Dietary Traditions of the Dragon Head Raising Festival in the Second Lunar Month
On the second day of the second lunar month, known as “Dragon Head Raising,” people eat “dragon food.”There are certain dietary customs on this day, as people believe that “the dragon's power is greatly awakened.” Therefore, the food consumed on this day is often named after the dragon. Eating spring pancakes is called “eating dragon scales,” eating noodles is called “eating dragon whiskers,” eating dumplings is called “eating dragon eyes,” eating dumplings is called “eating dragon ears,” and cooking noodles and dumplings together is called “dragon holding pearls.” Eating onion pancakes is called “tearing off the dragon's skin.” In some places, there are also customs of eating “dragon eyes,” “dragon whiskers,” “dragon tongue,” “dragon ears,” “dragon skin,” “dragon children,” “dragon eggs,” as well as eating spring pancakes and pork head meat. All of these are symbolic and meaningful representations related to the dragon. They all express people's strong wishes for the dragon to bestow blessings.
In Linyi, on the second day of the second lunar month, farmers start preparing the ingredients for sugar-coated beans. On the morning of the second day of the second lunar month, every household uses sugar to fry peanuts and yellow beans. Some places call them sugar beans, others call them scorpion beans, and some even use popped corn. In the past, they were usually made at home for personal consumption, but now that has changed. There are no longer homemade ones. In city supermarkets and rural markets, sugar beans of various kinds appear around the time of the second day of the second lunar month, with perhaps more than ten types. You can buy and eat them whenever you want, and they are delicious and sweet. On the second day of the second lunar month, the farmhouses' tables are filled with various sugar beans to celebrate this festival.
In addition, there is a saying about eating pork head meat on the second day of the second lunar month. Since ancient times, the three sacrificial animals—pigs, oxen, and sheep—were used for offerings, and later it was simplified to just the heads of the three animals, with the pig's head being one of them. Now, there is a famous dish called “Steamed Pig Face”, which goes through twelve steps including selecting ingredients, washing, roasting, soaking, and braising, and takes more than ten hours of cooking before it can be served on the table. “Steamed Pig Face” comes in three varieties: first, eaten in its original form; second, dipped in sauce; third, wrapped in pancake. Each way of eating has a different flavor.
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