By: Tonya Hopkins aka The Food Griot: “Sharing Savory Stories on the Makings of America’s Cuisines”…

Mardi Gras might always fall on a Tuesday (this now common French name literally means “Fat Tuesday.” Duh)… BUT the crazy-making part for cultural chroniclers like me is that the month and date are ALWAYS different year after year…

LAST year, , Mardi Gras 2025 took place Tuesday, March 4. Why the change of month and actual dates each year? Well, because for some specifically religious reason (involving 40-day Lent math), Mardi Gras is always exactly …

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On the Mardi Gras 🍰🥘 FOOD FRONT:

While several cities in and outside of the U.S. celebrate Mardi Gras, New Orleans Louisiana, USA takes the king cake (get it?! — get a glimpse of one in the photo gallery below…) … And the foods of New Orleans are pretty famous the world over too…

My Patreon peeps can get the skinny on the whole CREOLE vs. CAJUN confusion plus classic examples of what each of those culinary cultures contributes to N.O. cuisine…

In the meantime, here’s a handful of highlights re: two of my fave classic dishes connected to New Orleans & Mardi Gras:gumbo 🧑🏾‍🍳🥘 and red beans & rice 🫘🍚

Monday red beans & rice. Tuesday indulgence….

…for more on these dreamy dishes and then some, join me on Patreon — free or from just $3/month — and go deeper in support of my work as an independent scholar, thanks!]

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HAPPY Chinese New Year! 🧧

(aka “Lunar New Year” 2026 — Year of the Horse! 🐎🐴🎠🏇🏾🔥🧨🧧🎊🥳🥟🐟🍜)

More specifically, it’s the Year of the 🔥FIRE HORSE 🔥, which is also often traditionally referred to as the Red Horse Year (Chì Mǎ Nián - 赤馬年)….

Each 60-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac, the Horse is paired with one of the five elements (e.g., Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, or Water).

2026 is widely understood to be a rare 🔥 “Double Fire” 🔥 year because the Horse’s natural element is also fire, making this year exceptionally intense and dynamic — an occurrence that only happens every 60 years.

This marks the transition from the Year of the SNAKE 🐍 (my year!) in 2025 to that of the Double 🔥 Fire HORSE 🐴 🔥 for 2026…

Even though today, Feb. 17, is declared to be Chinese New Year on Western calendars, you should know it’s NOT just ONE DAY like most measly U.S. holidays, but instead is celebrated for a full 15 days — which means today = the FIRST DAY of Chinese New Year festivities — culminating on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, with the traditional grand finale known as the Lantern Festival. The final night (March 3rd, 2026) marks the first full moon of the new year,

Key Dates During the 15-Day Celebratory Stretch:

Sort of like a line-up of mini-holidays within the holiday:

• Day 1 (Feb 17): The official start of the Spring Festival, focusing on elders and ancestors.

• Day 2 (Feb 18): Traditionally the day married daughters visit their birth parents.

• Day 7 (Feb 23): Known as Renri or "Human Day," celebrated as the common birthday of all people. Cosmically this is the birthdate of an awesome African American Intellectual and Activist ancestor who had a very global view on justice: W.E.B. Dubois (b. Feb. 23rd 1868)

• Day 15 (Mar 3): The big finish with the Lantern Festival…

  
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Celebrating Lunar / Chinese New Year 🥳🧧🎊🎇✨🏮

No surprise I love celebrating Lunar New Year by honoring the incredible richness and diversity of Asian food cultures (e.g., Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, and more…) and the countless culinary delights from China especially as well as the vast continent of Asia and its expansive diaspora.

With much GRATITUDE and great appreciation for the people — past, present, and future — who have continued to cultivate, create, and graciously share such a plethora of amazing dishes and food traditions with and throughout the world.

(Nostalgic side note: I know for sure I wouldn’t have survived those months working in London many moons ago if not for the awesome and amazing Chinatown there — where I could always get my grub on with flavor-filled, healthy deliciousness!) …

With Lots of Delicious Food (& Drink!) 🍜🥟🐟…

Yay hooray it’s the time of year when some of my FAVE savory delights like dumplings, whole fish, and noodle dishes abound — since, as I’m told they’re believed to bring luck and good fortune (see also list below)…

. …As I’ve said before, I receive it all with the gratitude for each and every culinary culture that has brought and continues to bring deliciousness to our nation’s tables today —and also way back in the day — and ideally for many, many , MAN Y more to come…

Sought & Found So Many Cultural Synergies 🌍

ALSO, as a person of predominantly W. African heritage (from circa 300+ yrs ago here on American soil) I also love to explore, discover, learn about and share the myriad synergies I see between “Asiatic” and “Africanic” culinary cultures…

More specifically — how to connect cultural and culinary dots between the two because there are quite a few, including but not limited to:

• the huge role RICE plays in pretty much every single African and Asian food culture… No surprise considering that it these two continents alone where rice actually originates..

• the cultivation, consumption and outright LOVE of LEAFY GREENS (either in soups or as stand-alone sides

• an abundance of SEAFOOD (fresh fish, whole fish, crab, etc.)

• the artful use of aromatic ALLIUMS like green onion, garlic...

• incorporation of ingredients like PEANUTS, GINGER and SWEET POTATO varieties in both savory and sweet modes..

• as well as SESAME seeds & oils (also known as “benne” in W. African food cultures) …

  And more!...

Lucky Foods to Know (& Have!) During This Fabulous Two-Week Celebration…

Ok back to the HOLIDAY at hand! (here’s that list of lucky foods as desk-researched and also shared with me — primarily from Chinese food regions & culture:

• Dumplings: Particularly those that resemble gold ingots and symbolize wealth (Jiaozi)

• Fish: Served whole, representing abundance; eating the head and tail ensures a good start and finish to the year.

• Spring Rolls: Resemble gold bars, symbolizing prosperity.

• Longevity Noodles: Eaten uncut for long life and happiness.

• Glutinous Rice Cake (Nian Gao): Sweet and sticky, it symbolizes growth and prosperity.

• Mandarins & Oranges: Represent wealth and good fortune due to their golden color and round shape.

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A Few Tidbits & Tips:

Also from Chinese culinary traditions—‘How and what you eat throughout holiday matters”

• Always leave some fish on the plate to symbolize surplus…

• Dumplings made with family signify togetherness…

But Wait! There’s More: …For those of the Islamic faith, the holy month of Ramadan begins on the evening of today, Tuesday, February 17th too — with the first full day of fasting to begin tomorrow, Wednesday, February 18th. ..

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