OSECHI OJU

Day 4 - Osechi is new year, a key festival in the Japanese calendar and Oju literally means 'to present' or in this case the elegant box in which special new year treats are presented. In short, a Super Bento!

Sensei shared with us a Japanese 'tradition', a classic good news-bad news scenario. The Good News ... all housewives will get the first 3-days of the New Year off, with no kitchen work. The Bad News ... before that happens they will break their backs for 3, if not 6, even 9 days before New Year's Eve so the family can be fed - in fact well fed, by treats they only get once a year at this time - during the 3 days when housewives are supposed to be 'off'.  I was not sure if that was a joke at first. It is obviously not, speaking of getting the short end of a stick!

Back to the kitchen, what you see in the picture took Sensei and 3 of us 4-hours to prepare. Like the Chinese these treats are all well meaning, carrying messages of health, wealth, prosperity and so on ... tradition casts a long and overwhelming shadow, much more so than in Hong Kong, even China I should add. Let me share with you some examples :

*  Kobu-Maki or kelp roll plays on the word Yorokobu, meaning happiness
*  Satoimo or taro is a plant that grows fast, meaning more babies
*  Renkon or lotus root, the holes mean one can look into the future
*  Kuri or chestnuts carries a golden shine, meaning wealth
*  Kazari Kamaboko or decorated fishcake resembles sunshine
*  1st sunrise in the New Year is sacred to all Japanese
*  Date-Maki or sweet omelette carries well wishes in knowledge & education      
*  Namasu or carrot & Daikon salad, red & white are celebration colors, meaning peace
*  Soba is served at mid night on New Year's Eve, meaning longevity

So warm, so sentimental, so romantic, so genuine, so traditional, and above all so tasty.  Needless to say today was much more than cooking, it was a lesson in Japanese culture. We cannot help feeling sorry for the housewives and mothers who have to sweat so tradition can triumph.  I propose a toast to all the behind the scene kitchen goddesses, may their strength and stamina win all. Come to think of it we are only 5-weeks away from the next Operation Osechi Oju, unbelievable.

With early well wishes for a Happy New Year!