During the Lunar New Year period, various delicious festive food will be served. But most New Year foods are high in salt or sugar, so overeating is not beneficial. How can we eat happily and healthily during the Lunar New Year? 

Chinese puddings have traditionally been noted for their high fat, sugar, or salt content. Chinese pudding with coconut milk has the greatest calorie, fat and sugar content among all popular Chinese puddings. A serving of Chinese coconut milk custard weighing 100g contains 300kcal, which is equivalent to the energy provided by 1.5 bowls of rice. It also contains 12g of total fat, about equivalent to 2.5 teaspoons of oil, and 21g of sugar, which is approximately equivalent to 5 teaspoons of sugar. In addition, both golden pudding and Chinese pudding produced with cane sugar have a high calorie and sugar content.

While savoury Chinese puddings like radish pudding or taro pudding may not be particularly sweet, they do have a more high salt level. A serving of 100g of radish or taro custard typically includes approximately 400 to 500 mg of sodium. Consuming 4-5 slices of savoury custard would result in a salt intake above 30% of the recommended daily amount. When comparing different options, it is worth noting that healthier Chinese puddings include of water chestnut pudding, steamed radish pudding and Osmanthus flower sweet pudding.

It is recommended use healthier cooking techniques, such as steaming or pan-frying with minimal oil, while reheating the puddings, as this aids in minimising fat consumption. Prevent from excessively incorporating condiments with high salt content, such as soy sauce, oyster sauce, or chilli soybean paste, when consuming the puddings. It is important to regulate the amount of custard consumed, as about 2-3 slices of radish or taro custard already have the same number of calories as one bowl of rice. Vegetarian Chinese pudding and reduced sugar pudding have recently become available in the market. Those who desire to maintain good health may consider trying these new flavours.

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