These Japanese Desserts Need To Be Seen (And Eaten) To Be Believed
Go Beyond.
Nowhere does outrageous desserts quite like Japan. Sweet, salty, sour or savoury; there’s a mouth-watering dessert with your name on it. But, for every super-jiggly souffle pancake or raindrop cake, there’s another lesser known (but no less amazing) dessert worth trying.
If you want to eat your way around Japan properly, you need to go beyond your Instagram feed, and even your friend’s holiday recommendations, to uncover the really good stuff.
From sweet golden-brown Okinawan donuts to colourful Anmitsu bowls that look almost too good to eat, here are six incredible Japanese desserts to put on your radar.
#1. Anmitsu: Your new favourite summer treat
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Like sticky date pudding in winter and soft serve ice-cream that melts down your arm in spring, some desserts just go hand-in-hand with the season. Anmitsu is one of them.
Perfect on a hot and humid summer’s day, Anmitsu is a traditional dessert which looks a bit like an acai bowl. It’s made of small cubes of agar jelly topped with colourful ingredients like fresh fruit slices, red bean paste, boiled peas, and sometimes even small balls of mochi (a type of rice cake).
It’s often served with a pot of sticky black syrup, meaning you can dial up the sweetness.
#2. Sata-andagi: The Okinawan donut
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The island of Okinawa is a sub-tropical paradise of sandy beaches, emerald palm trees, and laid-back seaside villages. It’s also the birthplace of karate, attracting martial arts fans from around the globe. But, there’s a much tastier reason to visit the island, too – donuts.
Sata-andagi, better known as the Okinawan donut, is a deliciously sweet snack made from eggs, flour, and brown sugar, which is rolled into a ball and then deep-fried to golden perfection. You’ll find them sold absolutely everywhere in Okinawa.
As the little balls fry, they crack to form lines that are said to make them look like happy, smiling faces (this may require a little imagination). As a result, they’re often given to friends and family as good luck gifts, making them a perfect treat to bring back home.
#3. Shiruko: The dessert soup
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If it’s a warming winter treat you’re after, you can’t go past Shiruko dessert soup.
This sweet porridge of boiled and crushed azuki beans is served hot and often comes topped with a ball of mochi, a scoop of ice-cream, or some little chewy rice dumplings like dango.
There are a few local variations out there, too, including some made with a bean paste that creates a thick soup, and others with a watery consistency with minimal crushing. On the island of Okinawa, you’ll find Zenzai, which has the beans served over crushed ice.
#4. Ningyo-yaki: Cute enough to eat
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The Japanese are renowned for loving all things cute, with everything from music and art to clothing and anime characters designed to be as cute, or kawaii, as the Japanese say, as possible. When it comes to food, there’s a kawaii-doscope of amazing treats out there.
One of the most popular is Ningyo-yaki, which can be found right across the country. These sponge-like snacks are made from a batter of flour, eggs, and sugar water, which is poured into cast iron moulds shaped like cats, birds, buildings, and even Pikachu, and baked.
Red bean paste is the most common filling, but you can often find versions filled with gooey chocolate, vanilla custard, or even purple sweet potato (trust us, it’s really good!).
#5. Shibuya Honey Toast: The bee’s knees
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Don’t be fooled by the name – this is not just a piece of toast drizzled with honey. It’s actually a small cube of toasted bread filled with tasty toppings like strawberries and cream, whipped cream and chocolate sauce, and ribbons of delicious gooey honey.
The trendy Tokyo neighbourhood of Shibuya is home to some of the best cafes for honey toast, including the Squall Cafe Shinjuku and Cafe & Bakery Miyabi Jinbocho. Whichever you choose, it’s guaranteed you’ll never look at honey toast the same way again.
#6. Hokkaido soft serve: One ice-cream to rule them all
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Japan’s northernmost main island of Hokkaido is prime dairy country. As a result, it’s developed a huge international reputation for its dairy products, which include creamy cheeses and smooth butter. However, it’s the local ice-cream you need to bite into.
Hokkaido soft serve is the softest and fluffiest ice-cream you’ve ever eaten!
Start with the basic vanilla soft serve first, then move on to variations like the famous seven-tiered rainbow soft serve in Otaru, the seriously amazing sweet corn soft serve at Hoshino Tomamu Resort, or alcoholic cocktails topped with soft-serve at Milk Mura in Susukino.
Wherever you go and whatever the season, you’ll be amazed by the delicious desserts Japan has to offer. Take the road less travelled, and you might just discover the next big thing.
This article originally appeared on Junkee.
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(Lead image: City Foodsters / Flickr)