Every country has its own unique culture and tradition, and this is also reflected in the different food that's prepared for New Year celebrations. New Year feasts from Japan, Korea, France and India are all very elaborate but each is unique in its own way. However, the one thing they all have in common is that they're all created to generate happiness during this special holiday.
Japanese New Year Feast: An Imperial Food Festival to Bring Good Fortune
New Year in Japan falls on January 1st. On New Year's Eve, families serve special New Year's Eve Noodles (buckwheat noodles). Eating noodles signifies growing a year in age and therefore conveys hope for longevity. On New Year's Eve, starting at 11 p.m., bells in all temples in Japan strike continuously 108 times, a practice called "New Year's Eve Bells." It's believed that the ringing of bells drives away bad luck and the 108 troubles in life.
The Japanese New Year feast can be described as an imperial food festival. Beautifully lacquered boxes are used as containers and the food in them must be of the highest quality, arranged in an auspicious fashion and presented in a meticulous and delicate setting. Mr. Shigehito Tokumitsu, General Manager of Radium Kagaya (日勝生加賀屋國際溫泉飯店) stated that each New Year dish has its own special meaning. For example, konbu signifies happiness because phonetically it sounds similar to yorokobu, which means joy. Other dishes include herring roe (kazunoko), which represents harvest and fertility. Shrimps with long whiskers represent long life, and yellowtail fish represents promotion and recognition. Ida omelet (a special Japanese egg roll which looks like a traditional book roll), is also served to convey expectations of the growth of knowledge in the New Year.
This imperial food festival originated from royal palace rituals, which was prepared with great care and importance, was adopted as the Japanese New Year feast. Families gather together each year to enjoy these high quality dishes with the intention of welcoming the New Year with good luck and blessings.
Abundance with Five-colored Dish & Tri-colored Pancakes
Korean New Year traditions are very similar to those of Taiwan. Koreans celebrate the Lunar New Year, placing special emphasis on honoring their ancestors. In Korea, families wear traditional costumes on the first day of the New Year and hold a special memorial ceremony at home to honor their ancestors. Families also visit their ancestors' graves together on New Year's Day. The Korean New Year feast focuses mainly on altar tributes prepared for ancestors. There are usually more than twenty different food varieties, most sliced finely. It takes long hours to prepare such food, which includes a vibrant five-colored vegetarian dish, meat kebabs, rice cake soup, assorted omelets, etc. Because these dishes utilize large numbers of ingredients and are prepared differently from typical daily meals, they are usually only served on New Year's Eve. The five-colored vegetarian dish is prepared only as an altar tribute. The combination of daikon, spinach, shiitake mushrooms, soybean sprouts and julienned gosale (a Korean root plant), served with various pickled vegetables and rice, forms a very traditional New Year dish. A tri-colored or five-colored pancake is prepared with three to five ingredients, typically melding a mixture of fish paste, pork, zucchini, sweet potato and potato. It is not only a culinary treat but also a visual delight.
Ms. Yi, who has operated the Manman Korean Restaurant (滿滿韓國料亭) in Taipei for more than twenty years, told us that another indispensable New Year dish is rice cake soup. The soup is prepared with thinly sliced white rice cake, along with beef stock, julienne of beef and cabbage. After cooking for many hours, the soup is served with a final addition of shredded fried egg yolk, egg whites and seaweed - it makes a hearty breakfast on New Year's Day. Koreans believe that the tradition of eating rice cake soup signifies growing older by one year.
Indian New Year Feast: Happiness Born from Savoring Sweets
New Year in India falls between the end of October and the end of November each year, and is called Diwali. On this day, every household is illuminated with lights and special decorations. Families gather together to enjoy the New Year feast and to welcome the arrival of the New Year with chanting around a fire. In addition, people also place oil lamps along the route from home to work so as to welcome Laksmi, the auspicious Goddess who brings wealth and blessings. Raju Relwani, who has operated the Tandoor Indian Restaurant (坦都印度餐廳) for thirty-five years, shared that the Indian New Year feast includes butter chicken, curry mutton, lentil soup, naan bread, saffron rice, fried okra with onion and tomatoes. Indian families believe that a table overflowing with food is the best reward for a year's hard work.
Most Indians feel that sweets bring happiness, so naturally desserts are an indispensable part of the New Year feast. When passing out red envelopes (in India, they're actually pink), Indians also offer sweets. Indian sweets are mainly made with wheat flour, fresh milk or milk powder and copious amounts of sugar. Raju says that carrot pudding, rasgulla, mung bean, peanut and sesame candies, and Indian betel nuts are all integral components of the New Year celebration. Balushahi, a sweet donut made with yogurt and spices along with lalu, a sweet made with soybean flour, sugar water and raisins are ubiquitous specialty desserts.
Regardless of country and nationality, every culture celebrates the arrival of the New Year through food with the same underlying desire for happiness, good luck and blessings. This is truly the most significant meaning behind every New Year feast.
French New Year Feast: Sharing Luxury Culinary Delights
New Year is a very important holiday in France. Some families are frugal in their everyday life, but will choose to stay in a castle or a luxury hotel to celebrate this special occasion. It's a rare treat for many families to savor delicacies such as lobster, caviar, foie gras and truffles. These items are served with roasted chicken or duck along with different varieties of wine, cheese and special breads. The accompaniment of food makes the celebration of the New Year a truly joyous and special occasion.
Executive Chef of L'Atelier de Patrick (法式派翠克餐廳), Patrick Fanchiang (范姜群煜), shared a few French delicacies. These dishes began with rich foie gras and caramelized apple as an appetizer, creamy vanilla mousseline saffron risotto served with blue lobsters from Brittany, crab legs and caviar as a main course, all accompanied by a perfect white wine. Tantalizingly delicious food delights every heart and soul.
Chef Patrick says that galette des rois, a special pastry served in every household during the Christmas season is a French classic. This round multi-layered shortbread is usually stuffed with dried fruit or almond paste and is infused with the rich flavor of rum. Many families hide a little ring or a porcelain doll (feve) in the pastry. The person who finds it has to wear a paper crown or a ring that day to show that he/she is the king for the day and it's believed that this brings good luck for the whole year.
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