Hello Miyakojima Fan!

Do you know that Miyakojima has three New Years in a year?

They are Gregorian New Year, the lunar New Year, and the ancestors’ New Year.

The biggest cerebration is the ancestors’ New Year because the people in Miyakojima worship their ancestors very much.

It is on January 16 under the lunar calendar.

Only recently, Gregorian New Year is celebrated in Miyakojima and you can see Japanese traditional New Year dishes called “OSECHI” at the super market.

But the traditional dishes eaten at celebrations in Miyakojima are completely different from OSECHI.

The photo above is pork belly.

We cook pork belly and Kombu seaweed together seasoned with soy sauce and bonito broth.

Pork is often eaten at daily lives in Miyakojima. 

But as the festive season approaches, many chunks of pork belly are sold at the local super market in Miyakojima.

The photo below is pork offal dish called Nakami Jiru, (offal soup).

It is seasoned with bonito broth and it is very popular in Miyakojima.

Japanese Osechi dishes use ingredients that have their own festive meaning and are very beautiful to look at.

On the other hand, the celebratory dishes of Miyakojima seem to be suitable for cooking a lot and eating with many people.