Grease-cutting Northeastern Chinese New Year's Frozen Pears
Can you eat frozen fruit? Yes. In Northeast China, eating frozen pears and frozen persimmons has become a custom during the New Year.
Xu, a vendor at Longshou Market in Tieling City, Liaoning Province, explained that frozen autumn pears are prepared by placing autumn pears in a dry, cool, and ventilated place at the onset of winter. Water is poured on the pears daily to ensure they freeze every day. It is best to place them outdoors in temperatures below minus 20 degrees Celsius. After about a week, the pears turn dark brown, which are the frozen autumn pears.
How to eat them after freezing? Simply put the frozen autumn pears in cold water. Once the ice casing on the pears has thawed, they are ready to eat.
It is said that frozen autumn pears are more refreshing, sweet, and tender than regular pears. In the cold winters of the Northeast, people tend to eat greasy foods. However, taking a bite of a frozen autumn pear helps to cut through the grease.