Celebrating Chinese New Year with Tai Pei®

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #NewYearFortune #CollectiveBias

If you haven’t guessed it yet, we’re not Chinese. We don’t celebrate Chinese New Year in the sense that Chinese people celebrate it. In fact, when I was a kid, Chinese New Year scared the you-know-what out of me. Now, I think it’s pretty awesome… all those firecrackers and dragons, but my first experience with Chinese New Year was when I was around 12 and we ventured into Chinatown in New York City. I used to love going there and eating at authentic Chinese restaurants. They were definitely better than the ones my Jewish grandparents in Florida dragged us too (you know… the kind where the “pork” was kosher).

We happened to be there for Chinese New Year and it completely caught me by surprise. The noise, the chaos, the crazy dragons. It was so loud that I wanted to get the heck out of there. I guess as a kid, I didn’t appreciate all that Chinese New Year had to offer. What scared me as a kid I know embrace and think is pretty awesome! The noise, the chaos, the crazy dragons… WHAT FUN!

I should mention I adore Chinese food. Seriously… I love it so much that my mother even had a gold fortune cookie charm made for me for my charm bracelet. I’m guessing I ate my fill of chow mein, beef & broccoli, and egg rolls when I was growing up. And those fortune cookies… who doesn’t love those? I don’t remember when I first actually had Chinese food, but I’m pretty sure I took a bite of an egg roll and proclaimed that it was the best thing I’ve ever eaten.

This year, Chinese New Year is on February 19th and I thought it would be really fun to make an authentic Chinese meal for the family and also do something special for the kids. I think it’s so important that they learn a little about ALL customs across the world. Chinese New Year is also a great time to get friends and family together to celebrate the wish of “good fortune” in the year ahead. Traditionally, appetizers are served and red-envelope gifts given. Sounds like a great party to me!

I knew that part of the meal would have to include egg rolls, because, hey… I love me some egg rolls. Now, as much as I love egg rolls, that’s how much I don’t like making egg rolls. Seriously, when you can purchase awesome Tai Pei® Egg Rolls and Mini Spring Rolls, you can focus on the rest of your party/dinner. If you haven’t tried Tai Pei®, they are authentic Asian appetizers that are ready in minutes. They are everything you want in an egg roll or spring roll… fresh veggies, chicken, pork or shrimp… all in a crispy wrapper. OMG I’m hungry! They even come packaged with their own dipping sauce. Yes, please!

Luckily, Walmart has great Tai Pei® products that taste as authentic as you can get.

While we can certainly eat egg rolls and spring rolls as a meal… my daughter had been wanting to make Pad Thai for a while now. She thought it would be a great fit with the egg rolls and spring rolls and when my kid wants to cook… who am I to stop her? So we had Pad Thai along with the egg rolls and spring rolls. Love that they take just minutes to cook in the oven (or you can even microwave them). They even come with their own dipping sauce.

You have to love food that you can keep in your freezer and take out for a last minute party, quick lunch, afternoon snack, or as part of a gourmet meal. Here’s a tip: Keep a bunch of chop sticks handy. They are super inexpensive and can be found at any local Asian market.

Throwing a party? Tai Pei® Spring Rolls are the perfect finger food.

One of the things I really love about Chinese New Year is learning about the Chinese horoscope. This year is the Year of the Sheep, but my kids were born in the Year of the Monkey, Year of the Horse, and Year of the Rabbit. I used to be a HUGE fan of horoscopes and I thought it would be fun to make a Chinese horoscope picture for each of my girls because I really love what they represent.

This project took me less than an hour… really! I purchased some inexpensive black picture frames from Walmart (the ones that can either be stand-up or hung on a wall) and I did the prints in a Word Doc. So easy and a great idea for any last minute gift for someone. You can make them for your whole family.

Tai Pei® Good Fortune in Every Box™

How are YOU celebrating Chinese New Year? Share your ideas in the comments.

Check out the Chinese New Year app on the Tai Pei® Facebook page. The Red Envelope tab will include a coupon and will run until coupons run out – so download yours now!

Want more Tai Pei® food ideas? Follow them on Twitter and check out their Pinterest page.