Wagashi in English

There are many special events in the lives of the Japanese, and the country’s confectionery had a strong connection with each. Each celebration in one’s life is marked with the appropriate confectionery. Both sad and happy occasions have their own style of sweet.

For example, confectionery served at a wedding would be in odd numbers such as 3,5,7, owing to the superstition that even things come apart easier than odd things, thus keeping the marriage together. Also these cakes are tied with ceremonial red and white paper strings and are tied in a way not to come apart (keeping the marriage strong.)

Teacakes in a tea-room play a secondary role as a rule. Tea is regarded as the main part, and teacakes are considered not to damage the taste of the tea. The use of the ingredients which have a strong aroma should be avoided. Yuzu(which has a slight lemon fragrance)or something similar would be acceptable.

It is also important to make confectionery that puts importance on a sense of the season. Some confectionery can express this sense by ingredients, others can express this sense by shapes or colors.

As with teacakes, size is also important. Especially in a tea ceremony, confectionery served is not very big.

Confectionery that you can eat in two bites is favorable.

Also, confectionery that is hard to eat should be avoided.

It is also important to dish up teacakes into containers with beautiful shapes. The color and shape of cake tray need to be chosen with much care so it harmonizes with the confectionery. You should choose one that complements the confectionery.

Japanese confectionery tells the arrival  of a season-in the tradition of Japanese confectionery cultivated in the long history, a sense of the season and a special name for the confectionery have been most important. The confectionery that makes you really feel the season at once when you look at the Japanese confectionery or hear the special name of it is desirable, and, that you can see this confectionery only at this season is a base and ideal of the relationship between Japanese confectionery and seasons. Especially, jo-nama sweets, han-nama sweets and nami-nama sweets are the confectionery that has the deepest relationship with seasons(The difference between jo-nama sweets and han-nama sweets is the amount of water. Jo-nama sweets are sophisticated ones and name-nama sweets are ordinary ones.) You can fully enjoy the season with your eyes and ears first, then enjoy the taste.

When confectionery is made with importance on a sense of the season, confectionery that appeals the five senses will be made naturally. However, in today’s busy Japan, people have started to lose touch with the natural changing of the seasons little by little. Therefore it is through this ‘‘seasonal confectionery’’ that we find we are once again able to enjoy nature.

Confectionery is originally from nuts, berries and fruit. People have eaten them since ancient times. Nuts, berries, meat, seafood, and grains were the main food for people at that time. Then, what was the origin of the Japanese confectionery we eat today? It has been said that the origin was originally from Tang confectionery (that was brought from the Chinese Continent with Buddhism at the beginning of the Heian dynasty.)

The Chinese kneaded rice flour or wheat flour to make the shapes of fruit or flowers and fried them with oil. A lot of this confectionery was imported to Japan. Even today, confectionery offerings to the deities and offerings to the dead are the vestiges of it. Based on this Tang confectionery, unique confectionery that suited the Japanese palate was created, using influences from home and abroad.

From the Kamakura to Muromachi Era, vegetarian cooking was brought under the influence of Zen. These customs of drinking tea and having light meal for tea spread. These customs have been deeply connected with confectionery. There were many kinds of refreshments and cakes such as steamed meat dumplings, buns, paozu(steamed hamburger and vegetables buns covered with a wrapping of wheat flour dough), geppei(baked Chinese confectionery with bean paste covered with a wrapping of wheat flour into a circle), hot soup and so on, and later, some that had some sweetness in them got to be recognized as confectionery. People could not get any sugar, and used amazura(a sweetener made from the juice of vines or leaves of an ivy named amazura boiled down) in those days. But of course, amazura is not as sweet as sugar. The development of confectionery putting importance on sweetness was far ahead yet. And, people had already started the cultivation of tea that had strong connection with Japanese confectionery at this time.

From the Muromachi to Azuchimomoyama Era, chanoyu(tea ceremony) was established. As chanoyu was firmly established, a concept of teacakes eaten with tea was born. Teacakes in those days, however, were either not sweet at all or sweetened with only fruit, quite different from today’s cakes.

Around the establishment of chanoyu, during the last part of the Muromachi Era when people traded a lot with Portugal and Spain, something remarkable happened in the history of Japanese confectionery. The confectionery such as sponge cake, small round cookies, confetti, aruheito( a decorative sweet) were introduced and imported from Portugal and Spain.

Japanese confectionery culture that had awakened under the influence of Tang confectionery made remarkable advances by introducing the confectionery from Portugal and Spain into Japan. Until then sugar was very valuable, used not as a seasoning but only as medicine. But, confectionery using sugar came to be imported and Japanese started to recognize sugar as a sweetener, and sugar also started to be imported with the confectionery.

In the Edo Era, chanoyu (tea ceremony) started to catch on in Kyoto, ample sugar started to be available to some extent. And Japanese confectionery that was almost the same as the confectionery we see today began to appear. Especially in Kyoto, people came up with various ideas to make teacakes, and    technique for confectionery improved rapidly. Today these cakes are called   Kyoto confectionery (meaning they are from Kyoto.) While in Edo (Tokyo today) where the culture of the merchant class had its best days,   comparatively mass-produced confectionary was very popular. The time came when many people could eat sweet confectionery at last. Japanese confectionery that had differentiation in Kyoto and Edo, made advances and competition grew between the two (which continues today.)

Still now, some people call the style of Kyoto the one of Kansai and the style of Tokyo the one of Kanto, in both areas customers’ tastes are different, I hear. In the Edo Era, the internal production of sugar started to be researched.

When Japan greeted the Meiji Restoration, long-established stores of Kyoto come to Tokyo with Kyoto-style confectionery. As Tokyo become the capital, Kyoto-style teacakes started to be popular among people in Kanto area, too.

Also at this time, various Western-style confectioneries came to Japan due to Westernization. Especially towns, such as Yokohama and Kobe, which opened their ports to foreign countries, were influenced and remain today as towns of Western confectionery. Milk products such as butter, cream and cheese that were not known well, gradually spread among some and people got used to milk products little by little. Some Japanese confectionery makers started to try to make Western cakes just at this time. As Western-style confectionery became popular and spread among the Japanese, some people started to get skill in Western-style confectionery and make confectionery in a semi-Western style.

*Heian era is from the 8^th century to the 12^th century.

*Kamakura era is from the 12^th century to the 14^th century.

*Muromachi era is from the 14^th century to the 16^th century.

*Azuchimomoyama era is in the 16^th century.

Tango no Sekku is Children’s Day, observed on May 5.

The day was traditionally celebrated as Boy’s Festival. In household across Japan, parents display suits of armor and doll modeled after samurai warrior and carp-shaped streamers hoisted on a tall pole. Kashiwa-mochi-rice cakes are eaten on this day. Kasiwa-mochi is a glutinous rice cake containing sweet bean paste wrapped in Kashiwa-oak leave.

Shichigosan is a festival to celebrate the growth of children. On November 15, girls of seven, boys of five and three-year-old children of either children are taken to the shrines by their parents to give thanks and pray for divine blessing. Children eat Chitose-ame.

Chitose-ame is long red and white stick-shaped candy in a bag with crane and turtle illustrations which symbolize healthy growth and longevity.

Higan is the week centering around the vernal and autumnal equinoxes. During the week, Buddhist temple hold special services and people visit the graves of their ancestors to pay their respects. People offer Ohagi on a household Buddhist alter.

Ohagi is an oval-shaped Japanese sweet made of glutinous rice coated with sweet redbean paste.

Hina-maturi is the Doll’s festival or Girl’s festival observed on March 3.

Graceful dolls of the Emperor and Empress, and noble court people in Heian era costumes are displayed to celebrate the girl’s healthy growth and wish them to be as graceful as Heian nobles.

We eat Hina-arare on this day.

Hina-arare-rice cake cut into roughly cubic chunks, then dried, roasted, and flavored with sugar.

*Heian era is from the 8th century to the 12th century.