Hyōroku mochi
Hyōrokumochi (兵六餅) is a candy which is made and sold by Seika Foods in Kagoshima.
| Type | Confectionery |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Japan |
| Region or state | Kyushu |
| Created by | Seika Foods |
| Main ingredients | Gyūhi (starch syrup, nori, powdered green tea, soybean flour, and whitebean paste) |
Summary
Hyōrokumochi is soft gyūhi candy. Gyūhi is a kind of rice cake. The candy is made of maltose starch syrup, nori, powdered green tea, soybean flour, and whitebean paste. It is shaped into a small cube and wrapped in oblate, which is a thin film of edible starch. Hyōrokumochi can be bought at stores throughout Kyushu. It is currently imported to North America from Japan by JFC International.
History
In 1931, Kagoshima Seika, the predecessor of Seika Foods, started to sell these candy. Hyōrokumochi was named after Ōishi Hyōroku Yumemonogatari, a Kagoshima book written by Japanese writer Mōri Masanao. On the box, there is the picture of a young soldier from Kagoshima wearing a fundoshi, the traditional Japanese undergarment for adult males, made from a length of cotton. At first the company was unable to obtain permission for the packet because the man’s bottom is bare. However Seika Foods insisted that the fundoshi hides everything that needs to be hidden, and so permission was granted.