(Wagashi no hi) The Day of Japanese Confectionery

(和菓子の日）Wagashi no hi was established by “Zenkoku Wagashi Kyokai” (Japan Wagashi Association) in 1979. It is now observed every year on June 16th.

Wagashi comes in so many shapes and is a wide term for many varieties of Japanese desserts and confectionery as well as sweets eaten with green tea. Wagashi plays an important role in representing the seasons and you may find  motifs used in the confectionery each month  bringing a celebration of nature.

As wagashi day falls during the rainy season known as tsuyu in Japanese I decided this year to make three different Japanese sweets using one prominent ingredient “kuzu root starch” which when cooked turns into a refreshing watery transparent texture.

Before I share with you the recipes I wanted to talk a bit more about what exactly is kuzu some times spelt kudzu and known as kuzuko 葛粉 in Japan and why it’s so healthy.

Hon-kudzu starch is extracted from the roots of the Pueraria lobata plant, commonly known as kudzu, which is a climbing vine related to the pea family which grows wild in the mountains of Japan and East Asia. The process of making kuzu normally starts in December the roots are dug then crushed into a paste. The paste is repeatedly rinsed with water to extract the starch and filtered.This traditional process can take up to four months before all the impurities are drained ready to then be dried, after this the starch is dried for two months. Because the process takes a great deal of time and effort, this makes kuzu extremely valuable. Because of the cost many use potato starch as an alternative in cooking which can take just a few days to make the same amount so is much cheaper. However potato starch doesn’t have the medical benefits kuzu does.

In the macrobiotic diet and (Kanpō 漢方 traditional holistic Japanese medicine) kuzu is prized for having many health benefits from helping stomach illnesses, regulating blood sugar and high blood pressure to comforting cold and flu symptoms plus many more.

Kuzu is a wonderful thickening and jelling agent and is also gluten free. Kuzu root powder doesn’t have a starchy taste like potato starch and when water is added to kuzu and gently heated it thickens and becomes translucent. This makes it ideal to use for desserts especially in the summer when it has a cooling effect.

When you buy kuzu always make sure it’s 100% kuzu. I like to buy mine from either Clearspring or the Wasabi Company use my exclusive discount codes to get money off at their checkouts.

Clearspring Tokyopony15

Wasabi Company Tokyopony for 10% discount

When you buy kuzu it arrives in large chunks crush it into a powder so it dissolves easily.

If using kuzu to thicken soups and sauces always mix a teaspoon with a little water into a paste first before adding it to hot ingredients adding more if needed. Never add directly into a hot liquid.

I am going to use kuzu to make three summer desserts to celebrate not only wagashi day but all summer long.

Recipe 1.

Kuzu miso ice cream with tamari maple roasted cashews.
葛味噌アイスクリーム

I saw Ohsawa macrobiotics using Kuzu root to make ice cream and i decided I wanted to try using it . I added white miso which gives the ice cream a sweet and salty flavour.

Recipe ingredients & Method:

300ml of good quality unsweetened soy milk

x4 tablespoons of maple syrup

12gm of kuzu root powder

x1 tablespoon of sweet white miso paste

For the tamari maple roasted cashews

A tablespoon of cashews mixed with a tablespoon each of tamari,maple syrup and toasted sesame oil then place everything on parchment paper in the oven to roast.

1:Place the kuzu,maple syrup and kuzu root powder in a pan and mix to combine. Keep on a low heat constantly stirring until it becomes the consistency of pouring custard.

2: Pour into a container (I like to use my Nagashikan, stainless steel jelly mould with a removable inner container) but you can use any container you like.

3: Leave the liquid to cool then place the container in the freezer to freeze solid.

4: Remove and cut into cubes and add the cubes to a food processor or blender with the miso. Blend until smooth (you may need to keep stopping to scrape down the sides).

5: Pour the smoothie into a dish and place back into the freezer, half way through freezing take out the dish and give it a stir then put back in the freezer to set solid.

6: Remove a few minutes before serving and then scoop into a dish or add to a waffle cone.

7: Enjoy on its own with tamari maple roasted cashews and a drizzle of maple syrup. Or in a waffle cone chopping the cashews and sprinkling them ontop.

A creaming dessert that tastes so indulgent.

Note: you can use this recipe to try out different flavours try adding matcha to make a matcha ice cream.

 

Kuzukiri 葛切り（くずきり）

Kuzukiri is a traditional Japanese dessert originating in Kyoto and considered a delicacy. Kuzukiri consists of translucent, jelly-like noodles with a delicate sweetness and delightful chewy consistency made from kuzu starch. Served chilled with a brown sugar syrup (kuromitsu), It’s a refreshing and light dessert, perfect for summer.
Although noodles kuzukiri is considered a wagashi and will often be found served in traditional tea shops during the summer as it is extremely refreshing to eat.

When I was on my last trip to Japan I found a dried version in the supermarket these are so easy to make Simply boil the noodles until soft, rinse under cool water, and drain and serve straight away. If you are in Japan maybe you could look for them in the wagashi ingredients isle or visit www.kokorocares.com who sell them on line to order (also check out their other vegan Japanese ingredients they have for sale if you can’t visit Japan yourself to buy hard to find ingredients). If you want to purchase anything from Kokorocares you can use my exclusive discount code TOKYOPONYVEGAN10 at the checkout. 

Serve either chilled in iced water with kuromitsu Okinawan black sugar syrup (recipe below) in a bowl on the side to dip the noodles in tsukemen style or in a bowl with black syrup poured over.

 

Recipe 3.

Kuzumochi & Kuromitsu 葛餅& 黒蜜

Kuzumochi is a traditional summer simple wagashi that resembles a jelly-like mochi cake but is made with kuzu starch instead of glutinous rice flour just adding sugar and water. Served chilled with kinako (toasted ground soybean powder and black sugar syrup known as kuromitsu made with Okinawan black sugar (Kokuto) poured over)

Recipe ingredients & Method :

100gm kuzu root powder

50gm organic caster sugar

500ml cold water

For the topping kinako toasted soybean powder

For the Kuromitsu

50gm of kokuto Okinawa sugar (you can purchase this from The Wasabi Company)

25gm coconut palm sugar

50ml cold water

Add to a pan turn up the heat until it starts to boil turn down the heat and simmer for a few minutes. Pour into a heatproof jug and place in the fridge to cool and thicken.

1: Crush the kuzu into a powder

2: Add to a saucepan with the sugar and water and mix.

3: Turn on the heat and keep stirring the kuzu will start to gel and then thicken. Keep stirring until it turns translucent.

4: Line a container with parchment paper and wet the sides. You don’t have to use parchment but it makes it easier to remove.

5: Pour the kuzu into the container and smooth out the top. Leave in the fridge to set for a few hours along with your kuromitsu.

7: remove and cut into triangles of cubes, serve with kinako and kuromitsu.

Note: again you can add matcha powder to make matcha kuzumochi very popular in Kyoto served with sweet red azuki beans.

You can also find more recipes on my pages using Kuzu. Kuzu tea known as kuzu-yu, soy milk and matcha purin & Gomadofu also known as sesame tofu. I hope you can use this healthy Japanese ingredient in your every day cooking to not only thicken soups and sauces but to maybe try out one of these recipes. You can also find many more wagashi recipes from daifuku to yokan just search wagashi or wagashi no hi for more information and recipes about today.

Have a wonderful summer!