Fortune Cookies

10-10-2025

A Fun Tradition.

I don’t know about you, but I remember as a child growing up, when we would always go to our favorite Chinese restaurant in town to eat or get takeout, we would always have to make sure we each got a fortune cookie. It’s not like we believed specifically that the fortunes would come true, but it was always fun anyway. The following is a little research that is quite interesting.

The ritual.

According to Marketing Web.com, 96 percent of people read the slips inside. Even more, 67 percent share them aloud with friends or family. Most of the cookies I’ve had are slightly sweet, and supposedly, they are only 30 calories, which honestly seems like a lot to me.

Origins reveal an unusual past.

The earliest versions were not cookies but cakes hiding secret messages during the 13th-century wars in China. Later, Chinese railroad workers in America baked biscuits with greetings in the 1870s.

Production shifted with machines.

Each cookie begins with flour, sugar, eggs, and water. Dough is pressed into circles, fortunes inserted, and folded into crescents. The signature golden cookie resembles a half-moon. A small slip peeks out, ready to be pulled or revealed when cracked. For years, fortune cookies were handmade, with workers folding 750 per hour. That changed in 1981 with automation. The Fortune Hi machine boosted speed to 1,500 per hour. Later, the Japanese Kitamura FCM-8006W produced 8,000 cookies hourly. Today, Won Ton Inc., one of the largest producers, creates 60 million cookies monthly, shipping them worldwide.

Dessert or not?

Some folks like the flavor, while others find it too bland and focus on the message inside. Whether you enjoy them in restaurants after meals or purchase them at the grocery store in a box, I think they’re still a fun treat for the family.

Possible Truth.

A long time ago, I read that the most read author was an unknown guy who wrote all the fortunes for the cookies. I’m not sure if that is true, but it makes sense.

To learn more, visit the blog life, reflection, and faith.