Fortune cookies are often associated with Chinese culture, but their true origins might surprise you—they were likely invented in the United States!
While similar fortune-filled treats existed in Japan, the modern fortune cookie as we know it was popularized in early 20th-century California. Some credit Makoto Hagiwara, a Japanese immigrant who served cookies with small paper fortunes at the Japanese Tea Garden in San Francisco around 1914. Others claim a Los Angeles-based Chinese immigrant, David Jung, created them in 1918 as a way to inspire struggling workers.
Regardless of who started the tradition, fortune cookies became widely associated with Chinese-American cuisine after World War II, when they were mass-produced and included with restaurant meals. Today, over 3 billion fortune cookies are made each year, proving that this once-local treat has become an international symbol of good luck and wisdom!
