雑 煮(ぞうに)

ぞうに

noun

New Year's soup with rice cakes

1. New Year's soup with rice cakes

A traditional Japanese soup eaten on New Year's Day, made with mochi (rice cakes) and various vegetables and proteins in a broth. Recipes vary significantly by region and family.

お正月(しょうがつ)に雑煮(ぞうに)を食(た)べる。

We eat zōni on New Year's.

うちの雑煮(ぞうに)は白(しろ)みそ仕立(した)てだ。

Our family's zōni is made with white miso.

雑煮(ぞうに)の味(あじ)は地域(ちいき)によって大(おお)きく異(こと)なり、関東(かんとう)ではすまし汁(じる)、関西(かんさい)では白(しろ)みそが主流(しゅりゅう)だ。

The taste of zōni varies greatly by region — clear broth is standard in Kantō, while white miso is the norm in Kansai.

Cultural note

雑煮(ぞうに) is one of the most important dishes of the Japanese New Year (正月(しょうがつ)). It is traditionally eaten on the morning of January 1st. The recipe is deeply tied to regional and family identity — asking someone about their 雑煮(ぞうに) is a common conversation topic.

Regional variations include

関東(かんとう): clear broth (すまし汁(じる)) with rectangular 餅(もち)
関西(かんさい): 白(しろ)みそ broth with round 餅(もち)

Common collocations

雑煮(ぞうに)を作(つく)る (to make zōni)
雑煮(ぞうに)を食(た)べる (to eat zōni)
お雑煮(ぞうに) (zōni — with polite prefix お)

Related Words

Related: 鏡餅(かがみもち) (New Year's rice cake offering)

Compare: おせち料理(りょうり) (traditional New Year's cuisine)

general

Added 2026.3.2 16:45 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

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