October 30th, 2013 by Sophia | Tags: Chinese, Fortune Cookies, Myth | No Comments »
My husband looks at his fortune in the fortune cookie, and it is the first time in his life to see fortune cookies
Fortune cookie was a hot topic when Rachel and I had conversations in London. When she first mentioned the name and gave a description to me, she assumed that, as a Chinese, I must be very familiar with it. However, the fact is I have never heard of fortune cookies before and Rachel, the American girl, is the first one who introduced the name to me.
Rachel was totally shocked to learn that fortune cookies are not familiar to the Chinese people like me because people in the States have been giving the credit to Chinese people and therefore, she considered them of a Chinese origin. We discussed it a lot, and Rachel asked some of her Chinese roommates in London and got the same answers as mine. However, one day, at a party, we raised the topic again and one of our friends from Hong Kong, said that she had seen fortune cookies in Hong Kong, which made all of us even more confused.
After doing a little bit of research, we now have the answer. The saying that fortune cookies were invented in China is seen as a myth. According to a source, fortune cookies were “introduced by the Japanese, popularized by the Chinese, but ultimately … consumed by Americans.” (Lee, Jennifer, “Solving a Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery Inside a Cookie”, January 16, 2008)
In 1989, fortune cookies were reportedly imported into Hong Kong and sold as “genuine American fortune cookies.” That’s why a friend of our coming from Hong Kong said at the party that she had seen them in Hong Kong. But as a Chinese who grew up in the mainland China, I have never seen fortune cookies in any of the restaurant in mainland China.
When I was in America, I had the opportunity to try a fortune cookie for the first time. The taste was definitely not Chinese, but very interesting. It is a treat that I was not overly crazy about.
Rachel’s paper in the fortune cookie. It is so appropriate for her because that’s what she always smiles at me.