Zoni soup
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| Type | Soup |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Japan |
| Main ingredients | mochi rice cakes |
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Zōni (雑煮), often with the honorific "o-" as o-zōni, is a Japanese soup containing mochi rice cakes. The dish is strongly associated with the Japanese New Year and its tradition of osechi ceremonial foods. Zōni is considered the most auspicious of the dishes eaten on New Year's Day. The preparation of zōni varies both by household and region.
Zōni is written in the Japanese language using two kanji characters. Since the first, means "miscellaneous" or "mixed", and the second, , means "simmer" or "boil", it is thought that the word is derived from the fact that zōni consists of many miscellaneous items of food (such as mochi, vegetables and seafood) being boiled together. Formerly, amongst samurai society, the dish was referred to as "烹雑" (Hōzō) with also being an archaic term for "to simmer" or "to boil".
It is said that zōni finds its roots in samurai society cuisine. It is thought to be a meal that was cooked during field battles, boiled together with mochi, vegetables and dried foods, among other ingredients. It is also generally believed that this original meal, at first exclusive to samurai, eventually became a staple food of the common people. Zōni was first served as part of a full-course dinner (honzen ryōri), and thus is thought to have been a considerably important meal to samurai.
The tradition of eating zōni on New Year's Day dates to the end of the Muromachi period (1336–1573). The dish was offered to the gods in a ceremony on New Year's Eve.
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