「おせち作っとくから」なんて言ったものの、こうやって
作った物の写真を並べると少ないなぁ。
去年のお正月よりは増えてるんだけど。しかもキムチ鍋、白菜と豚バラ鍋の材料も揃えてたのに、飲み始めたら疲れてどーでもよくなっちゃった、というヒドいホスト。でも友人らによるサバの昆布巻き、数の子、スモークサーモン、中トロ、銀座の栗きんとんという豪勢な差し入れによって宴は大盛り上がり。で、栗きんとん対決の結果はワタシのが焼き芋（
写真奥）で銀座のはスイートポテトという感じ。友人曰くおかずとデザート。銀座のは色白でなめらかでとってもスイート。で、どこに箸を入れても栗に当たるのには驚いた。チョットこだわって国産栗の甘露煮（結構な値段だった）で作ったもんだからワタシのきんとんは栗探しゲームという具合。日本のおせちは味ではなく意味の方が大事なの、と相棒に伝えるためにおせち料理の意味を下に並べた写真の左上から・・・
田作り／田植えの肥料にしたら五万俵も米がとれたことから「五万米（ごまめ）」とも呼ぶ。五殻豊穣を願う。
黒豆／苦労をいとわずに働く「忠実（まめ）」と昔の言葉で健康を意味する「まめ」をかけ、まじめに働き健康に暮らせるように願う。黒は邪気を払い不老長寿をもたらす色。
栗きんとん／漢字では金団と書き、金のかたまりを意味する。商売繁盛、豊かな暮らしを願う。
たたきごぼう／人生を細く長く堅実な生活が送れるように願う。また、ごぼうが豊作の時に飛んでくる黒い瑞鳥に例えて豊作を願うという説もあり。
なます／紅白の水引を思わす縁起物。
八幡巻き／一番おいしいんだけど、意味は不明。ごぼうを使っているからたたきごぼうと一緒かな。
伊達巻き／書巻を意味した形で、文化発展を願う。江戸の伊達者達が着ていたドテラに似ていたので華やかな卵巻きを伊達巻きと呼ぶようになったという説もあり。
筑前煮／料理ではなく材料に意味があるのかな。例えば里芋は小芋がたくさんつくから、子宝祈願。れんこんは穴があるので見通しが良い、等々。
I told our friends that I will prepare traditional Japanese New Year's dishes called 'osechi'.
It looks better than
last year but I still have to make more dishes. Thankfully our friends brought Konbumaki (rolled kelp with mackerel), Kazunoko (salted herring roe), smoked salmon, a block of maguro chutoro (fatty tuna), and Kuri-kinton (Sweet chestnuts and mashed sweet potato) from a restaurant in Ginza, and we had a big dinner! I compared the Kuri-kinton from Ginza and mine (left on
the picture), and the one from Ginza was lighter in colour and more smooth in texture, and much sweeter. Our friends said it was like a dessert, but mine was a side dish... The traditional osechi dishes are very colourful and beautiful, but they never looked very appetite when I was a kid. But each dish in osechi has special happy meanings. For example... (from left top to right bottom)
Tazukuri (Sweet and soy saucey sardine): Symbolizes a good harvest, since this fish were used spread fertilizer in the field and made good harvest of rice. This dish also known as Gomame, which mean fifty thousand of rice.
Kuromame (Black beans in very sweet syrup): Mame (beans) means hard working and also bodily strength and health in the old words. Black colour protect us from evil spirit.
Kuri-kinton (Sweet chestnuts 'kuri' and mashed sweet potato): Kinton means golden treasure. A symbol of good business and wealthy life.
Tataki-gobou (Burdock root with vinegary and sesame paste): Symbolizes long and steady life, just like thin but very long
Gobou (burdock root).
Namasu (Vinegary radish and carrots): It implies red and white
mizuhiki ribbons which are used for celebrations.
Yawata-maki (carrot and burdock rolled with thinly sliced beef): This is my favourite osechi dish because it has meat! But I don't really know the meaning. I guess it's same as Tataki-gobou.
Date-maki (Sweet egg and fish cake): It symbolizes civilization, it's resemblence to the scroll in the old time. It is also similar to a Kimono, worn by fashionable 'date' people in Edo period.
Chikuzen-ni (Simmered mixed vegetables and chicken): This is originally from Fukuoka prefecture, where used to be called Chikuzen. It isn't traditional osechi dishes, but it uses many vegetables including burdock, satoimo (japanese taro potato): symbolizing descendant, because it makes many small potatoes, and lotus root: having a good foresight from those many holes ... etc.
