Traditional Japanese New Year Food

Osechi are easily recognizable by their special boxes called jūbako 重箱 which resemble bentō boxes.
Traditional japanese new year food. A very traditional new year s activity is preparing the mochi yourself on new year s day. You d think after my recent ramen post which was nearly a decade in the making i d be done with insanely time consuming japanese food for a while but i couldn t resist the urge to share. Japanese new year s food is called osechi ryori and colorful dishes are packed in layers of lacquer boxes called jubako.
Like bentō boxes jūbako are often kept stacked before and after use. The tradition started in the heian period 794 1185. The osechi tradition has been alive in japan since the heian era starting in 794 and the foods are easily recognizable by the special bento boxes called jūbako often stacked for larger families or parties.
It s incredibly important to clean pay bills tie up any loose ends and prepare the traditional good luck food in advance of the celebration which lasts from january 1 3. Mochi a type of chewy rice cake is a classic japanese new year s food. A traditional local new year s food known as osechi ryori is commonly consumed on new year s day which is referred to in japanese as ganjitsu.
Japanese new year shogatsu or oshogatsu is the most important holiday in japan it s centered around food family preparing for the new year and leaving the prior year in the past. Did you enjoy osechi ryori new year dish this new year. The japanese celebrate the new year day with traditional new year foods called osechi ryori おせち料理.
Making mochi requires a lot of time and effort though so most people are. I ve written about japanese new year s traditions and i ve even posted some typical japanese new year s dishes but this year i decided to go whole hog and make an osechi jubako from scratch. Traditional japanese new years foods osechi ryori osechi ryōri are traditional japanese foods eaten at the start of the new year.
Oshogatsu is honored with visits to local shrines to wish for good fortune and health in the upcoming year and of course celebrated with family and many delicious traditional foods known. The kinds of osechi dishes prepared at japanese homes vary from region to region. As the new year symbolizes a new beginning osechi ryori consists of food with auspicious meanings.