Nian gao, Rice cake, Year cake or Chinese new year's cake is a food prepared from glutinous rice and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is available in Asian supermarkets and from health food stores. While it can be eaten all year round, traditionally it is most popular during Chinese New Year.

It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time[citation needed], because "nian gao" is a homonym for "higher year." Despite numerous varieties, they all share the same glutinous rice ingredient that is pounded or ground into a paste and, depending on the variety, may simply be molded into shape or cooked again to settle the ingredient. Nian gao has many varieties including the types found in Shanghai cuisine, Fujian cuisine and Cantonese cuisine originating from Guangdong. The Shanghai style is usually packaged in a thick soft rod to be sliced up or packaged pre-sliced and either stir-fried or added to soup.

Depending on the cooking method this style is a soft to a chewy variant. The Shanghai style keeps the nian gao white, and made with non-glutinous rice. The color is its distinct feature.

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