Cooking Class: Cooking for the Chinese New Year





​​​Venue: Brand Hall @ Faith United Methodist Church, 899 Dorset Street, South Burlington, VT 05403
Date: Saturday January 18, 2025
Time: 2:00 - 4:00pm
Cost: $30


Vermont Chinese School is running a special cooking class, "Cooking for the Chinese New Year", to celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year. We'll be making jiaozi and sesame balls, a cooking demonstration and sampling of nian gao, and will have an opportunity to learn the basic traditional paper cutting.


Jiaozi 饺子 is a type of Chinese dumpling. They are folded to resemble Chinese sycee and have great cultural significance in China. Jiaozi is one of the major dishes eaten during the Chinese New Year throughout northern China and is eaten all year round in the northern provinces. Jiaozi is popular in other parts of East Asia and in the Western world, where a fried variety is referred to as potstickers.


Sesame balls 蔴球 are a type of fried Chinese pastry made from glutinous rice flour. The pastry is coated with sesame seeds on the outside and is crisp and chewy after immediately being cooked. Sesame balls are traditionally filled with a bit of sweet red bean paste. The sweetness in the sesame balls symbolizes happiness. Their round shape and golden color are considered lucky, and the fact that the dough balls swell as they’re fried and increase several times in size is a happy metaphor for a small venture growing and bringing back a large return. Sesame balls are commonly seen as a New Year snack in the Canton region, Hong Kong and Macau.


Nian gao 年糕 sometimes translated as year cake or New Year cake or Chinese New Year's cake, is a food prepared from glutinous rice flour. It is also simply known as "rice cake". While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during the Chinese New Year. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time of the year because nian gao is a homonym for "higher year" or "grow every year" (年高), which means "a more prosperous year".


The deadline for class registration is January 12, 2025





2025 Lunar New Year / Spring Festival Celebration
2025 春节联欢会





​​​Venue: Cafeteria @ Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School, 500 Dorset Street, South Burlington, VT 05403

Date: Sunday February 2, 2025 12:00 - 3:00pm

Ticket: Adult $20 (ages 13+), Child $10 (ages 3-12)


The celebration includes a New Year luncheon and performances by students, teachers, and friends.


Tickets are on a first-come, first-served basis, with no reservation. Please purchase your e-tickets in advance via Seven Days Tickets or email us.


Admission must be prepaid in advance via Venmo or Paypal.

Venmo: @Vermont_Chinese_School (last 4 digits of phone is 6332)

Paypal: vtchineseschool@gmail.com









by: Bo-Yee Poon

Posted: Jan 26, 2024 / 03:19 PM EST

Updated: Jan 26, 2024 / 03:36 PM EST


South Burlington, VT- A celebration of the Lunar New Year is happening for the 30th year by the Vermont Chinese School.


Two representatives of the school, Theresa Ko and Jason Shi, joined the Morning Brew to talk about the festivities. It’s a luncheon with performances of song, dance, a skit, and martial arts.


The event is held at Frederick H. Tuttle Middle School in South Burlington on Sunday, Feb. 11, from 12:00 pm to 3:30 pm. You can get an e-ticket at Seven Days Tickets or in-person (with cash or checks) at the South Burlington High School’s lobby on Friday evenings Jan. 26 and Feb. 2 from 5:30-7. For more information visit: vtchineseschool@gmail.com​​