Food traditions that you can do to bring good luck next year

BERLIN, GERMANY – JANUARY 20: Grapes and pomegranate lie on displa at the 2023 International Green Week (Internationale Gruene Woche) agricultural trade fair on January 20, 2023 in Berlin, Germany. The International Green Week is among the world’s biggest agricultural trade fairs and brings together agriculture, food, nutrition and horticulture. This year’s fair is the first in full, traditional format since the coronavirus pandemic. The International Green Week is open to the public from January 20-29. (Photo by Maja Hitij/Getty Images)

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – Many different traditional foods are said to bring good luck for the new year, so why not try them?

In different cultures, specific foods are believed to bring good luck in the next year, according to Real Simple. These different New Year’s food traditions from around the world have different meanings and are worth considering putting on your menu or something to bring for a party.

Pork

Pork is thought to bring good luck on New Year’s Day. According to some theorists, a pig buries his snout into the ground and moves forward in the direction you want to head in the new year. Pork that is eaten on New Year’s is a German and Eastern European tradition brought to America by early settlers.

Cabbage

This tradition is also from Germany and Eastern Europe and is rooted because a late fall harvest coupled with a six-to-eight-week fermenting process means that sauerkraut is just about ready when New Year’s is around. Cabbage on New Year’s also means the strands of cabbage in sauerkraut or coleslaw can symbolize long life, while cabbage can also represent money. 

Black-Eyed Peas

In the Civil War, when Union soldiers raided the Confederate army’s food supply, they left behind only black-eyed peas. Other theories date the legume’s reputation back to Ancient Egypt, suggesting that eating the pea, a vegetable that was readily available to even the poorest enslaved people, was a way to show humility to the gods. 

Greens

It’s all about the color green, which symbolizes money as well as prosperity. Also, in a tradition rooted in the South, greens can be hung by the door to ward off any evil spirits that may come your way.

Lentils

Lentils are a legume that is often eaten in Italian households, and their legend is rooted in prosperity, which is how the round legumes look like coins. For New Year’s Eve, lentils are traditionally eaten after midnight, along with pork and sausages.

Fish

Fish is a common dish on plates around the world on New Year’s, especially in cultures close to water. In Scandinavian countries, herring was considered a sign of good fortune, especially as the silver-scaled fish that is called to mind as valuable money. Today, herring symbolizes good fortune, making it an excellent option for a New Year’s appetizer.

Noodles

In China, Japan, and other Asian countries, it’s customary to serve and eat noodles on New Year’s Day because their length symbolizes longevity.

Grapes and other fruit

In Filipino culture, New Year’s Eve is celebrated with 12 types of fruit. They choose 12 specifically to symbolize each month. Filipinos tend to prefer round fruit but mangoes and watermelons also work. In Mexico, grapes are eaten at midnight to symbolize the year ahead. Pomegranates, are also a symbol of fertility and birth and are eaten at the new year.

Vasilopita Cake

The Greeks enjoy a cake called Vasilopita, also known as a king pie or basil pie. The cake is made only for New Year’s and is eaten on New Year’s Day.