Karukan

For the village in Iran, see Karukan, Iran.
Karukan
Type Confectionery
Place of origin Japan
Main ingredients Rice flour, sugar, Japanese yam, water, red bean paste
Cookbook: Karukan  Media: Karukan
Karukan manjū

Karukan (軽羹) is a Japanese confection from Kyushu. The origin of the name is "light" (軽) yokan (羹). Originally, karukan was “saomono gashi” which is traditional confection in the form of long block but “karukan manjū” which is filled with red bean paste has become the norm in recent years.

Preparation

Karukan is made from karukan rice flour powder, sugar, and grated Japanese yam. Water is added to the blended ingredients and the mixture is then kneaded and steamed. It is like an elastic white sponge.[1]

History

Karukan appeared in during the rule of the Satsuma Clan from 1686-1715. The factor in the birth of karukan in Satsuma Clan is that yams which are the main ingredient of karukan grow wild and it is easy to get sugar which is made in Ryukyu and the Amami Islands. Another theory says that karukan was invented in 1854 by the confectioner who was invited by Shimazu Nariakira, the leader of Satsuma clan. And fukuregashi, a kind of steamed cake with brown sugar, flour and baking soda, has also been produced in the area for a time. It is said that karukan was based on fukuregashi.

Karukan is made at many confectioneries in Kagoshima. It is sold widely in Miyazaki Prefecture and it is also made there. Confectioneries in Beppu, Oita, have been producing and selling karukan since 1952. It is a famous souvenir in Beppu. Also, there are some factories which produce and sell karukan in Fukuoka Prefecture.

See also

References

  1. "邩\". japansf.net. Retrieved 30 August 2015.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, November 01, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.