Japanese Food Tips

Uguisu-mochi and sakura-mochi are sold in the early spring. Uguisu-mochi is a Japanese sweet which has anko (mashed sweetened red bean paste) wrapped inside gyuhi (soft mochi) and which is coated with green powder. Uguisu-mochi was named after the color and shape of the bush warbler (uguisu-dori). The song of a bush warbler denotes the coming of spring in Japan. Sakura-mochi, another Japanese sweet, was named after cherry blossoms (sakura). There are two types - Kanto-style (including Tokyo, Yokohama, Narita, etc) and Kansai-style (including Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Kobe, etc). Kanto-style is called chyomeiji. It has anko (mashed sweetened red bean paste) wrapped inside pink dough, which is then wrapped in salted leaves of cherry blossom trees. Kansai-style is called domyoji. It has anko (mashed sweetened red bean paste) wrapped inside a confection which is made from domyoji powder (made from glutinous mochi rice) and then wrapped in salted leaves of cherry blossom trees. By the way, the sakura leaves can be eaten. If you have the chance to eat uguisu-mochi or sakura-mochi in Japan in the spring, you can feel Japanese spring along with them.