Chúc Mừng Năm Mới/ Happy Lunar New Year! Technically ended yesterday, so we are in reflection mode now, channeling our good fortune for 2023. We heard that in Vietnam they’re declaring this the year of the cat, anyone have any insight as to why? We asked Anthony’s mom and she said “idk google”- google wasn’t very helpful, either. We’ve included a recipe- more of a method, really- for kumquat nuoc mam down below. Kumquats are common during Tet, as the bountiful trees are meant to welcome in prosperity. You can find them aplenty in most Chinatown’s, especially now that it’s peek citrus season.
This was our sixth official Tết together; over the course of those six years, we’ve spent the lunar new year everywhere from Orange County, California, to Vietnam, to New Jersey- we’ve had celebrations large and small, seen dragon dances in New York flow into our small pop up cafe in Chinatown (rip) and been taught how to make thit kho (the traditional new year’s dish of braised pork and boiled eggs) by Anthony’s mom. Hers is perfect. Growing up in rural New Jersey, where Tết is decidedly not as common a celebration- Anthony’s family would drive two hours to the nearest temple, where they’d light incense, eat vegetarian food and banh tết, and, most excitingly, exchange loads of li xi, red envelopes filled with cash, doled out by various “aunties” and “uncles” (aka his mom’s friends. One of whose nickname is famously Popcorn).
This year, we were so busy at the restaurant, the only real tradition we stuck to was banh Tết. It’s sold year round in various Vietnamese stores throughout New York and Philidelphia, but for us, it’s really a marker of Tết. We can’t go a year without it. Sometimes, if we’re lucky, Anthony’s mom will have stored some in the freezer from California, these ones are soooo gooooood. We savor the whole log. Typically made with sticky rice, mung bean and pork rolled and wrapped in banana leaf, then steamed for hours. We started making our own last year- it is a labor of love. We like ours pan fried in oil, so it gets crispy on both sides and chewy in the middle, eaten with fish sauce marinated pickles and a strong nuoc mam.
Orange County circa 2017 was Sadie’s first exposure to proper Tết celebrations. We had been dating for a little over a year, and were headed to Malawi for 10 months (long story), so decided it was time for us to make our couple’s debut in California. It was Anthony’s first time back in ages, and the first Tết with his whole family since he was a kid. Sadie had already been hazed by his Grandma while in Vietnam (bullied is the word for it, if you ask Sadie. But that’s a story for another day), so meeting the rest of the family was a breeze (for the record, his family is lovely and Sadie and grandma have since made amends). The trip was replete with endless bowls of pho and che and banh xeo and thit kho and banh tet and some lighthearted family gambling involving special engraved dice and more li xi than you could imagine. The only real danger were the open air fireworks.
Typically, people make loud noises in the streets by banging pots and pans etc in order to ward off evil spirits. The fireworks in Orange County take this to a whole new level. They are loud enough to ward off more than the spirits, that’s for damn sure!! Ambulances were at the ready. At first, this seemed extreme to us, but promptly after they the show began, we watched a rogue firework ricochet off a woman’s leg- she was certainly grateful for the on hand medical assistance. Yikes. The next day, we, along with seemingly the rest of Orange County, went to temple to cleanse it all out.
In January 2019, we went to Vietnam for a month, which meant that our trip would coincide with Tet (the trip of a lifetime!) As we’ve established often throughout this newsletter, we are not known for our diligent planning, so we came to realize, perhaps a bit late, that Tết celebrations look very different in Saigon. 90 percent of the city was shut down for a full week, as people went home to spend time with their families. Anthony’s distant relatives did not wait around for us, so we were left on our own. There was practically not a soul left, the slowest we’ve ever seen the city. After two days of wandering through the barren streets, the novelty of this wore off. Lucky for us, our knack for “spontaneity” paid off.
(Mickey D offering in Saigon)
We did a little googling, found a beach port called Vung Tau that was three hours outside of Saigon, rented a motorbike, plugged our hotel’s address into google maps and headed on our merry way. Turns out, Vung Tau is a peninsula, which meant that, after two hours of driving, google maps lead us straight onto a ferry. We, along with a huge stretch of fellow motorbikers, drove on, parked our bikes and rode across the Saigon River. Exciting stuff.
Evidently, this is where all the families had gone for their new year vacation. It was lined by crystal clear water and packed to the brim with beach umbrellas and kids playing in the sand and parents drinking beer/ playing cards and the bubbling excitement of “vacation mode”. There was one massive open market where all the seafood from that day- caught in the water literally surrounding us- was sold. We’d wander through and pick out what we wanted to eat, from oysters to squid to lobster, then they’d grill it right in front of us, and pack it up in styrofoam boxes with a slew of dipping sauces. We’d head to the water, where the was a perch overlooking the sunset, drink some beers, eat some lobster. The perfect New Year.
Now we’ve just spent thirty minutes scrolling through our phones, admiring all the banh tết we’ve eaten since 2016 and scheming our next trip to Vietnam. Feeling tender! We’re hoping this new year brings us continued joy- feeling luckier than ever to continue to do what we love together.