New Year S Japanese Traditions

The dish is also associated with the idea of starting the year with a clean slate being a dish prepared with a single pot.
New year s japanese traditions. Another common japanese new year activity tradition is to decorate. Osechi or osechi riyori are to new year s day what at turkey dinner would be to an american thanksgiving but maybe not as over the top or fattening. New year s decorations must go up between 13th and 28th december.
Japan has new year s food traditions that i was unaccustomed to in the u s. Mochi a type of chewy rice cake is a classic japanese new year s food. The most common decorations are made of pine bamboo and rice.
Soba or buckwheat noodles that are an integral part of japanese cuisine. Today they are used as traditional new year s decorations believed to drive away evil spirits away just like you would hit a badminton feather you d hit evil away. Toshikoshi soba literally year crossing buckwheat noodles are served hot on new year s eve to symbolize the cutting off of the year s misfortunes as well as wishes for good luck and long life.
It does not mean you have to visit temple or shrine only on january 1st but also 2nd and january 3rd. It is a tradition to visit them in order to pray for having a good year health and families happiness. A very traditional new year s activity is preparing the mochi yourself on new year s day.
Toshikoshi soba is a part of the new year tradition in japan where families eat buckwheat noodles in the first hours after midnight. Other traditional japanese new year dish ozoni another dish served on the first day of the new year is the ozoni. Since 1873 the official japanese new year has been celebrated according to the gregorian calendar on january 1 of each year new year s day.
Both ganjitsu and gantan mean new year s day in japanese. Ushering in good fortune is the rationale behind many japanese new year traditions so it s not surprising that some dishes are designated as luck bringing ones. These little round cakes are even used in certain new year s decorations such as the kagami mochi.