These hot days don’t seem to end, do they? Are you all enjoying your summer in good health?
Speaking of summer, Kakigori certainly comes to mind, doesn’t it? Have you enjoyed some shaved ice yet to stay cool this summer?
Kakigori has been enjoyed in Japan for quite a long time now. It appears in the “The Pillow Book,” written by Sei Shonagon in the Heian Period. In an era before the invention of refrigerators, being able to eat ice during the hot summer was a delicacy of sorts, and only the wealthy and nobility could enjoy it. “The Pillow Book” describes Kakigori as: “A dish made of ice that is finely shaved down with a sharp blade and served with a sweet tree or flower syrup.”
Kakigori didn’t become a food of the general public until the Meiji Period. First, the “Korimizu-ten” (Ice Water Shop) was established on Bashamichi in Yokohama, which was also the first shop in Japan to sell ice cream. The owner would shave the ice using the same tool used to shave bonito fish flakes. This shop also offered a few varieties of the shaved ice: “Snow,” which had sugar on top of the shaved ice; “Sleet,” which offered honey as a topping; and “Kintoki,” a shop-special topped with red bean paste.
In modern times, you can also enjoy other countries’ versions of shaved ice in Japan, and boy are there a lot of varieties. My favorite way to eat shaved ice is from a restaurant called “Kanbukuro” in Sakai City, Osaka. Their version is called “Kori Kurumi Mochi” (Ice Walnut Mochi), and I’ve attached a photo for you all to see. This shop has been around since the Kamakura Period as a Japanese confectionary. It was originally named “Izumiya,” but received the name of “Kanbukuro” from Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the Azuchi-Momoyama Period. Originally, it was a famous confection paired with tea called “Walnut Mochi,” but starting in the Meiji Period, they began placing the walnut mochi beneath shaved ice, creating the Ice Walnut Mochi dish. If you have a chance to visit Sakai, Osaka, please try out this dish and enjoy the sweet walnut mochi hidden under the refreshing ice.
※Here is Kanbukuro’s homepage.http://www.kanbukuro.co.jp/
Kakigori is an indispensable summer treat, but be careful not to eat too much and give yourself a brain freeze!
Source: Tokyo College of Sushi and Washoku: The College Headmaster’s One-Dish Course Series.
http:///www.sushi-tokyo.jp/blog-headmaster
Photo source: Tokyo College of Sushi and Washoku: The College Headmaster’s One-Dish Course Series.