In actuality, there are no real “traditional” Japanese desserts in the western sense of the word. Japanese “desserts” today are in fact quite modern. Many of the things that we perceive to be Japanese desserts are in actual fact only recent phenomena. They are either perversions of older recipes or fusions born from foreign influence. The origin of the Japanese desserts we have today starts with wagashi.
Wagashi
The original Japanese sweets are called wagashi, which more or less translates as “Japanese sweets”, surprisingly. Though it would be inaccurate to call them desserts as they were never intended to be eaten after a meal in the western manner. The Japanese fondness for wagashi developed as part of the Japanese tea ceremony. The sweets were originally taken prior to drinking as a way to counter the bitterness of the tea.
Wagashi takes many forms, presentation being of the utmost importance. The best are almost perceived as small pieces of abstract art. The ingredients, colours and forms are used to convey both the season, occasion and mood. Wagashi can incorporate a vast array of ingredients. Many of these ingredient you will find are not only delicious and natural, but also very healthy. However there is a core set of ingredients which you will still find commonly used in most Japanese desserts today.
Mochi.
Pounded rice cake. This is the bedrock of all traditional confectionery. It’s hard to explain as it bears little comparison to any other food. Because of its very subtle taste it is very versatile and almost any other flavour can be imposed upon it. Being used for sweet and savoury dishes, mochi is mostly enjoyed for it texture. There is something almost erotic about eating this soft, chewy white food. In Japan a beautiful woman is someone who is considered to have “mochihada”. Which means “as skin as soft as mochi”.
Anko.
Red bean paste. To the western palate the idea that beans can be considered as a confectionery is quite hard to accept (unless you are talking about jelly beans). On the contrary it is a perfect sweet. Made from the red azuki bean, anko can be used with anything from shaved ice to doughnuts. It comes in two forms either koshian (fine) or tsubuan (lumpy).
Kinako.
Bean powder. Again this is also a healthy ingredient made from toasted soya beans. However, it is entirely different from anko. This powdery tan-coloured ingredient is often used as a covering for mochi, though it can also be used as a delicious,