All around the world, there are many New Year food traditions thought to bring wealth, prosperity, and good luck in the upcoming year. If you're looking for ways to make 2018 lucky, here are some foods you should add to your menu for New Year's Day.
1. Greens:
Greens are, well, green like money. Therefore, eating a healthy helping of greens on New Year's Day may help bring wealth in the new year. Collards are a popular choice (especially in the South), but any greens will do. So chow down on cabbage, kale, spinach, or your favorite salad mix.
2. Beans & Grains:
Beans & grains are considered lucky because they resemble coins and they are in abundance representing wealth. Any bean or grain can show you the money, but black-eyed peas are the most common type for New Year's Day recipes. In Italy & Brazil, lentils are a very popular choice.
3. Noodles:
A Japanese tradition is to eat toshikoshi soba noodles on New Year's Eve. Loosely translated, toshikoshi means from one year to the next. The long, thin shape of these buckwheat noodles represents longevity. The longer the noodle, the better. To ensure a long life, the toshikoshi noodles should be eaten without chewing or breaking them so go ahead and slurp.
4. Round fruit:
Round fruit looks like coins so eating some of your favorite fruits may bring you wealth in 2018. In Spain and Portugal, it is tradition to eat 12 grapes quickly at the stroke of midnight. Each grape represents a month in the year ahead. If one is bitter or sour, watch out that month! In Greece, at midnight on New Year's Eve, it's customary to smash a pomegranate on the floor in front of the door to reveal the seeds, symbolizing prosperity & good fortune. The more seeds, the more luck you will have in the new year.
5: Figs:
If you're hoping for a baby in 2018, add some figs to your New Year's celebration menu. Figs represent fertility.
6. Cornbread:
The gold color of cornbread represents the glories of gold. So nimble away on your cornbread to bring riches in the new year.
7. Pork:
Because of its fat, pork brings a new year rich with happiness. Pigs are a lucky symbol because they root forward, representing progress, and they are rotund, representing prosperity. So add pork to the meal for an amazing 2018. Your pork can be in any form so gobble down some ham, sausage, whole roasted suckling pig, bacon, ham hocks, or pancetta for a good year ahead.
8. Fish:
It's believed that fish bring good luck for several different reasons. Their scales resemble coins so that will bring you wealth through the year. Fish swim in schools which invoke the idea of abundance and prosperity. And fish swim forward representing progress. In Germany, Poland, & Scandinavia, people eat pickled herring at midnight to ensure a year full of bounty.
9. Foods in the shape of a ring:
Ring-shaped cakes, donuts, and bagels symbolize coming full circle. A Greek tradition is to make a special lemon-flavored cake, called a vasilopita, and bake a coin inside. Whoever finds the coin will have good luck.
Now that you have a list of lucky goods, get out your Hold & Go Slow Cooker and prepare any of these nine lucky crock pot meals for you New Year's Eve celebration and New Year's Day meals.
Slow Cooker Collard Greens | Moms with Crockpots
This traditional Southern dish is a must for your lucky New Year's celebration. This collard green recipe is full of greens and pork and deliciousness.
Greens in Potlikker (Potlikker Soup) | Southern Living
Potlikker is traditionally the flavorful liquid left behind after boiling greens, such as collards. In this recipe from Southern Living, smoked sausage, onion, and roasted red bell pepper are added for a New Year's dish full of flavor.
Good Luck Greens and Peas with Ham | MyRecipes
Greens and black-eyed peas and Ham! Oh my! Your 2018 will be triple lucky with this delicious meal.
Crockpot Hoppin' John | Diary of a Recipe Collector
Combine black-eyed peas, pork, rice, and greens into this Southern favorite. Hoppin' John is eaten on New Year's Day and, on January 2nd, is served as "Skippin' Jenny." This is meant to demonstrate frugality and promote prosperity for the upcoming new year.
Slow Cooker Lentil and Sausage Soup | Bev Cooks
In Italy, on New Year's Day, Italians eat Cotechino con Lenticchie or sausage & lentil stew. Bev Cooks has an easy version you can whip up in your crock pot.
Crock Pot Ham and Bean Soup | Spend with Pennies
This hearty soup is sure to be a family favorite. With all these beans and yummy ham, you can expect a 2018 filled with abundance and prosperity.
Crock Pot Asian Pork with Mushrooms over Soba Noodles | Skinnytaste
You're sure to live a long life with this delicious slow cooked meal. The pork and soba noodles are exactly what you need for dinner on New Year's Day. Be sure to slurp your noodles!
Slow Cooker Spanish Sardines | Food For Net
Enjoy this tasty dish and bring on a prosperous 2018 full of good progress. Serve your fish with noodles to ensure a long life.
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