Anna and Elsa ready to visit homes in January with 'Frozen' New Year’s osechi meals

In Japan, it’s customary to celebrate the New Year with "osechi," meals made of a large number of painstakingly prepared and beautifully presented small dishes. Traditionally, women would prepare all of the "osechi" for their families ahead of time, setting aside New Year’s Day itself for feasting leisurely.

Of course, the price for that relaxation on January 1 is a frantic bout of cooking at the end of December. Hoping to avoid that, more and more households have begun buying pre-made "osechi," either to replace or supplement a smaller quantity of home-cooked food.

Mass-produced "osechi" doesn’t come cheap, though, so we imagine some people might scoff at the idea of buying "Frozen" "osechi," until you realize that it’s Frozen with a capital F, as in Disney’s runaway computer-animated hit.

Well, technically this is "Anna to Yuki no Joo" (Anna and the Snow Queen) "osechi," since provider Kibun is using the film’s Japanese title. Still, a quick glance at the container’s lid is all you need to know that this "osechi" set is paying tribute to the two female leads of the film called Frozen in English-speaking markets.

Available through Kibun’s online shop, the two-tiered box contains 21 different items. Almost all of these are traditional Japanese delicacies such as kamoboko fish cake, datemaki omelets, kurikinton chestnut sweet potatoes, and teriyaki yellowtail. There is one direct connection to "Frozen" on the menu, though, in the form of the special Anna and Elsa cookies.

Kibun has already started taking preorders, although the sets won’t ship until the tail end of December. Since it can be tough to get people thinking about what to eat on New Year’s Day when it’s still warm out, Kibun is offering a little extra incentive for those who place their orders by Oct 15. Thirty early purchasers will be randomly selected to win a 27-centimeter stuffed doll of living snowman Olaf, and another three lucky fans will get an even bigger 90-centimeter version.

Kibun is offering one more Disney "osechi" set here, featuring more classic characters such as Mickey, Minnie, and Winnie the Pooh.

Despite the characters being older, the food itself seems to be intended for younger eaters, as among its 24 dishes you’ll find more heavily flavored kid favorites such as tsukune chicken meat balls and kakumi stewed pork.

Don’t let the cutesy looks fool you, though, these Disney osechi sets are made with high-quality ingredients, and priced accordingly. Mickey and his pals are the cheaper option at 10,800 yen. Meanwhile, the "Frozen" fare will set you back 16,200 yen.

Sources: Entabe, Kibun Online Shop

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