Traditions and customs differ from country to country, and in many places food plays a major role. In Japan, noodle soup brings longevity, in Italy lentils bring wealth, and in Turkey pomegranates bring abundance! Discover the meaning of the foods we eat for New Year's and create your own New Year’s menu!
In Italy, one of the traditional dishes enjoyed for New Year’s is cotechino e lenticchie (sausage with lentils). Eating sausage before midnight is a good omen for the New Year and symbolizes abundance. Lentils are considered symbols of good fortune and prosperity because of their resemblance to coins, and are considered a must on the dining table!
In Turkey, the pomegranate reigns on New Year's Eve - a symbol of abundance and fertility for the year to come. Common practices include opening a pomegranate at midnight, or even throwing them on the ground at the front door of houses so that the scattered seeds bring good fortune.
Pomegranate Glazed Stuffed Beef Tenderloin
Curry, Ginger Kabocha Squash Soup
Citrus Salad with Mint Vinaigrette
Pomegranate Green Tea
Sous-vide Herbed Turkey with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
Persian Chicken and Rice
Kale Quinoa Green Goddess Salad (Bill Yosses)
White Bean Quinoa Risotto with Roasted Brussels Sprouts
On New Year's Eve, it is tradition for Austrians to serve “good luck” at the table with a delicious roasted suckling pig. It is also common to decorate the table with small pigs made out of marzipan, chocolate, cookie dough or other sweets.
In Japan, there is a tradition of eating soba at midnight - a soup made of buckwheat noodles. The tradition says that the long strands of dough symbolize longevity and the passage from one year to the next. As these noodles are easy to cut, they also represent detachment from the past year.
Considered a symbol of growth and rebirth, onions are part of the New Year's tradition in Greece. Onions are hung above the front door on New Year's Eve and removed the next morning.
On New Year's tables in Mexico, it is common to have tamales - a corn dough stuffed with meat, cheese and other ingredients, which are wrapped in a corn husk or banana leaf. The tamales are often served with menudo - a typical soup made with tripe that is said to help cure hangovers.
In Sweden and Norway, there is never a lack of rice pudding on the New Year's table. There is a custom of hiding an almond in the pudding, and the person that finds the almond is blessed with 12 months of good luck in the new year.
