UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Osechi-ryōri (御節料理 or お節料理) are traditional Japanese New Year foods. The tradition started in the Heian Period (794-1185).
Osechi are easily recognizable by their special boxes called
jūbako (重箱)
Originally, during first three days of the New Year it was a taboo to use a hearth and cook meals, except when cooking
zōni. Osechi was made by the close of the previous year, as women did not cook in the New Year.
In the earliest days,
osechi consisted only of
nimono, boiled vegetables with soy sauce and sugar or mirin. Over the generations, the variety of food included in
osechi has increased. Today
osechi may refer to anything prepared specially for the New Year, and some foreign dishes have been adopted as "Westernized
osechi" (西洋お節
seiyō-osechi) or as "Chinese-style
osechi" (中華風お節
chūkafū osechi). And while
osechi was traditionally prepared at home, it is also sold ready-made in specialty stores, grocery stores, and even convenience stores, such as 7-Eleven.
The dishes that make up osechi each have a special meaning celebrating the New Year. Some examples are:
From Wikipedia