Japanese sweets & Dagashi

Japanese sweets are traditional sweets from ancient Japan. It uses ingredients such as rice, mochi, beans, sugar, and agar, and is characterized by its simple yet delicate taste and beautiful appearance. 

Typical Japanese sweets include
"Manju"（饅頭）, "Ohagi"（おはぎ）, and "Taiyaki"（たいやき） using red bean paste, "Zenzai"（ぜんざい）, "Oshiruko"（おしるこ）, and "Kinakomochi"（きなこ餅） using mochi, and sugar-based sweets. There are "yokan"（羊羹）, "mizuyokan"（水羊羹）, "dorayaki"（どらやき）, "castella"（カステラ）, "manju"（饅頭）, "agar jelly"（寒天） and "mizugashi"（水菓子） made with agar.

Western sweets are sweets introduced from the West. It is made with flour, butter, eggs, sugar, etc., and is characterized by its sweet and fragrant taste. Typical Western sweets include cakes, cookies, chocolate, ice cream, puddings, jellies, cream puffs, macarons, eclairs, and tarts.

In addition, in recent years, "Japanese and Western sweets" that combine elements of Japanese and Western sweets have become popular. 

Typical Japanese-Western fusion sweets include "Dorayaki Ice Cream" and "An Butter Sand" using red bean paste, "Matcha Ice Cream" and "Matcha Cookies" using matcha, and "Castella Ice Cream" and "Castella Sand" using castella cake. there is.

Snack food is sweets or junk food that can be eaten as a snack other than a main meal. There are many different types including fried foods, baked goods, and snack bars.

Typical snack foods include potato chips, Umaibo, Jagariko, Tyrol chocolate, Pocky, Pretz, Kinoko no Yama, and Takenoko no Sato. Additionally, traditional Japanese rice crackers and arare are always available at any supermarket.

The characteristics of Japanese snacks are their pleasant texture, exquisite seasoning, and variety. 

There's sure to be a flavor you like.

Umaibo, which everyone in Japan knows, used to be sold for just 10 yen each (for 42 years). In recent years (2022), when the price was raised to 12 yen due to soaring raw material prices, it was featured in the news and many people started buying in bulk before the price went up.

Sales location

Currently, both snacks and dagashi are sold at supermarkets, convenience stores, and 100-yen shops. There used to be shops called "dagashi-ya", but these days you don't see them very often. Therefore, in recent years, the line between snacks and dagashi has become blurred.

Kinds

Snacks tend to be Western-style sweets such as potato chips and Umaibo. On the other hand, dagashi tend to be Japanese-style sweets such as ramune and soybean sticks, as well as traditional sweets such as candy and rice crackers.

Image

Snacks have a strong image of being sweets that can be eaten as snacks or snacks other than the main meal. On the other hand, dagashi has a strong image of being a children's snack or a confectionery for enjoying nostalgic tastes and textures.