Check out these articles
-
Video article 9:57
This Sweet Grandma Passes Down a Gorgeous Festive Recipe! A Traditional Dish to Be Passed on to the Next Generation!
Food & DrinkTraditional Culture- 29 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 2:12
Eelpouts - This "Charming" Fish Is a Specialty of Kanazawa, Ishikawa! Full of Gelatin and Collagen, This Fish Is Loved by Women for Its Beauty Properties!
Food & Drink- 253 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 17:12
Watch Closely as the Chef of RyuGin, a Japanese Restaurant in Roppongi, Tokyo, Creates Exquisite Cuisine Worthy of Being Called Works of Art!
Food & Drink- 226 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 16:29
The Hidden Gourmet Dish, "Anago Nanbanzuke"! Freshly Prepared Conger Eel Dishes With Delicious Japanese Sake!
Food & Drink- 29 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 2:22
What is the artistic soup bowl at Gion Sasaki, a three-star Michelin Guide Japanese restaurant in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture?
Food & Drink- 25 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 19:02
Can even natto haters eat natto? Video of the making of Red Soybean Natto! What is the excellent Kyoto natto made by the president of a natto craftsman in Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture, who used to hate natto?
Food & DrinkTraditional CultureLife & Business- 31 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 2:40
Gion Sasaki, a Three-Star Japanese Restaurant in the Michelin Guide! A Look at Their Delicious Sea Perch That Evokes the Vestiges of Summer!
Food & Drink- 34 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 14:27
You Won't Be Able to Take Your Eyes off the Amazing Skills of the Chef in This Video as He Prepares Ika Somen! The Amazing Knife Skills and Techniques Required to Prepare This Delicious Dish Are the Heart of Japanese Cooking!
Food & Drink- 153 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 8:15
Edo Period Food – Food Culture in the Age of the Samurai!
Food & DrinkTraditional CultureLife & Business- 79 plays
- YouTube
Traditional Japanese Osechi Dishes Made by a Japanese Grandma. Learn Life Lessons From the Energetic Grandma Masami
Grandma's Osechi-ryori: Video Introduction
This video, titled "Grandma's Recipes|Grandma Masami's Osechi" (Grandma's Recipes|まさみおばあちゃんのおせち), was uploaded by "Grandma's Recipes."
Osechi-ryori is a traditional Japanese dish eaten on New Year's in Japan. In Japan, people are so accustomed to Osechi-ryori that many people don't know about the meanings attached to the dish. In this article, we'll take a look at traditional Japanese Osechi-ryori through the recipes of Grandma Masami who has lived through 4 Japanese eras.
Grandma Masami left her parents' house at the age of 8 and began working, and she is now 99 years old. In just half of her life, she endured many hardships, including two wars, the Great Kanto Earthquake, the Isewan Typhoon, the Great Hanshin Earthquake, and the Great East Japan Earthquake. Even so, she says with a smile how she lived an ordinary life. In this day and age when it's difficult to live an "ordinary life," these words must have a very significant meaning.
The purpose of these videos is to learn recipes for happiness from energetic grandmothers over the age of 80 who have lived through turbulent lives. This video focuses on Osechi-ryori, a recipe for happiness handed down by a grandma in Nagano, Japan.
The History of Osechi and Its Name
Osechi-ryori was originally prepared as an offering to New Year's gods during seasonal festivals, such as Sechie (an official event held at the Japanese Imperial Court on national holidays) and Sekku. It is said that it was not until the Edo period (1603-1868 A.D.) that they began to be served in stacked boxes and prepared as New Year's dishes as they are in modern-day Japan.
"Osechi" is written as either "お節" or "御節" in Japanese. This naming also comes from Sekku, and the common interpretation is that the meaning is an abbreviation of Sechie.
Classic and Regional Recipes for Osechi-ryori
Although there are regional differences in osechi-ryori recipes, the basic recipe consists of three celebratory dishes (three side dishes), nishime (simmered vegetables), sunomono (pickled or vinegared food), and yakimono (grilled food).
These three dishes are commonly made across Japan with black soybeans and herring roe. However, there is a difference: in Japan's Kanto region they use gomame (dried young anchovies), while in the Kansai region they use tataki-gobou (burdock root seasoned with sesame). The most common style of osechi-ryori is to use a four-tiered box containing 20 to 30 different dishes.
Some of the most popular classic dishes in osechi-ryori are datemaki (a rolled omelette mixed with fish paste), kinton (mashed sweet potatoes), kohaku namasu (thinly sliced carrots and daikon radish), kamaboko, grilled sea bream, teriyaki amberjack, simmered tiger prawns, boiled clam, kombu-maki (sliced dried herring or other fish wrapped in kombu seaweed and boiled), and chikuzenni. The use of such auspicious and high-quality ingredients as sea bream, amberjack, and prawns gives the dish a celebratory atmosphere on this special day.
In recent years, ingredients for osechi-ryori can be found in supermarkets after Christmas. There are many items that are nearly fully prepared, so osechi-ryori are relatively convenient to eat nowadays.
The Meanings Behind Osechi-ryori
Here are some of the meanings and hopes attached to osechi-ryori.
●Kurikinton (chestnuts and mashed sweet potatoes)
In addition to its gorgeous and beautiful golden appearance, chestnuts are said to bring good luck in victory and prosperity.
●Kuromame (black soybeans)
This dish is to wish for good health and the power to work another year.
●Kazunoko (herring roe)
This dish is associated with wishes for prosperity of one's children. This dish is a celebratory food, and is associated with fertility.
●Kombu-maki
Kombu is associated with happiness and comfort in old age. Kombu-maki, a type of kelp roll, is also used as a symbol of union and contains wishes of prosperity for one's offspring.
Grandma Masami's One-Person Osechi-ryori
It is becoming more and more common to have osechi-ryori delivered on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day in Japan, rather than making them at home, through commercial or online delivery services. Osechi-ryori themselves are becoming more and more varied, with Chinese, French, and even children's osechi-ryori appearing at the end of the year, rather than being solely Japanese style.
The focus of this video, Grandma Masami, is now 99 years old! She lives alone, but she makes her own osechi-ryori every year. Although it looks like a simple osechi for one person, the handmade miso soup made from dried sardines, walnut rice cakes, steamed rolls, kinpira, namasu, and nishime all look delicious.
[Video] 5:00 - Making Burdock and Carrot Kinpira
[Video] 7:14 - Making Steamed Rolls
Soybeans – The Secret to a Long Life?
When Grandma Masami is asked about the secret to her long life, she explains how she was poor and worked hard, but ate a lot of soybeans and other legumes, saying that maybe this was the secret to her good health.
When Grandma Masami is asked about the secret to her long life, she explains how she was poor and worked hard, but ate a lot of soybeans and other legumes, saying that maybe this was the secret to her good health.
Soy sauce, miso, natto, tofu, okara (soy pulp), and soybean flour. We can see that soybeans are as important an ingredient in the Japanese diet as rice. It's also an essential ingredient for making osechi-ryori. Soybeans are said to be a "kanzen shokuzai" (完全食材, a food that contains all the nutrients necessary for humans to maintain good health) with a well-balanced combination of lecithin, dietary fiber, isoflavones, protein, carbohydrates, and various vitamins and minerals. It's no exaggeration to say that soybeans are the secret to the longevity of the Japanese people. Soybeans have played a prominent role in Japanese food and the health of the Japanese people since the Heian period nearly a thousand years ago.
Summary of a Japanese Grandma's Osechi-ryori
While gorgeous osechi-ryori are a feast for the eyes, simple and healthy homemade osechi-ryori like Grandma Masami's recipes are also good. Why not try making your own this winter?
AccessMap (Google Maps)
-
Video article 16:27
Delicious Coconut Crab at Yatai Mura in Naha, Okinawa!
Food & Drink- 954 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 8:07
Chasen Nasu – A Unique Eggplant Recipe to Spice Up Your Japanese Cooking! This Simple Yet Versatile Food Art Trick Will Have You Cooking Like a Pro!
Food & Drink Life & Business- 195 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 6:41
Enjoy Watching How the Traditional Sweet "Dragon's Beard Candy," a Popular Delicacy in China and Korea, Is Made in This Amazing Demonstration Video! The Delicate Sweets Created by the Cheery Professional in This Video Are Simply Amazing!
Food & Drink Shopping- 1.62K plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 15:05
A must for egg lovers! Eat freshly prepared fluffy egg rolls on a skewer right on the spot at Tokyo's Tsukiji Market! Check out the craftsmanship at Tsukiji Yamacho in Chuo-ku, Tokyo!
Food & Drink Shopping- 415 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 17:12
Watch Closely as the Chef of RyuGin, a Japanese Restaurant in Roppongi, Tokyo, Creates Exquisite Cuisine Worthy of Being Called Works of Art!
Food & Drink- 226 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 21:39
Doze-u nabe (dojo-nabe) at Tatsumiya (Tonan-ya), a famous restaurant in Asakusa, Taito-ku, Tokyo, is a downtown specialty favored by Edo food connoisseurs! Don't miss the video of the energetic loach being cooked into a blissful delicacy!
Food & Drink Traditional Culture- 545 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 6:36
Wake, Okayama’s Local Seasonal Feast. Introducing Traditional Mitten Crab Fishing, Mitten Crab Recipes, and the Mitten Crab Dish “Kakemeshi”!
Food & Drink- 307 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 30:55
Enjoy the Delicious Japanese Crab Cuisine at Ryokan Ryokusone in Kanazawa, Ishikawa! The Artisanal Cuisine Delights the Palates of Foodies From Around the World!
Food & Drink Hotel & Japanese Inn- 177 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 3:49
What's That Amazing Smell?! The Skill Of These Baby Castella Craftsmen Is Nothing Short Of Amazing! Be Amazed by the Mouth-Watering Performance While You Wait for Your Chance To Buy!
Food & Drink Shopping- 567 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 10:34
Onigiri: The Ultimate Japanese Food, Loved by Many. A Look at the Surprisingly Unknown Appeal of This Snack, and How to Make Delicious Tuna Mayo Onigiri!
Food & Drink- 225 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 3:42
Fluffy Omelettes Flying Through the Air! Yokohama Tachibanatei's Professional Omelette-Making Skills! A Look at What Goes in To the Dishes of the Popular Restaurant in Yokohama, Kanagawa
Food & Drink- 311 plays
- YouTube
-
Video article 2:54
The cooking time for funa-zushi, a specialty of Shiga Prefecture, is a whopping three years! The roots of Japan's sushi culture, made with the particular methods of artisans in Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture.
Food & Drink- 213 plays
- YouTube
1 Comment