今日の献立は、

　ごはん、豚肉の甘辛焼き、五目汁、かぼちゃのいとこ煮、牛乳でした。

☆かぼちゃのいとこ煮☆

　いとこ煮は、あずき、いも、かぼちゃなどをしょうゆ、みそで煮た料理のことをいいます。かたくて時間のかかる材料から順に入れて煮ることから「追い追い」煮るを「甥と甥」の語呂に合わせ「いとこ煮」と呼ばれるようになったといわれています。また、御事始めに作られる「おこと汁」が転じて名前がついた説もあります。

Today's menu consisted of:

Rice, sweet and savory grilled pork, *gomoku-jiru* (mixed-ingredient soup), *kabocha no itoko-ni* (simmered pumpkin and azuki beans), and milk.

☆Kabocha no Itoko-ni☆

*Itoko-ni* refers to a dish made by simmering ingredients such as azuki beans, root vegetables, and pumpkin in soy sauce and miso. It is said that the name—which literally translates to "cousin stew"—originated from a play on words: the ingredients were added one by one based on how long they took to cook (starting with the hardest), so the phrase "adding them one after another" (*oi-oi* ni-ru) sounded like "nephew and nephew" (*oi to oi*), or "cousins" (*itoko*). Another theory suggests the name evolved from *okoto-jiru*, a soup traditionally prepared for *Okoto-hajime* (the start of the New Year's preparations).