Two Different Wishes With Japanese New Year Postcards

The third Sunday of January is the announcement day for the winning numbers of "Annual New Year Postcards Lottery". Yes, Japanese Official New Year Postcards have lottery numbers on them. This is called "Otoshidama-tsuki Nenga Hagaki (New Year postcards with New Year gifts)" and the Post Office started to sell them in 1949.

In Japan, most people have been using prepaid post cards for New Year postcards since old times though it is changing to emails nowadays. It's not only because of the lottery but because of the system. A special delivery system is applied for them, and whenever people posted them the cards will be kept in post offices until January 1st.

That's why the New Year postcards have a special design compared to usual postcards in the upper photos. The left hand side photo shows the New Year postcards and the right hand side one shows usual prepaid postcards. New Year post cards are usually printed in red color and clearly written "New Year Greeting Card for which year".

Therefore people don't have to worry about when their cards will be delivered. The cards are surely delivered on January 1st, the best time to say New Year's wishes.

By the way, what people can get with the winning lottery? For this year, the first prize is either one of travel/home appliances or cash, the second prize is a box of local specialty products and the third prize is a set of stamps as shown in the lower photos. The third prize is always same since the system started.

Of course it would be difficult to win the first or the second prizes. However the third one's probability is 1/50cards, so it's not so difficult to win. Thus, these New Year greeting cards are actually carrying people's New Year wish and also a wish for winning a prize from the lottery.

Mirror Opening Day, Another Traditional Custom After New Year's Celebration, on January 11th

After people had a break day for their stomach on January 7th, as I introduced on my previous post, there is another day for traditional custom after New Year. January 11th is the day for "Kagami Biraki" for Japanese people and in direct translation it is "Mirror Opening".

What is the "Mirror" to open? Actually it is about the New Year offering of rice cakes which people display in their house for the God of The Year during New Year's celebration period. Mirrors are an important sacred item for Japanese Shinto, and many of Shinto Shrines enshrine a mirror as their main object of worship instead of images of their God or Goddess. Since every year people prepare this offering of rice cakes as shown in the upper photos, and place them in the best spot of their house to welcome the God of The Year, it is probably considered same as a mirror worshiping in a shrine. Therefore the rice cakes are called "Mirror Rice Cakes".

After New Year's celebration period, the function of "Mirror Rice Cakes" as an offering to the God of The Year is done. However since it is just plain rice cakes, people won't waist them. The rice cakes are grilled, broken into lumps and added into sweetened red beans porridge. The sweet porridge is called "Oshiruko" and people eat "Mirror Rice Cakes Oshiruko" on January 11th.

Thus "Mirror Opening" means people open up the offering "Mirror Rice Cakes" into pieces to eat them. By the way, you might worry about the rice cakes would go bad after displaying for more than a week. Traditionally people cook plain rice cakes at home and make into a snowman shape with some starch powder, then display it uncovered as in the upper right hand side photo. So in fact they can get moldy sometimes while they are displayed. However it is still edible after removing the spoiled surface. Moreover, nowadays sealed rice cakes in the shape of "Mirror Rice Cakes" are available as in the upper left hand side photo, it can be kept perfectly until January 11th.

 

A Traditional Custom of A Break For The Stomach, Nanakusa Day

I introduced about traditional Japanese New Year's dishes in my previous 3 posts. You might get an image that most Japanese people keep eating lots of food and drinking lots of Japanese Sake during New Year's celebration. 

Yes, since old days it would be true for many Japanese people. As I wrote in my previous posts, many people have gatherings with family and friends between January 1st and 3rd, which are actual New Year holidays. Even after the holidays people have New Year's parties at work. 

Traditionally between January 1st and 7th (or sometimes 15th) is the New Year's celebration period called "Matsu-no-uchi". Direct translation of the word is "During pine trees". It means a period for New Year entrance decorations, which are usually made from pine branches, paper and some other stuff as shown in the lower left hand side photo. On January 7th people put away those decorations from their gates and front porches, and finally go back to normal days.

In addition to putting away New Year decorations from entrances, there is another traditional custom for January 7th. It is called "Nanakusa" and people eat special rice porridge with 7 kinds of vegetables which is shown in the lower right hand side photo. Since most people have lots of food and drinks during "Matsu-no-uchi", their stomach must be tired by the 7th and eating rice porridge would be a good break for the stomach.

So, "Nanakusa" is an ancestral wisdom to care for the stomach exhausted by New Year's parties. The seven ingredient vegetables are actually seven plants grow naturally in Japan, thus everybody can find them easily since old times. Of course nowadays people can buy a set of the 7 vegetables in any grocery stores at this time of the year as in the upper photos above and nobody would go out to pick them up in a field.

Comparison of Tokyo Style Ozouni And North Saitama Style Ozouni

I'd like to continue the topic of traditional New Year's dishes a little more. As I wrote in my previous two posts, Japanese New Year's dishes, especially "Ozouni (New Year's soup with rice cakes)" are different in each area. Even between prefectures next each other "Ozouni" would have some differences. 

For example, I'd like to show two styles of "Ozouni" today. The one in the left hand side photo is Tokyo Style Ozouni which I have already introduced in my previous posts about New Year's dishes. On the other hand, the one in the right hand side photo is North-Saitama Style Ozouni.

They are both clear soup containing rice cakes (Mochi). However, other ingredients are completely different. Tokyo Style Ozouni contains chicken, one kind of fish-cakes and a leaf vegetable called Komatsuna, but North-Saitama Style Ozouni contains many root vegetables such as carrot, Daikon radish, one kind of potato called Satoimo, and another root vegetable called Gobou.

Moreover, for Tokyo Style Ozouni rice cakes are added at the end after grilled and the surface of rice cakes become crispy, but for North-Saitama Style Ozouni un-grilled rice cakes are added in the beginning with all other root vegetables. Thus rice cakes are almost melted when North-Saitama Style Ozouni is done.

With only 25 miles (40 km) apart, Ozounis have such difference. Ozounis between areas further apart are even more different from each other. Thus when people from different regions get married, it can cause a kind of culture shock on their first New Year. 

Introduction of Major Osechi-Ryouri Dishes (Traditional Japanese New Year's Dishes)

As a continuation of my previous post, I'd like to introduce some of major Osechi-Ryouri (Traditional Japanese New Year's dishes) today, though there are many more kinds since depending on the area the dishes and combination of them are different. All of them have some good meaning or good luck shape, so when people cook them most people follow the recipes and would use exact same ingredients in recipes. During the first 3 days of New Year people eat Osechi-Ryouri and wish a good luck and a better year. Let's see each dish in the photo above!

No.① and ② are black and white beans. They are boiled with sugar. The Japanese the word for beans, "Mame", is a homonym for diligence.
No.③ is  called "Tataki-Gobou", which is a vinegared dish. Gobou is a kind of root vegetable that grows deep underground, and people wish for a secure life for their family with this food.
No.④ is called "Tatsukuri" which is made of small sardines. The meaning of the name is "Making Rice Paddy". Since people used dry sardines as a fertilizer in old time, sardines have a relationship with good harvests.
No.⑤ is called "Namasu" which is vinegared julienne Daikon radish and carrot. In Japanese culture the color combination of red and white is for celebrations. Even though the one in the photo is orange and white combination, there is a kind of carrot which has almost red color, and some people prefer to use the red type.
No.⑥ is called "Kinton" which is sweetened mushed sweet potatoes with boiled chestnuts. The color of both ingredients is considered as "gold color" and people wish an affluent life with it.
No.⑦ is called "Kobu-Maki"which is seaweed boiled with soy sauce and sugar. The shape of this dish is like scrolls (ancient style books) thus it is a wish for advance of culture.
No.⑧ is called "Date-Maki" which is made of fish meat and eggs. It has the same meaning as No.⑦ since this one is also has a rolled shape. In Japanese "Maki" means "roll".
No.⑨ is called "Tori-Tessen". Tori means chicken in Japanese, so it is a baked ground chicken meat made into the shape of a folding fan which is carried when wearing formal Kimonos.
No.⑩ is called "Kazunoko" made of herring and people eat it with a wish for the prosperity of their posterity. 
No.⑪ is called "Nishiki-Tamago" which means "eggs in two colors". The lower part is made from egg white and the upper part is made from york. The word Nishiki means two colors, and also it is a homonym for one kind of silk fabric which is used for formal Kimonos.
No.⑫ is called "Kikuka-Kabu" which means "turnips into chrysanthemum flowers". Chrysanthemum is the national flower of Japan, and also it is a symbol of longevity.
No.⑬ is called "Onishime". Onishime means a boiled dish, and it is a dish with many different kinds of ingredients cut into some shapes with good luck as in flowers, turtle shells, bamboos, and arrows. 
No.⑭ is a New Year's soup called "Ozouni" containing rice cakes(Mochi).  This one has varied styles depending on each area. This photo is showing a typical Tokyo style "Ozouni" and the ingredients are chicken, a special fish cake having a design of a swirl and a type of leaf vegetable. The soup is clear and seasoned with a little soy sauce and bonito broth.

In addition, from No.① to No.⑫, these dishes are like appetizers. They go very well with Japanese Sake.
The cooking way of No.⑬ is same as a typical Japanese dish called "Nimono" but ingredients are cut into special shapes for New Year. No.⑭ can be considered as a main dish since it is containing plain rice cakes (Mochi). For Tokyo style "Ozouni", the rice cakes are square shapes and people grill them before putting them into the soup. However in west side of Japan, the rice cakes are usually round shapes.

Japanese Traditional New Year's Dishes "Osechi Ryouri"

Happy New Year!

Between January 1st and 3rd is traditional New Year's celebration period for Japanese people. Most people get New Year vacation between December 31st and January 3rd though some of shopping malls and restaurants remain open in recent years. 

People have family/friends gathering and go out for their first visit to a shrine or a temple to make New Year wishes during the New Year's celebration period. In short it is a New Year's party time. In old times people get together at their home since all restaurants were closed. There are traditional New Year's celebration dishes called "Osechi Ryouri" and people cook or buy those dishes ahead of time and eat them with Sake for the first 3 days of the New Year. 

The traditional New Year's dishes have various kinds and usually people prepare many kinds as a New Year's dish set. The photo above is showing an example. Also depending on the regions they are different. Therefore there are great many different kinds of New Year's dishes. Moreover, dishes from both the father and mother can be mixed to make a new combination. Therefore each family would have their own combination for the New Year's dish set as a family tradition. However, all of dishes basically have a lucky meaning or a lucky shape to wish a good year. 

Actually the dishes in the photo above are the New Year's dish set of my family.  To cook all of New Year's dishes needs a lot of time and labor, but it would be one of the seasonal events for many families and we can enjoy New Year's party with lots of food for 3 days.