Japanese sweets emerged with the introduction of innovative rice processing technology in the 8th century. But the desserts were then very expensive. Significant changes occurred in the XVII century, due to the start of trade with Spain and Portugal. The recipes were partially borrowed from the Europeans, but in their own way, and the products began to be produced in large volumes and at a more affordable cost. In this article, we will consider the most common types of Japanese desserts.
Wagashi
Translated, "wagashi" means "Japanese sweets." These are traditional cakes that are served to everyone - both children and adults. For their preparation, only natural ingredients are used, such as:
- beans - red beans;
- seaweed;
- rice dough;
- chestnuts;
- vegetable gelatin - agar-agar;
- various additives - teas and herbs.
Compared to European desserts, wagashi may seem unsweetened for residents of other countries. In Japan, these sweets are sold almost everywhere - in cafes, restaurants, street shops and pastry shops.
Wagashi are served at various events - exhibitions, festivals and so on. The most important attribute of these treats is the aesthetic appearance and presentation, rather than their palatability.
The basic component of wagashi desserts is a sticky rice dough called mochi or mochi. Based on it, both savory dishes and various desserts are made, the most common of which is daifuku.
Daifuku - a small rice cake stuffed with sweet filling. Traditionally, it is a bean paste, but now they are produced with a variety of flavors - with peanut butter, blueberries, milk filling, green tea and others. They are served in the form of balls sprinkled with powder, or strung on wooden skewers and poured with syrup. It turns out another type of wagashi - dango.
Matcha Tea Desserts
Green tea in the form of a powder called matcha (or, more often, matcha) is widely used in any Japanese desserts. The match gives a more refined and original taste to ice cream, chocolate, cookies, cakes, rice cakes and other confectionery.
From ancient times, green tea in the Land of the Rising Sun is an integral part of classical tea ceremonies. Later, the "scope" of powdered tea was expanded and began to include it in the recipes of Japanese sweets, which was a great discovery.
Scientists have proved that in a match there are a lot of antioxidants - substances that reduce oxidative processes in the body and allow us to stay young and healthy longer.
In addition to adding to Japanese sweets, matcha green tea is added to various drinks. In American cafeterias based on it they make a “refreshment drink” - coffee latte with or without ice, as well as milkshakes and smoothies. In addition, green tea powder is added to alcoholic cocktails and liquor.
"Drop of dew"
This huge drop of water is actually a cake called Shigen Moshi or Mizu shingen mochi. It seems that if you pierce it with a fork, it will burst, but this is not so - the dessert has a soft and jelly consistency.
Shigen Moshi has a very refreshing flavor and does not contain calories. It is based on water, or mizu, extracted in the sources of the Alpine mountains of Japan, which can be replaced with mineral water. The second component, "Dew Drops," is an agar-agar gelling agent.
Since the basis of the product is water, the flavor of dew drops is due primarily to seasonings. Dessert is usually served with brown maple or sugar syrup sprinkled with fried soy flour. At room temperature, the water cake begins to melt, so you need to "catch it" to eat in 20-30 minutes.
Japanese cheesecake
In Japan, they created a unique variation of the cheesecake cheese dessert, which is called "Japanese cotton." This airy biscuit is cooked in a water bath and therefore has a very porous, melting structure in the mouth.
Dessert was created in the 90s by Uncle Tetsu, which now has about 45 stores in Japan. There are also points of sale in the cities of China, Malaysia, Canada, Australia and others - there are always huge queues in their stores, in which restrictions are even introduced - no more than one "Japanese cotton" per visitor.
Boxed Kits
Japanese firms produce many different kits designed primarily for children's entertainment. They invite the child to make Japanese sweets for himself. The set includes powders and molds in which children have to cook food according to the picture on the box. For example, marmalade in the form of animals, ice cream, sushi, chewing candies and much more.
You can buy large boxes of Japanese sweets. These sets include all kinds of sweets, chocolate sticks, rice cakes, chewing sweets, chocolate, and even comic stickers and instant noodles. Also among the sweets may be KitKat - in Japan, this wafer chocolate is produced with very unexpected tastes - green tea, wasabi (Japanese mustard), corn, rum + raisins and others. The contents of the “boxes” may be immediately indicated, or may be packaged by the supplier in random order.