What holidays come to mind when you think of the "holiday season" in America? For many people, the first holiday that comes to mind is Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or New Year's Eve. Most of these holidays are affiliated with a religion. While Buddhism and Shintoism are both present and widely practiced in Japan, most people identify as atheist or agnostic, though they still enjoy the tradition of Japanese religion. As a result, holidays like Christmas—while still celebrated—don't have much religious significance in Japan, making New Year's Eve one of the most important events of the Japanese holiday season.
While New Year's Eve in America is only a one-day event, Japan celebrates it for the entire first week of January. Food is an important aspect of the Japanese New Year, and every day comes with a new set of traditional dishes that must be consumed for a long-life of prosperity, called osechi. Alongside osechi, mochi (chewy rice cakes) is a staple dish during New Year's celebrations and is the primary ingredient in a soup called ōzoni, where a grilled square of mochi is added to a bowl of light, brothy soup.
