腊月二十八打糕蒸馍贴花花

　　The 27th day of the 12th month in Lunar Calendar: The folk saying goes like 腊月二十七，宰鸡赶大集. 26th is killing pig day while 27th is killing chicken day.

　　腊月27日，俗语说“腊月二十七，宰鸡赶大集”，26日是杀猪，27日则是宰鸡。

　　As the New Year is coming nearer, Chinese people are normally preparing all the ingredients and food they need for the feast. Chicken will is a necessary meat dish at this festival season as well。

　　随着新年的临近，中国人通常会为了年夜饭而准备各种食材，鸡肉则是其中不可缺少的一样。

　　The Chinese word of 鸡 (ji, chicken) shares a same pronunciation of the word of 吉 (ji, auspicious and joy). Chinese people will keep chicken’s head, tail and feet altogether with the body. This symbolises completeness which resemble the meaning of reunion and togetherness。

　　中文“鸡”与“吉祥”的“吉”有相似的发音，中国人会保留一只完整的鸡(鸡首、鸡尾、鸡脚都保留)，这代表着团聚的意义。

　　Nowadays, many Chinese people still roast or grill the chicken as a whole without cutting it. This practice somehow observes that old tradition。

　　如今，许多中国人也会烤一整只鸡，不切开它，这也算是一种对于老传统的保留沿袭。

(沪江英语)