Japanese pastries: description, recipes

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Geisha, kimono, samurai, ikebana, hoku - all this is Japan. Sake, sushi and rolls are also the Land of the Rising Sun. But “Hokkaido”, “Castella”, tayaki are not topographical names. This is a traditional Japanese pastry made from ingredients unusual for a simple European. And oddly enough, the products are very tasty and original.

Japanese food culture

The aesthetics and beauty of the Land of the Rising Sun has been known for centuries. The tradition to do everything slowly and majestically ennobles any action. This also applies to food culture. The feast of the Japanese is not only a process of physical saturation. All the food of the inhabitants of the island state is characterized by grace and charm. What is the Japanese tea ceremony worth. The unhurried preparation and tasting of a fragrant drink is accompanied by thoughtful reflections on the laws of the universe. An excellent addition to the ritual is Japanese pastries: sakis, chocolate cake, etc.

The main difference between Japanese food is the careful selection of products. In the creation of those ingredients that do not need long cooking. After all, he althy food is saturated with vitamins and microelements, which are lost in the process of serious heat treatment. The main products in the island nation are rice and fish. It is this combination that enriches the body with useful vitamins and microelements, which promise a person good he alth, fight back major diseases and give longevity. The Japanese are one of the few nations in the world that can boast of a long human lifespan. This country has the highest rate on Earth, which symbolizes the specific number of citizens who have crossed the centennial milestone.

Traditional tableware of the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun

Japan is a state of original customs. One of the interesting traditions of the country is the selection of tableware according to the season. The yellow and green range of cups and bowls is exhibited in the summer, yellow-red shades are used mainly in the fall. All dishes are made of natural materials - clay, metal, wood.

The varieties of tableware in Japan are:

• Bowls for soup or rice – Van. Such vessels are necessarily equipped with a lid, which helps to keep the aroma and heat of food.
• Hati, or serving cups, are used for direct eating. Distinguished by the absence of a lid, large diameter andshallower depth.
• The Japanese serve tea in tyavans - special bowls.
• For sauces, vinegar, tea or sake, original spout cups are used.
• Soba-teko is a small cup for noodles.

• Japanese side dishes (vegetables and seafood) served on a high leg platter.
• On special occasions, water, sake or tea is served in a ceramic teapot.
• A set of Japanese tableware was not complete without the main item - hashi sticks.
• All Japanese pastries and food and utensils are served on round or square trays.

Why do Japanese people eat with chopsticks?

The main cutlery of East Asians are sticks. Like many other famous inventions, they were invented in China. The first sticks resembled tongs and were made of bamboo. The item was convenient to take food and use for cooking. The first sticks were long enough so that the cook would not burn himself while turning over the ingredients of the dish. Over time, the device was divided into two types. The chopsticks, about 38 cm long, are used for cooking, while the shorter ones (25 cm) are for eating.

Japanese sticks (hashi) are made mainly from natural wood - bamboo, cypress, maple or plum. The inhabitants of this country are sickened to use iron spoons and forks. In addition, such an object is easy to cut in the forest from a tree branch. This is how the first sticks appeared in ancient China.

Hashi are of two types: dining rooms (square insection), and kitchen - round. Each person has their own set of wands. It is not customary to use someone else's hashi in Japan.

Besides ease of manufacture, there is another reason for using chopsticks as cutlery. The fact is that iron spoons and forks are perceived by Asians as a symbol of greed and violence. A spoon can hold much more food than you can eat at one time. With chopsticks, it is possible to capture small portions, which favorably affects digestion. Maybe that's why you rarely meet fat people in Japan?

Another reason to use chopsticks is the development of fine motor skills of the hand, which favorably affects the intellect. Little Japanese are taught to hashi from early childhood. That is why babies excel in the development of their European peers.

Features of Japanese desserts

Traditional sweets from the descendants of the samurai are called "wagashi" and are a combination of ingredients that at first glance do not match at all. It is rather strange to try a dessert that includes seaweed, rice and strawberries, or a combination of beans, mint and agar-agar. However, strange concoctions are incredibly tasty.

The peculiarity of Japanese desserts is that the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun use in cooking all the gifts of the meager nature of their homeland. The basis of many sweets, as well as Japanese fresh pastries, is rice and its various modifications. Also, the composition of sweets includes legumes (mainly red adzuki beans), sweet potato,chestnuts, buckwheat and wheat flour. Desserts are not complete without seasonal berries - strawberries, tansy, wild strawberries.

Japanese Bean Cookies Step by Step Recipe

Azuki walnut shortcakes are quite original. Baking is easy to prepare and accessible even to a beginner in the field of confectionery.

Bean biscuits include:

• apple - 1 piece;
• adzuki - 220g;
• cottage cheese - 150 g;
• egg - 1 pc.;
• whole wheat flour - 170g;
• cornstarch - 30g;
• baking powder - 7g;
• walnuts - 35g;
• cane sugar - 100g;
• S alt.

This Japanese pastry takes only 1 hour and 10 minutes to make. First, the red beans are boiled and allowed to cool. Two halves of an apple need to be baked in the microwave for four minutes. Grind adzuki in a blender, gradually adding a baked apple, cottage cheese, raw egg, sugar. Separately mix nuts, flour, starch and baking powder. Combine all the ingredients and mix well until a dough-like substance is formed. S alt to taste. On a baking sheet lined with parchment, put the cookies with a spoon and decorate with halves of nuts. Bake at 180°C for 15 minutes.

Easy Japanese Hokkaido Milk Bread Baking Recipe

This delicious bread can be safely classified as a dessert. How else to call a soft, fragrant crumb in a crispy crust, which cannot be cut with a knife, but only pinched off with your fingers? It's not even bread, but a tender bun.

To cookHokkaido will require very little time and effort. Like all products of Japanese cuisine, pastries are simple and concise, but nevertheless exquisite and original.

Flour brew consists of 75 ml of water, 75 ml of milk and 2 tbsp. with a heap of flour. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly and brew until a paste, not forgetting to stir constantly. Cool.

Next, prepare the dough, consisting of flour brew, 120 ml of milk, 1 egg, 60 g of sugar, 1 tsp. s alt, 5 g dry yeast, 350 g flour, 1 tbsp. l. powdered milk and 30 g of soft butter. First, combine tea leaves, egg and milk, add yeast and mix until smooth. Separately combine flour, milk powder and sugar, add the mixture to the liquid mass and knead well. While kneading, gradually add oil and s alt. Put the finished dough in a deep container and leave for two hours. Then knead the mass, divide into four equal parts, from which roll the balls. Roll each sphere into oval cakes half a centimeter thick. Visually divide the cake into three parts and fold it into an “envelope”. Roll out each "envelope" from the back to a thickness of 0.5 cm. Roll the resulting cake into a snail. Do the same with the rest of the dough.

Put the parchment greased with vegetable oil into the form. Transfer the cooked “snails” to the paper, cover with a clean cloth and leave warm for 1-1.5 hours. Before baking, "Hokkaido" grease with a mixture of yolk and 1 tbsp. l. milk. Bake at 170°C(preheat the oven), 35-40 minutes. Remove the finished bread from the pan and cool completely.

Biscuit "Castella" - the pinnacle of pastry craftsmanship

Japanese biscuit "Castella" is considered a true culinary masterpiece. Baking itself came to Japan from Portugal in the distant 16th century. Soon, the children of the samurai fell in love with it so much that, having changed it somewhat, they began to consider Castella a traditional Japanese pastry. The biscuit recipe is uncomplicated, and the product with dignity becomes an adornment of any tea ceremony.

To prepare Castella you will need:

• 8 chicken eggs;
• 300g brown sugar;
• 200g wheat flour;
• 100g milk;
• 4 tbsp. l. honey.

Following the instructions, you can get a ready-made biscuit in just an hour.

A prerequisite for baking is sifting flour three (!) times. Separately combine honey with milk and mix thoroughly. In a steam bath, beat eggs with sugar for 15 minutes. Beat the egg mixture in a blender until completely cooled. Gradually add milk with honey. Then carefully add the flour, stirring with a silicone spatula.

Bake the finished dough in a form lined with parchment at a temperature of 180 ° C for 50 minutes. A biscuit is considered ready if a wooden skewer inserted into it remains dry to the touch. Place the hot Castella in a plastic bag (or wrap in cling film) to make the pastry more moist and dense.

Green tea and flour roll: two ingredients in one Japanese pastry

Descendants of samurai also love desserts with delicate creams. Green tea roll is such a sweetness. It is noteworthy that the dessert is almost not sweet, but nevertheless very tasty.

For the test you will need:

• eggs (3 pcs),
• sugar (90 g),
• flour (75 g),
• Japanese green tea powder (3 tsp),
• hot milk (2 tablespoons).

The cream includes:

• cream (50 ml),
• Japanese green tea powder (1 tsp),
• sugar (1 tbsp.).

Beat eggs and sugar with a mixer until smooth. Heat the mixture in a water bath to 36-37 °C. Separately, mix the flour with tea and sift twice to oxygenate.

Beat the egg mixture again until foamy. Gently fold in the flour and tea, stirring gently. Add milk. The result should be a homogeneous substance.

Line a square shape with parchment, pour the finished dough and bake in a preheated oven at 200 ° C for 5-10 minutes.

Remove the cake from the mold only after it has completely cooled down.

For cream, whip cream and sugar, gradually adding tea.

Put the cream on the cooled cake, roll up the roll. Pack the product in parchment and place in the refrigerator for a while.

Tayaki cookies are a favorite delicacy of children and adults with a history

This sweet was invented over a hundred years ago. Namebaking means "baked sea bream" - an incredible delicacy of the time. Maybe that's why the cookie is shaped like a fish? And the syllable "tai" is consonant with the Japanese word "medetai", which means happiness and well-being. That is why tayaki eat to attract good luck.

There are many recipes for Japanese pastries with photos for clarity. But they are all similar in the main ingredients of cookies. Tayaki is made from waffle dough with a variety of fillings, from sweet beans, custard and chocolate, to snack bars with cheese, sausages, etc. A special condition is the obligatory presence of a form in the form of a fish (taiyaki).

For the test you will need:

• wheat flour (2 tbsp),
• water (1 cup),
• sugar (2 tablespoons),
• fine s alt (1 tsp),
• soda (0.5 tsp),
• vegetable oil for greasing the mold.

Mix flour, sugar, water and s alt, mix until smooth, gradually adding soda.

Cookies are cooked on the stove. We warm up the form in the form of fish to the optimum (but not hot) temperature on both sides. Lubricate the heated container with oil, put the dough in a thin layer on the bottom. Top with the filling of your choice, and pour the second layer of dough. Bake cookies in a closed form on an open fire for 5 minutes. If the tayaki is not ready, you need to turn the container over and continue baking on the other side. Do not remove the finished Japanese pastry from the mold immediately, but let it cool thoroughly.