February 3rd is “Setsubun” in Japan.
This time I’m going to explain what we do for “Setesubun” in Japan!
What’s Setsubun? Is it bean throwing festival?
What we do for Setsubun
On Setsubun, we usually eat Sushi rolls called “Ehomaki”.
And some families with kids enjoy throwing beans against “Oni”.
Let me explain more about those things.
Eating Ehomaki (Sushi rolls)
We eat Ehomaki (Sushi rolls) on Setsubun.
Ehomaki is a good luck Sushi roll.
This Ehomaki culture already started in Edo period.
When we eat Ehomaki, we have some rules.
Let me introduce it.
You need to eat up the entire Ehomaki (Sushi roll) without talking.
You can’t talk until you finish eating the Sushi.
Plus, while you are eating Ehomaki, you need to face the best direction of the year.
Ehomaki is long.
So eating Ehomaki up without talking is a bit difficult for people who are talkative.
But this year, I want to make this challenge succeed!
Throwing beans (Mamemaki)
On Setsubun, we throw beans against Oni (demon).
We call the event “Mamemaki”.
We make the Oni look like a disaster, and we get rid of it by throwing beans.
But I think only families with little kids enjoy the event.
Usually, the father or mother appears with an Oni mask and kids throw beans.
When I was a little kid, my father used to be an Oni with a mask.
And I loved throwing beans saying “Oni ha soto, Fuku ha uchi(Demons out, Fortune in!)” .
I liked eating the beans after the event “Mamemaki”.
I don’t remember the timing, but we stopped throwing beans one day, and we just started eating beans.
So I think Mamemaki is a family event.
In the middle of January, stores start selling beans for Setsubun.
We bought two packages this year.
My husband loves these beans.
I can’t wait to eat beans with him on Setsubun.
Enjoy Setsubun with beans and Ehomaki Sushi rolls
On February 3rd, enjoy the Setsubun event with beans and Ehomaki!
You can buy Ehomaki at the supermarkets if you live in Japan.
Happy Setsubun!!
