Japanese Food Tips

Uiro is a rectangular Japanese confection, to be cut up and eaten, made by steaming rice or wheat flour with white or brown sugar. The most common uiro are white, dark brown, or green with matcha. Other types have anko (mashed sweetened red bean paste) and/or chestnuts added. Kyoto's uiro, known as "Minazuki," available only in Kyoto, is famous for its triangular-shaped white uiro topped with sweetened red beans. Most uiro is a little sweet and has a sticky texture. It originated in Hakata or Kyoto, and sometime during the Edo period (1603-1868), the process had spread throughout Japan. Uiro is famous in Odawara, Ise, Kobe, Tokushima, Yamaguchi and Miyazaki, and is especially famous in Nagoya. Each city's uiro differs slightly in ingredients and portions. If you visit those cities, you might want to try the uiro, or you can make it yourself by using the recipes on our website.