Dumplings Become Best-Seller, Shandong Province Leads as "Dumpling Giant"
The custom of eating dumplings on the winter solstice has a history dating back to the Han Dynasty's "Book of Rites," which recorded the phrase "yin and yang contend, life and death are divided." Ancient people believed that during this time, one needed to harmonize yin and yang energies. Dumplings, as a type of fine food made from wheat after the harvest season, were easy to digest and could help alleviate hunger and thirst, becoming a wise choice for coping with the scorching heat.
The shape of dumplings resembles a yuanbao (treasure), which coincides with the homophonic "fu" () in the phrase "to hide one's fortune." This implies that there is a hidden blessing or good luck. During the Eastern Han period, Dongfang Shuo annotated "The Rites of the Prefecture," mentioning "yin energy accumulating and hiding." The dumpling was shaped like a yuanbao to harmonize with heaven and avoid hiding from the heat while welcoming fortune.
This custom has been continued in various regions, including Shaanxi's Lanpi and Gansu's Lamen, and has become a symbol of Chinese culinary culture.
As we enter the winter solstice, a bowl of hot dumplings carries with it a thousand-year-old wisdom and blessings. From alleviating hunger and thirst to welcoming fortune and avoiding heat, dumplings not only serve as a seasonal delicacy but also embody people's wishes for peace, tranquility, and good health.
A brief glance at the data from Tianyan Check Professional Edition shows that there are over 146,000 enterprises related to dumplings in China, with Shandong Province having the largest number of such enterprises, exceeding 27,000, accounting for 18.9% of the national total. Other provinces ranked high include Guizhou, Hebei, Henan, Shaanxi, and Guangdong, with the latter being the only southern province to rank among the top.
Additionally, according to Tianyan Check's risk and deep-risk data, about 20% of dumpling-related enterprises have been involved in judicial cases.