Here’s the thing about Christmas in Japan: It is not the Christmas you know. And don’t even get me started on Hanukkah…
In Japan there are two things that are “traditionally” eaten on Christmas: cake, and KFC. No, you read that right. It doesn’t stand for something else. I am, indeed, speaking of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
The reason for this? Christmas is a secular holiday in Japan. One might say that Christmas in the United States or other countries is also a secular holiday, but Japan is secular in a different way. In America, we have some pretty specific traditions regarding decoration, meals, familial togetherness, the spirit of giving, and cookies left out for Santa. In Japan, only children receive gifts on Christmas, and the day is more about couples loving sharing a “Christmas Cake” than the family being together. Christmas isn’t considered a national holiday, so most people usually have to go to work. And as for the chicken? Well, like with hamburgers, it looks like that’s our fault too.
So instead of focusing on the Christmas foods of Japan, I thought perhaps talking about the symbolism of the long New Year’s noodles would be more interesting.
Everything the Japanese eat on New Year’s has some sort of symbolic nature. Here’s a bit about the dishes I won’t be talking about, because the dish I find the most interesting is the one traditionally eaten on New Year’s Eve that symbolizes “crossing over to the new year” with its long noodles. Known as omisoka or toshikoshi soba, this soba noodle soup is made—you already know this if you read the name of the dish—of buckwheat soba noodles. The important part of this dish is that the soba noodles are made looooooooonnnnnnngggggg to symbolize a long life and so that you cut them with your teeth and let go of any hardship from the past year.
I’ve never made soba noodles before, but I have made long egg noodles to celebrate the New Year. Shout out to my good friend Ceili Shannon for hosting the noodle making party and teaching me how. All you’ll need is flour, some eggs, and your favorite spices (I ended up throwing oregano and mace into my noodles—they were delicious). Here’s a quick recipe for making egg noodles. You can twist them into fun shapes or cut them into thin strips. Ceili had a noodle press that flattened out our dough and cut them into noodles at the same time, and it was really convenient if you don’t feel like the hassle of doing it by hand. For those of you who want to make the soba itself, here’s a recipe for the special New Year’s dish.
As for a media tie in… It’s Christmas for me, and almost New Year’s for all of us. Go watch your favorite holiday movie—or if you’re at a loss, may I recommend to you Over the Garden Wall? Completely secular, made up of ten ten minute episodes, and you will watch it twice, have your mind blown, and be so happy to be alive that you’ll open the new year with open arms and determination!—and then binge play Fire Emblem or Undertale or any of those other games in which you should really name your protagonist after yourself for heavy emotional impact, and eat some good food to bring in the new year.
Happy holidays, everyone!
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