also: たつくり
noun
candied dried sardines; gomame simmered in soy sauce and sugar
A traditional Japanese dish made from small dried sardines (gomame) cooked in a sweet soy sauce glaze until almost dry. Often served as part of osechi ryōri for New Year's, symbolizing a bountiful harvest. Also called ごまめ.
See also: 古女 (ごまめ)
おせち料理には、田作りが欠かせません。
Candied dried sardines are indispensable in osechi cuisine.
母が作る田作りは、甘辛くてとても美味しい。
The candied dried sardines my mother makes are sweet and salty and very delicious.
noun
tilling a rice field; person who tills a paddy field
Rare, literal meaning referring to the act of cultivating a rice paddy or the person who does it. In modern Japanese, this sense is almost never used independently; the word is overwhelmingly known as the food sense.
「田作り」という言葉は、本来は田を耕すことを意味した。
The word '田作り' originally meant tilling a rice field.
Synonym for the food sense; ごまめ is more common in everyday contexts, while 田作り is often used in formal or traditional settings like osechi.
Literally 'field making' (田 + 作り). The food sense is said to derive from the practice of using dried sardines as fertilizer in rice fields, symbolizing a wish for a good harvest.