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You may be gearing up for late night plans to celebrate the New Year, complete with champagne, fun cocktails and fancy hors d'ouervres. But have you thought about what’s on your menu for the day after: New Year's Day?
Hangover cures are what top lots of people’s lists for the day after a big night of celebrating. Fatty brunch foods like sausage, bacon and eggs, pancakes, and alcohol absorbing fried hash brown potatoes. And possibly accompanied by a hair-of-the-dog morning cocktail like a Bloody Mary or Mimosa.
Of course an ounce of prevention can come in handy for staving off a morning full of headaches, nausea, and the other woes that come from excessive indulgence. So if you have time before heading out into the night, fill up on a meal full of carbs and fats (New Year's Eve parties seem to be notoriously light on food).
Back in college we used to eat a carb-heavy meal before a night out, but it turns out that having a stomach lined with fat is the way to go to help slow the stomach’s absorption of alcohol. Bring on the mixed nuts, potato chips, and creamy dips!
Then, there are all kinds of traditional cultural foods that help ring in the New Year for dinner. What does your family enjoy? In my house it was always pork and sauerkraut. This earthy dish, of Pennsylvania Dutch (German) origins, combines two items associated with good fortune, pig and cabbage.
Pigs are considered lucky in many cultures. Maybe it’s because they cannot turn around to look behind them and are hence considered forward-looking animals. Or perhaps it comes from their association with plumpness, prosperity and piggy banks.
Sauerkraut, or fermented cabbage, has sustained many northern European cultures through cold winters. Our sauerkraut was always canned, and I’ve since had better, but it’s still not my favorite. When I was a kid, I would take the tiniest bites imaginable as per family custom. This year, I’ll pair the roast pork with a lightly braised cabbage instead.
Then there’s a whole world of other traditions to turn to for other New Year’s food ideas. Black eyed peas and collard greens are southern American good luck staples. Long Asian noodles such as lo mein, broad rice noodles, or soba, symbolize a long life. They must not be broken before they go into your mouth.
Much like pigs, fish are considered forward moving animals and are common on New Year’s menus. The silver coloring of fish such as pickled herring make them a popular New Year’s food in Poland and Scandinavia.
Just as green cabbage leaves and silver fish look like money, lentils are said to resemble coins and are an Italian New Year staple. Try pairing lentils with special New Year’s Cotechino, a fatty Italian pork sausage or Zampone, stuffed pig trotters. These types of sausage may be difficult to source other than through mail order or making them homemade, so another flavorful Italian sausage can be used in place.
Pomegranate is the perfect addition to a New Year’s Day salad. This seasonal fruit is traditional to Turkey and other Mediterranean cultures as a special good luck food. In Mexico, tamales are often passed around as a traditional holiday food, especially with Menudo, a tripe and hominy soup that is considered a hangover cure.
Each of these foods holds special symbolism for good luck and fortune in the coming year. So combine a little from this culture and a little from that for a fun New Year’s celebration. After all, New Year's Day is about one last day of indulgence before moving on to healthier and more austere January menus. Happy New Year!
©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
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Good Luck Foods For The Year To Come
You may be gearing up for late night plans to celebrate the New Year, complete with champagne, fun cocktails and fancy hors d'ouervres. But have you thought about what’s on your menu for the day after: New Year's Day?
Hangover cures are what top lots of people’s lists for the day after a big night of celebrating. Fatty brunch foods like sausage, bacon and eggs, pancakes, and alcohol absorbing fried hash brown potatoes. And possibly accompanied by a hair-of-the-dog morning cocktail like a Bloody Mary or Mimosa.
Of course an ounce of prevention can come in handy for staving off a morning full of headaches, nausea, and the other woes that come from excessive indulgence. So if you have time before heading out into the night, fill up on a meal full of carbs and fats (New Year's Eve parties seem to be notoriously light on food).
Back in college we used to eat a carb-heavy meal before a night out, but it turns out that having a stomach lined with fat is the way to go to help slow the stomach’s absorption of alcohol. Bring on the mixed nuts, potato chips, and creamy dips!
Then, there are all kinds of traditional cultural foods that help ring in the New Year for dinner. What does your family enjoy? In my house it was always pork and sauerkraut. This earthy dish, of Pennsylvania Dutch (German) origins, combines two items associated with good fortune, pig and cabbage.
Pigs are considered lucky in many cultures. Maybe it’s because they cannot turn around to look behind them and are hence considered forward-looking animals. Or perhaps it comes from their association with plumpness, prosperity and piggy banks.
Sauerkraut, or fermented cabbage, has sustained many northern European cultures through cold winters. Our sauerkraut was always canned, and I’ve since had better, but it’s still not my favorite. When I was a kid, I would take the tiniest bites imaginable as per family custom. This year, I’ll pair the roast pork with a lightly braised cabbage instead.
Then there’s a whole world of other traditions to turn to for other New Year’s food ideas. Black eyed peas and collard greens are southern American good luck staples. Long Asian noodles such as lo mein, broad rice noodles, or soba, symbolize a long life. They must not be broken before they go into your mouth.
Much like pigs, fish are considered forward moving animals and are common on New Year’s menus. The silver coloring of fish such as pickled herring make them a popular New Year’s food in Poland and Scandinavia.
Just as green cabbage leaves and silver fish look like money, lentils are said to resemble coins and are an Italian New Year staple. Try pairing lentils with special New Year’s Cotechino, a fatty Italian pork sausage or Zampone, stuffed pig trotters. These types of sausage may be difficult to source other than through mail order or making them homemade, so another flavorful Italian sausage can be used in place.
Pomegranate is the perfect addition to a New Year’s Day salad. This seasonal fruit is traditional to Turkey and other Mediterranean cultures as a special good luck food. In Mexico, tamales are often passed around as a traditional holiday food, especially with Menudo, a tripe and hominy soup that is considered a hangover cure.
Each of these foods holds special symbolism for good luck and fortune in the coming year. So combine a little from this culture and a little from that for a fun New Year’s celebration. After all, New Year's Day is about one last day of indulgence before moving on to healthier and more austere January menus. Happy New Year!
Beer Braised Cabbage
Made with apple cider vinegar, bacon, yellow onion, kosher salt, cabbage, brown mustard, beer
Made with apple cider vinegar, bacon, yellow onion, kosher salt, cabbage, brown mustard, beer
Serves/Makes: 4
- 6 slices bacon, diced
- 1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
- kosher salt, to taste
- 1 head cabbage, cored and shredded
- 2 tablespoons brown mustard
- 1 bottle (12 ounce size) IPA or other full flavored beer
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Cook the bacon in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until almost crisp. Add the onion and salt and cook, stirring frequently, for 3-5 more minutes or until the onion is tender.
Add the cabbage, mustard, and beer. Mix well. Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Let simmer, stirring often, until the cabbage starts to wilt and caramelizes, about 20 minutes. Add a little water if needed to keep the cabbage from sticking.
When the cabbage is soft, add the vinegar and adjust the seasoning as needed. Mix well then serve the beer braised cabbage hot or warm.
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©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/pamela-chester/1324-good-luck-foods/