This New Year Tradition In Iowa Will Give You A Delicious 2023

2023 is right around the corner, and everyone is hoping for a healthy, happy, and prosperous year. Here in the Hawkeye State, old traditions say there is a way to get a leg up on good fortune for the new year – and you don’t even have to do anything you wouldn’t be happy to do the other 364 days of the year! In Iowa, many people believe it’s good luck to ring in the new year with a hearty meal of pork and sauerkraut – or just pork, in some cases! This unique new year tradition in Iowa comes from the state’s European immigrant roots, with Iowa’s German and Czech populations sharing this rite for well over a century. The good news is, there is no shortage of ways to indulge in Iowa and get your year off to a lucky and delicious start!

New Year’s Day is right around the corner, and everyone is planning their own unique celebration. In Iowa, many people plan to ring it in with a hearty meal of pork!

Frank Vincentz/Wikipedia

Pork is considered good luck in many cultures as a new year’s meal, particularly the European cultures that made up many of Iowa’s early immigrant waves. The tradition is still strong in Iowa’s German-American and Czech-American communities. The rich food represents prosperity, and the round shape of pork loin is said to represent coins or wealth.

Rainer Zenz/Wikipedia

And it’s not a surprise that pork is popular in Iowa - the state is a massive hub for pig farming and pork production, accounting for almost a third of US production.

Kallerna/Wikipedia

In Cedar Rapids’ Czech Village, you can indulge in the most traditional form of this meal at Sykora Bakery, the famous outpost of Czech cooking.

Sykora Bakery/Facebook

Pork and sauerkraut, a hearty and tangy stew, is a frequent special on the bakery’s lunch menu and is beloved by the many old-school residents of the village.

Marla106/TripAdvisor

If you want a heartier option, head to Amana, where the Ox Yoke Inn celebrates the town’s German roots - complete with massive dishes like this beer-braised pork shank.

Ox Yoke Inn/Facebook

Of course, if you’re not bound by tradition, there’s one pork dish that might be more quintessentially Iowa than any other - a massive pork tenderloin sandwich, spilling off the bun!

Glane23/Wikipedia

Are you planning to eat pork to mark the start of 2023? Let us know how you plan to celebrate this New Year tradition in Iowa in the comments section. If you want to visit Iowa’s most famous German restaurant, you can check out the website and Facebook page of the Ox Yoke in for more details. For Iowa’s Czech residents, don’t miss a visit to the last old-school Czech bakery in Iowa.