New Year's Day breakfast 2020

We started 2020 with a quiet New Year's Day meal.

As with other years, we had ozoni soup with rice cakes, kuromame black soybeans, datemaki seafood omelet, tataki gobo burdock root in sesame vinegar dressing, shrimp, lotus root in sweetened vinegar, grilled saikyo-zuke black cod, and so on. It was simpler than usual, mainly because the meal was meant to be for us only. No guests were involved this year, since my father passed away last fall.

Osechi New Year's Day breakfast, 2019

Once again this year, a smallish, basic lineup of osechi perfect for a breakfast for two.

Finding good fish is always a challenge in our town despite its location on the seacoast. Yet this year it was a case where a series of problems can lead to an amazing solution. Earlier in December following several days of power outage, we made grilled kasuzuke salmon out of defrosted salted salmon fillets, and it struck me that the taste of the fish, which was a bit dry due to my mistakenly grilling it slightly too long, would probably go really well in ozoni soup. Tom agreed that the taste would be a great match, and we bought a fillet of sockeye salmon for the ozoni. As it was previously frozen, I salted the fillet to extract excess moisture from the flesh and marinated it in sakekasu sake lees for two nights while preparing our ozoni to the semi-final flavoring stage. On December 30th, grilled kasuzuke salmon was added to the soup, which was simmered to blend the flavors, chilled overnight, and simmered again with the last flavor adjustment on the 31st. And after all that, we were rewarded with one of our most successful ozoni ever on the January 1st.

Osechi New Year's Day meal, 2018

Our New Year's Day meal was smaller than in other years, yet consisted of all of our favorites.

People say that holiday seasons are uplifting. For me, it is the last week of December. The feverish mood at grocery stores and shopping arcades in Japan toward the end of the year is infectious. Both sellers and shoppers are in high spirits, all hoping for an auspicious start to the coming year. Here in the US, a somewhat similar ambiance is seen at Japanese grocery stores that often carry better quality ingredients and special items for the New Year's Day celebration.

Osechi New Year's Day meal, 2017

Finally, I was able to make a tasty reduced-sodium version of ozoni soup, ganmodoki to warabi no nimono tofu patties and bracken simmered in broth, and ebi no umani shrimp in broth. This marks a big step forward from previous years' osechi.

I skipped making chrysanthemum flower-cut kabu Japanese turnip marinated in sweetened vinegar as we could not find the vegetable, but I missed the sweet and fresh taste of kabu, which provides a nice contrast to other dishes and works great to refresh your mouth. The appearance of plates and bowls when placed on each tray seemed to lack something as well. The bright green camellia leaves that accompany chrysanthemum flower-cut kabu usually tighten the overall scene, and without the leaves, the picture looked a bit fuzzy. You notice how important something is only when it is not there.

Breakfast, January 1, 2016

Every year, while taking care of final prep for the big breakfast on January 1st, I harvest several camellia leaves in our garden. I plate the glossy green leaves with chrysanthemum-cut kabu turnip served with grilled fish and scallops as a part of the osechi New Year's Day meal.

My parents' house in Japan is surrounded by sazanka [sasanqua] winter-blooming camellia hedges, and their red blossoms give us a striking show during the holiday season. I always loved to see them blooming against a blanket of pure white snow through windows framed with shoji paper screens. Nowadays my parents don't get much snow, and this view of simple beauty with its contrasting colors is largely a memory from the past. So the camellia leaves I pair with kabu are a memento of a lost scene. 

Breakfast, January 1, 2015

Once again this year, we had our typical ozoni soup with rice cakes and osechi special dishes for New Year's Day. When we have guests, I am tempted to make something different just for fun. But with ozoni and osechi, my focus has been to maintain the taste, which is largely supported by the quality of ingredients and the many little simple steps involved in preparation.

My ozoni and osechi prep usually starts on December 27 or 28, and our fridge is filled with small containers by the evening of the 31st. Large containers go to our near-freezing basement or outside shelves, and they all wait to be served on the morning of January 1st.

Iridori / chikuzen-ni / braised chicken with root vegetables

A classic chicken and root vegetable dish. The softly sweet and salty taste makes it a great companion for plain rice and drinks. It is also a popular osechi dish for the New Year, and is great for bento and picnics.

1/2 of recipe:
213 calories; 12.8 g protein; 11.0 g fat; 14.7 g carbohydrate; 10.8 g net carbs; 243 mg sodium (with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce & shoyukoji made with 50% reduced-sodium soy sauce, 429 mg with regular soy sauce and shoyukoji made with regular soy sauce); 62 mg cholesterol; 3.9 g fiber

Breakfast, January 1, 2014

We were grateful to be at the table to enjoy the osechi New Year's meal this year, although the number of items was fewer than in previous years. I am still in the process of figuring out the balance between less sodium and good flavor, especially with simmered dishes, and this year's osechi preparation basically became a series of experiments for that purpose.

All the dishes were made to contain less sodium by simply reducing the amount of seasonings, replacing seasonings or changing preparation methods. Some dishes were a bit disappointing in terms of needing more saltiness or tasting overly sweet; some turned out saltier than expected, showing there was more room to cut back. I did, however, make all my standard osechi dishes that carry wishes of good health -- kuromame black soybeans, tataki gobo burdock root and ebi no umani prawns. Tom has regained his strength and is in amazingly good shape, thanks to his active routine prior to cardiac collapse. We hope his health continues to improve this year.

Kuri no kanroni / candied chestnuts

Japanese-style marron glacé. The autumn harvest is first colored by kuchinashi gardenia fruit, then sweetened with sugar and mirin for glossy finish. As I mainly make this in order to prepare kuri kinton--mashed satsumaimo sweet potato with candied kuri chestnuts, for financial luck (yellow for gold) in the osechi New Year's meal--it is a reminder that the end of the year is slowly drawing near. It is, in other words, the first of many preparations for the New Year's Day meal. To make perfect kuri no kanroni, you need to take off lots of the edible portion, as even a small piece of inner skin on the surface will cause discoloration. I make only a few "perfect" kuri no kanroni, leaving the majority of chestnuts in a relatively natural state with lots of blemishes. But they are all equally and unbeatably tasty.

Koyadofu no fukumeni / freeze-dried tofu simmered in light broth

Koyadofu freeze-dried tofu releases the broth in your mouth as you bite in. The softly flavored little squares may seem bland, but this dish is a nice, refreshing addition for change of pace when paired with strongly flavored dishes or ingredients.

Warabi to ganmodoki no nimono / bracken and deep-fried tofu patties simmered in broth

A slightly strongly flavored comforting food of salt-preserved bracken and juicy tofu patties. It tastes good as is and also as part of a takiawase assortment of other simmered items.

Hoshi-shiitake no fukumeni / dried shiitake mushrooms simmered in sweetened broth

Sweetened broth brings out the distinctive deep taste of dried shiitake.

Tataki gobo / burdock root in sesame soy sauce vinegar dressing

A crunchy addition to everyday meals. The combination of relatively strong soy sauce flavor, rich sesame taste and mild sourness of rice vinegar gives this small dish a punch. Also a common item found among New Year's osechi dishes.

Breakfast, January 1, 2013

The first meal of the year is big.

Along with ozoni, the New Year’s special soup with rice cakes, we had our usual dishes but with slightly different ingredients and fewer variations than in other years. As I started preparing most osechi New Year’s dishes on December 29th (I usually start on the 28th), I could not finish making some of the things we usually have. But I did make kuri kinton -- mashed satsumaimo sweet potato with sweetened kuri chestnuts, both colored with kuchinashi dried gardenia fruit to symbolize gold -- for our financial luck and prosperity this year!

Gindara no yuanyaki / grilled yuan-marinated black cod

Black cod with a sweet and pleasant citrusy taste from yuan marinade (soy sauce, mirin and sake with yuzu citrus). A good alternative to grilled saikyozuke black cod marinated in sweet Saikyo miso.

Surenkon / subasu / lotus root marinated in sweetened rice vinegar

A lotus root pickle that can be eaten as is or used as a garnish for grilled fish.

Hanarenkon / flower-cut lotus root

Lotus root rounds are transformed into flowers. A simple and popular decorative cut.

Umeninjin no nimono, shoga-aji / plum-blossom cut carrot simmered in light ginger-flavored broth

A part of takiawase -- assorted vegetables and tofu separately cooked in broth -- for New Year's osechi food. The slightly sweet ginger-flavored broth is one of my favorites for takiawase carrots.

Nejiriume / plum-blossom cut carrots

For celebrations such as New Year’s, carrots often appear in the shape of a plum blossom. Plum blossoms symbolize early spring, and red blossoms in particular are prized for their celebratory color (red, often in combination with white, is for happy occasions). Some carrots have a reddish color, and those types are usually recommended. The orange of an average carrot still makes a pretty plum blossom. Carrots can be hand-cut or formed with a vegetable cutter.

Daikon to kaki no namasu / daikon radish and persimmon in sweetened rice vinegar

A fruity affair with sweet persimmon. The sweetness of persimmon, the saltiness from daikon radish and the mild sourness of rice vinegar and lemon juice blend together after some time, resulting in a pleasant little side dish.