This may not sound surprising from a Chinese American like myself, but what if I told you this is a chapter in a book about Jewish American culture?
Rabbi Joshua Plaut, author of “A Kosher Christmas: Tis The Season To Be Jewish”, includes a chapter called “We Eat Chinese Food On Christmas.”
Plaut documents evidence from a New York Times article in 1935 citing a man by the name of Eng Shee Chuck bringing chow mein on Christmas Day to the Jewish Children’s Home in Newark, N.J. Whether that is the first record of American Jews eating Chinese food or the affirmation of a popular practice is uncertain.
Plaut notes the first documented mention of the phenomenon dates back to an even earlier text, an 1899 issue of the American Hebrew magazine, which criticized Jews for not strictly patronizing kosher establishments, noting especially the shocking practice of dining at Chinese restaurants.
Chinese food tradition has nearly no dairy. Any pork or shellfish is often neatly diced, hidden in batter, or wrapped in eggrolls and wontons. According to Plaut, many American Jews unwittingly enjoyed non-kosher delicacies without a rebellious intent. My Jewish friends tell me that most Jewish Americans do not exactly follow traditional guidelines for eating only kosher certified (or even kosher-style) foods. Except for the most observant Jews, there is a lot of self-interpretation of what is okay and why. Some keep kosher at home but are less observant at a restaurant. And some are willing to eat anything, anywhere as long as it doesn’t include pork or shellfish. While it is unlikely that Chinese restaurants make an effort to separate their pork and non-pork cooking stations, they usually do have a range of vegetarian offerings for those who don’t want to stray too far, and meat and chicken for the less-observant majority.
So, the tradition stuck. American Jews, Chinese food, and Christmas are often connected.
For myself, growing up in the US, I didn’t know of this connection until I saw the movie, A Christmas Story. Perhaps Jewish people eating Chinese food on Christmas is more an exaggeration than standard practice, but it certainly isn’t uncommon.
Nonetheless, I have met more and more non-Asian attendees of my Chinese cultural programs in these past years who have welcomed a person of Chinese heritage to their families, e.g., as in-laws, as adopted family members formally or informally, or close friends or neighbors. During Christmas time, food is a significant part of festivities and celebrations. As years go by, your Chinese family member may deeply miss Chinese food in some form on these special occasions that are often filled with traditional American or European foods.
Ask your Chinese family member(s) if they would like to add a little Chinese food to your holiday dinner table. You might find the answer a delicious addition to your traditional meals.
Eating Chinese food on Christmas may not be a traditional part of your family tradition.
Let’s open holiday dining tables as an occasion to share cultural histories through our foods.
Watch this video on the Twelve Days of Dimsum for some ideas.
