Crab Rangoon Day

Crab Rangoon Day is February 13th

Who needs romance when you can have late night take-out? Crab Rangoon Day is an (unofficial) celebration of singledom. Forget the red lacy, lovey dove of Valentine’s Day and stuff yourself silly with these delicious deep-fried, cream-filled delights!

History of Crab Rangoon Day

The background on Crab Rangoon Day tracks back to a group of friends from Boston who created the holiday in 2009. Sarah White, Kristin Ostrem and Kara Sweeney came up with the idea to give those left alone in the winds of love something to look forward to. Crab Rangoon Day is a day to be with friends and wave off any feelings of disappointment stemming from being single on Valentine’s Day. Use “Rang” Day as a way to mentally prepare yourself for a dateless Valentine’s, gorging yourself on sweet-tasting, delectable dumpling foods while you do it!

More on Crab Rangoon

Though a staple of Chinese restaurant cuisine, crab rangoon, a deep-fried wonton stuffed with cream cheese and imitation crab, is likely an American invention. American Chinese restaurant food is decidedly different in certain respects from true-blue Chinese food; this is due to cultural tastes, availability of ingredients, and recipe experimentation. Cream cheese, the filling inside crab rangoon, comes from the great state of New York and would not be something readily available in Asian territories, especially in the 1940s-50s, when rangoon first starting making waves. Debate wages as to the origins of this dish. Some argue that it comes from the 20th century British controlled Burma, but others credit the dumpling’s invention to Victor Bergeron, founder of the Trader Vic’s tiki bars. Bergeron frequently adapted Southeast Asian and South Pacific foods for American tastes and typically experimented with foods and recipes. Basing his restaurant's themes on tiki culture (itself an American interpretation of Polynesian society) in the 1930s, Bergeron introduced many tiki-based menu items as well as American Chinese food. Unlike typical crab rangoon, Trader Vic’s recipe uses real crab meat (Canadian blue), as well as A.1. steak sauce, a bottled British sweet-and-hot sauce, Lingham’s chili sauce, and cream cheese (you just can’t beat it!). These rangoons aren’t as sweet as the ones you likely to get from a typical American Chinese restaurant.

How To Celebrate

Simple: order some takeout! Get your favorites as well as the crab rangoon. Heck, double down it! Triple down! Nothing but the “Rang” all day long. Bury your love-stricken sorrows deep inside that sweet, creamy Crustacean-filled wonton. Crab Rangoon Day is all about you, yourself, and I. Be with friends. Love yourself. Embrace the “Rang.”