Ritual Offerings · FFET10497
Twelfth-month bun steaming
Buns steamed ahead in the twelfth lunar month take flower and fish shapes, expressing hopes for the New Year.
The foods offered at ancestor rites, to deities and in temples.
Twelfth-month bun steaming is the custom of preparing steamed wheat buns during the twelfth lunar month to eat and share over the New Year. The practice occurs in many places, with Huozhou in Shanxi and Jimo in Shandong also making festive buns shaped like flowers, fish and other forms. Preparing staples ahead relates to the traditional avoidance of steaming food on the first five days of the lunar year; Jimo villagers also use decorative buns to express hopes for a sweet, prosperous year.
What
During the twelfth lunar month, people steam wheat buns ahead to eat and share over the New Year. Some become festive New Year buns shaped like flowers, fish and other forms.1,2,3
When
Bun steaming takes place during the twelfth lunar month. In many places, the 28th is a day for preparing staples, including leavening dough and steaming buns for the first days of the New Year.1
Where
Preparing staples during the twelfth lunar month is described in many places. Huozhou in Shanxi makes New Year buns, while villagers in Jimo, Qingdao, Shandong, make flower- and fish-shaped buns during the month for Spring Festival.1,2,3
How
The dough is leavened, shaped and steamed. Huozhou buns include jujube-studded strips, ruyi flower designs, fish, rabbits and tigers; Jimo also makes flower- and fish-shaped buns.1,2,3
Why
Steaming staples ahead provides food for the first days of the New Year and relates to the traditional avoidance of steaming food from the first through the fifth day. Jimo villagers also make decorative buns to express hopes for a sweet, prosperous year.1,3
Impact and influence
New Year bun making has developed into a local industry in Huozhou: a 2022 report put it at nearly 300 workshops and about 12 million kilograms a year.2