Japan is popular for its various desserts and snacks, which are colorful and flavorful.
Many Japanese snacks and desserts are not only colorful and exotic in appearance, but have a strong tradition behind them. Japanese snacks include items like Pocky, balls filled with sweet bean paste, or green tea ice cream. Some Western-developed desserts like certain cakes or ice cream contain ingredients and combinations that come from Japan.
Kamboke
Kamboke is a traditional sweet that has been around for almost 1,000 years, according to Facts and Details online. Kamboke contains steamed white fish that is mashed into a paste, colored and seasoned.
Ice Cream & Shaved Ice
Green tea ice cream is popular in Japan.
Green tea-flavored ice cream and shaved ices flavored with fruit syrup or bean paste are summer treats in Japan. Shaved ice and ice cream in Japan also can contain more unusual items such as chili peppers, diced fish, beer flavor or orchids.
Mochi
Mochi is made from pounded rice rolled into balls.
Mochi is a chewy rice cake in the shape of a flattened ball. Mochi is made from pounded rice and has been around for 1,000 years in Japanese culture. Japanese people eat mochi raw or cooked and leave it as an offering to the gods at shrines.
Sweet Bean Paste
Sweet bean paste, or adzuki bean paste is an ingredient in Japanese desserts. Bean paste is not super sweet, but it fills many pastries instead of chocolate or cream. Bean paste makes for a good snack by itself and is also placed in buns, rice balls or other dishes.
Pocky
Pocky is a brand-name classic snack that people in Japan and overseas alike enjoy. According to Tokyo Top Guide, Pocky are biscuit sticks dipped in chocolate, almond crush, strawberry and other tasty flavors.
Gummy and Hard Candy
Sakura and Kasugai are two candy brands that make gummy and hard candies in exotic fruit flavors. Many Japanese hard candies start out hard and sour but end up having a gummy or chewy consistency. Flavors like melon, plum and even soy sauce flavors are common.
Yakitori Street Food
Yakitori or grilled meat on a stick is a popular Japanese street snack food.
Quick street food, such as grilled chicken, vegetables or other items on a stick are snack foods throughout Japan. Customers also enjoy seafood dumplings on sticks. Octopus dumplings are quite popular in Osaka.
Sembei
Rice crackers from Japan come in many flavors and have been a traditional snack for a long time.
Japanese rice crackers, or sembei, are a frequent snack in Japan. According to Bento.com, sembei are flavored with soy sauce, dried seaweed, kelp, sesame seeds and flavors like cheese, chocolate and kimchee. Sembei are typically large but also come in bite-sized portions.
Tags: bean paste, Bean paste, been around, flavored with, from Japan, from pounded