Dating back to more than 3000 years ago, the Moon (Mid-Autumn) Festival is a traditional Chinese cultural festival that occurs on the 15th day of the 8th month, or when the moon is shining at its fullest. It’s a day where family and loved ones can gather and reunite to give thanks to the moon as a harvest celebration in Mid-Autumn as well as pray for luck/fortune for the upcoming year. This festival celebration is based on the legend and mythology of Chang’e (嫦娥), the Chinese goddess of the moon.
A popular tradition to celebrate is to share and eat a Chinese dessert known as the mooncake! By doing so, it’s an action of celebrating harmony and unity with loved ones. The mooncake itself has intricate designs on its round shape and are a rich pastry traditionally comprised of either a lotus seed or red bean paste, with its filling commonly filled with either yolk or assorted nuts. The pastry’s roundness signifies family unity, where families often gift mooncake packages to each other.
Other traditional foods include pomegranates, peaches, apples, and pears to use as celebration. For beverages, Osmanthus wine or tea are always a go-to option as it balances out the sweetness of the mooncake pastry. Often, there may be lantern festival events where individuals will write wishes in the lantern and light them as well as fiery dragon dances where crowds would celebrate in hopes of more prosperity and fortune come their way.
In Korea, the Mid-Autumn Festival is known as hangawi, or Chuseok (추석), and is considered one of the three biggest holidays in Korea. Similarly, families reunite to celebrate together and honor their ancestors. During this time, Koreans eat songpyeon, a half moon rice cake dessert usually filled with red bean paste, toasted sesame seeds, or chestnuts.