating the season, phenology, climate change and the establishment of "December construction". The ancient "Twenty-four solar terms" were determined by the direction of the top of the Beidou bucket handle.