I love New Year’s Eve. I love the excitement as the clock strikes midnight around the world, and the anticipation as the new year heads steadily towards me in whatever time zone I may be in. Last year, I rang in the new year on the Spanish Steps in Rome with thousands of Italians and thousands of hand-held fireworks that would certainly be illegal here in America!
New Year’s Eve tradition in Rome requires a lot of prosecco bought and consumed on the streets as you’re marching merrily from piazza to piazza, singing and dancing amongst all the performers and musicians and, well, Romans! And, per tradition, the night often ends with a dish of lentils! Thought to resemble coins, they are eaten to bring happiness and wealth in the New Year.
So many cultures share a New Year’s Eve tradition of eating foods thought to bring luck and prosperity. Here are a few that might be fun to try:
In Spain, people traditionally eat grapes at midnight. 12 grapes are eaten, one for each month of the year. A particularly sweet grape on the fifth month means you’ll have a prosperous May! While a sour seventh grape means you’ll have a less happy July.
In Germany and Austria, roasted pork and sauerkraut are both popular dishes for New Year’s Eve. Traditionally, someone who had many pigs would never go hungry, and the many shredded bits of sauerkraut represent the amount of happiness and prosperity you’ll have in the new year.
Herring is a popular New Year’s dish in Scandinavian countries. Pickled, salted, or fresh, the abundance of the fish in these countries foretells the abundance of the coming year.
In Mexico and Greece, fanciful round cakes are eaten. The Mexican version, known as rosca de reyes, is topped with candied fruit and has surprises baked inside. The Greek version, called vasilopita is baked with a coin inside, conferring extra luck on the person who finds it!
In Japan, soba noodles made from buckwheat are eaten for luck and longevity. Longer noodles equal a longer life.
Here in America, especially in the South, black-eyed peas are traditionally eaten to bring prosperity. Just as in Italy, they are thought to resemble coins. In this tradition, one should be eaten for every day of the year. They are usually cooked in a dish called Hoppin’ John (a combination of black-eyed peas and rice flavored with bacon), and served alongside collard greens, also thought to bring prosperity because they are the color of money!
Here at The Chopping Block, we tour the world on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Food is a great way to explore the world without having to leave home, so join us in ringing in the New Year around the world with one of our great international cooking classes coming up in January and February.
- From India: Indian Vegetarian
- From Germany: Prost! Celebrating German Cuisine
- From Japan: Ramen Workshop & Sushi Workshop
- From France: Food and Wine of France
- Go Global: Street Food from around the world
Information for New Year’s traditions taken from the following sources:
