祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)

いわいざかな
noun
the core celebratory dishes served at New Year
foodculture
1. the core celebratory dishes served at New Year
The small auspicious dishes that open an osechi box, above all the 三種(さんしゅ) (three kinds): black soybeans, candied sardines, and herring roe. Tradition holds that these three plus rice cakes are enough to celebrate the New Year properly.
祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)を用意(ようい)する。
To prepare the celebratory dishes.
祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)三種(さんしゅ)はおせちの基本(きほん)だ。
The three celebratory dishes are the basis of osechi.
関東(かんとう)と関西(かんさい)では祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)三種(さんしゅ)の中身(なかみ)が一部(いちぶ)異(こと)なっている。
The contents of the three celebratory dishes differ in part between the Kanto and Kansai regions.

Here 肴(さかな) means a dish eaten with sake, not fish; the reading voices to ざかな in the compound.

Common collocations

  • 祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)三種(さんしゅ): the three celebratory dishes
  • 祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな)を用意(ようい)する: to prepare the celebratory dishes
  • おせちの祝(いわ)い肴(ざかな): the celebratory dishes in an osechi box

Cultural note

In the Kanto region the three are 黒豆(くろまめ), 数(かず)の子(こ), and 田作(たづく)り; in Kansai 田作(たづく)り is commonly replaced by たたきごぼう.

Related Words

Related: おせち料理(りょうり)
Related: 黒豆(くろまめ)
Related: 田作(たづく)り
general
Added 2026.8.10 18:22 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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