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Other Japanese Foods? |
Japanese-English Dictionary of Japanese Culture, by Setsuko Kojima and Gene A. Crane, 1987,
Heian International Publishing Company, Torrance CA
Anecdotal information
By Emy Murakawa
Amanatto – cooked mame (beans, azuki and others) that are subsequently dried and coated with sugar. This is a confection I remember fondly from early childhood days in Japan. In the U.S., my father and I would look forward to being sent some from Japan in our New Year’s package that also included such things as ocha (tea), wakame (dried kelp), and shiitake (dried black mushroom). I remember how excited I was when I found some amanatto for the first time at the Hughes Market on National (now Ralphs). Now a small variety can be found at some of the Japanese markets here. But when I went to Japan, I had a good time going to their large department stores and being able to pick from so many varieties!
Anpan – An is the paste, tsubushi (whole bean) or koshi (strained), made from the azuki bean. Pan is the sweet bread introduced in Japan by the Portuguese. The Japanese assimilated the bread, combined it with the an to make this new Japanese confection modeled after the manju. A further evolution came with the introduction of French crème (what we more commonly call custard) – the cream pan was born.
Manju – one of a type of wagashi, or Japanese pastry. Most Japanese Americans call everything manju, but wagashi includes manju, which is a baked dough with an filling; mochigashi, which is mochi, with an or without (like the pink and white striped ones or the orange squares); and the an- and cream-pans. For Boy’s Day (May 5), there is kashiwa-mochi or manjū which is wrapped in an oak leaf (the oak symbolizing strength). For Girl’s Day (March 3), there is the sakura-mochi or manjū wrapped in a cherry tree leaf, as well as a white, green, and pink mochigashi. The leaves on these respective confections are meant to be eaten.
Shodoku-hana – a small variety of yellow chrysanthemum. These days, the ones I see here are often plastic and purely decorative! I’d always wondered about them and asked my aunt when I went to Japan several years ago. My aunt did not know its original significance, nor have I been able to find any definitive answer elsewhere, but she thought that since aesthetics were such an important part of Japanese food preparation, the shodoku-hana was to add color to otherwise bland looking foods. She said that they were meant to be eaten, and, no, I didn’t tell her that they were now plastic!
Wagashi – a Japanese confection. See manju. There are two types – moist (like yōkan, kanten, manjū, etc.) and dry (like senbei, higashi, etc. Higashi are dry sweets like a rice-powder biscuit or a rice jelly which has been pressed with sugar and dried.).
Can you think of others? It’d be nice to have others contribute to the Cultural Corner, and you are all invited to submit ideas and articles to my attention by e-mail to office@vjcc.com.