During our training today, our master Akaki Sensei brought us some treats from the ancient land Kyoto. Every place in Japan has its own famous omiyage (お土産) and it is the habit of a Japanese person to bring back omiyage whenever they travel. From the different journeys we have taken, we’ve noticed that okashi (お菓子) has got to be the most common omiyage. For example, Kamaruka has its famous chicken shaped cookies and Kyoto has its famous Yatsuhashi (八つ橋). However, no matter where you are, you can bet your life that you will find something that has a red bean filling. It is the most popular filling for okashi hands down.
We were told by our master that Yatsuhashi is the most popular omiyage in Kyoto. Yatsuhashi are traditional Japanese confectionaries that come in a triangular shape and can be filled with different fillings such as cinnamon, matcha and red bean paste etc. The ones we had were filled with red bean paste. Also, the wrap is raw and unbaked, which gives it a nice soft and doughy texture. There is nothing quite like that in western sweets.
Japanese omiyage okashi have two distinctive characteristics. One is that they are ALWAYS , ALWAYS,ALWAYS packed nicely and beautifully. Yes, it’s a trap. Since not all are created equally, not all are delicious so one is easily deceived by the appearance of the okashi. As you can see in the pictures, there is the attractive exterior paper wrapping, then the box, and inside the box the sweets are wrapped in plastic. Even the paper bag that they put the omiyage in is well designed. We are amazed by the effort that is put into the presentation of it all. The next characteristic is the freshness of the product. There is always an expiry date on the package. As you can see, the expiry date of this particular box of Yatsuhashi is 5.28.13. We have yet to find something with an expiry date past 4 months of the date of purchase. Along with the attractive packaging, how can you not want to buy it?
Let's Sweeten Things Up 