Is Laba porridge made in advance or on the same day? When is Laba porridge made?

We all know that Laba porridge is a nutritious porridge made from eight different ingredients. It tastes sweet and delicious, rich in nutrition, and tastes fragrant and sweet. Many people eat Laba porridge during the Laba Festival. The method of making Laba porridge is quite particular, especially the choice of time. So should Laba porridge be made in advance or on the day? Let's take a closer look!

Should Laba porridge be made in advance or on the day?

Many places make Laba porridge one day in advance, while some places make it on the morning of the same day, depending on the local customs.

There are taboos in some places regarding the habit of eating Laba porridge, that is, eating Laba porridge before noon. In some places, Laba porridge is cooked the night before Laba Festival every year, but it cannot be eaten until the next morning. If it cannot be finished, it can be shared with relatives, friends, and neighbors, but not after noon. There is a saying that "eating porridge early means early harvest next year."

These customs and taboos may seem a little ridiculous today. With the development of society, people are becoming more and more relaxed about these taboos. As long as you are happy, you can live however you want.

What materials are used to make Laba porridge

The ingredients of Laba porridge are made of various grains. The main ingredients are rice and glutinous rice, which are more in quantity than other ingredients. Other ingredients can be selected according to your own preferences, including millet, rice, coix seed, red bean, peanut, red bean, broad bean, etc. Some also add some preserved fruits, such as walnut kernels, lotus seeds, red dates, longan, raisins, etc.

Laba porridge does not have eight fixed ingredients. Usually, you can put your favorite grains together and cook them. The ancients often ate Laba porridge in the twelfth month, that is, the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. It has become a folk custom that has been passed down to this day. It is used to celebrate the harvest. Some people also say that it is used to worship ancestors and gods. In Henan, Laba porridge is also called everyone's rice. It is a traditional folk food used to commemorate the national hero Yue Fei. There are many legends about Laba porridge, which I will not go into detail here.

What is the story behind Laba Festival?

Laba Festival, also known as "Laba", is a classical sacrificial ceremony in ancient times to celebrate the harvest and thank ancestors and gods. Because it is held in the last month of each year, this month is called Layue, and the day of the ceremony is called Lari. This festival is a festival used by ancient people to worship their ancestors and gods and hope for a good harvest and good luck in the coming year. On this day, China has had the custom of drinking Laba porridge and eating Laba garlic since ancient times.

There are many versions of the legend. To put it simply, it originated from the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. It is said that when Zhu Yuanzhang was imprisoned and suffering, it was a cold day. Zhu Yuanzhang, who was cold and hungry, actually dug out some red beans, rice, red dates and other seven or eight kinds of grains from the mouse hole in the prison. Zhu Yuanzhang boiled these things into porridge. Because that day was the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, Zhu Yuanzhang named this pot of grain porridge Laba porridge and enjoyed it beautifully. Later, Zhu Yuanzhang pacified the world and became the emperor sitting north and facing south. In order to commemorate that special day in prison, he designated this day as Laba Festival and officially named the bowl of grain porridge he ate at that time Laba porridge.