Moti and choux cream, Japanese sweets, gain space in the country – 06/26/2023 – Food

Rice, beans, miso, matcha and seaweed gelatin. These ingredients are not usually associated with desserts, but they are the basis of Japanese confectionery, which has gained space in Brazil, a country that exaggerates in sugar.

Restaurants specializing in these typical sweets popped up in São Paulo last year, such as Motchimu, a brand owned by sushi chef Tsuyoshi Murakami dedicated to moti, a sweet glutinous rice ball, and Daruma, a five-story Asian emporium with a Japanese dessert café, both in the Jardins district. Taiyaki, a sweet in the shape of a fish, is one of the latest trends.

The confectionery from Japan, whose migration to Brazil completes 115 years this month, is divided into two areas. The so-called wagashi (“wa” refers to the Japanese country and “gashi” means sweet) is the traditional one, which uses typical ingredients. Yogashi (“yo” means what comes from the West) is an adaptation of international patisserie, mainly French, to the Japanese palate.

In both cases, the result is light desserts, with little sugar and a delicate appearance. Items like condensed milk, powdered milk and hazelnut cream go far.

“Brazil is culturally based on sugar cane. We are used to recipes loaded with sugar. Japanese recipes are lighter. The idea is to value the original flavor of the ingredient, like a fruit”, says Telma Shiraishi, chef at the restaurant Aizomê is a Goodwill Ambassador for the Promotion of Japanese Cuisine, a title granted by the Japanese government.

The novelty in this scenario, she says, is the introduction of Japanese ingredients to the Brazilian menu, which consumes about 80 grams of sugar per day – the recommended amount is 25 to 50 grams daily, according to the World Health Organization.

Shiraishi says that the Japanese usually reserve a sweetie just for a special moment. “Traditionally, they don’t have dessert at the end of the meal. The confectionery is reserved for a moment of celebration, like in popular festivals, or for afternoon tea”, he says.

It was at such Asian festivals that pastry chef Cesar Yukio, now a reference in the field, started selling his sweets. Specializing in yogashi, in 2019 he opened the Hanami confectionery, in Tatuapé, in the east zone. The house has grown so much that Yukio will close it in September to move to a bigger kitchen.

He still supplies his sweets and signs the dessert menu of other restaurants in the capital of São Paulo, such as Kinoshita, Jojo Ramen and Aizomê, from Shiraishi, where he started his career.

One of Hanami’s flagships is choux cream, a delicacy of French origin, but which became popular in Japan and gained oriental adaptations. The dough has a crispy crust and vanilla filling — over there, flavors like matcha and caramel with miso are available at prices ranging from R$12 to R$15 each.

Another frequent order is the ichigo shortcake, a chiffon pastry cake covered and stuffed with whipped cream and strawberries — so light, it can be off-putting to anyone looking for a sweetened dessert. “I was surprised by the number of non-Asian people who order this cake, as they say it’s a sweet that doesn’t get heavy. That’s why they tend to eat more”, says Yukio. A slice costs R$ 18.

Also specializing in the yogashi technique, pastry chef Vivianne Wakuda has been making Japanese sweets for a decade. She started by making delicacies like choux cream at home, and today she has a store in the Moema neighborhood, in the south zone, where she sells around 10,000 items a month.

In the recipes, Wakuda introduced ingredients such as cupuaçu and cumaru and made some adaptations for Brazilian tastes. “I’m Brazilian, so I miss a sweetie,” says the pastry chef, who specialized in Japan.

In these ten years, she saw the profile of customers change, no longer just the community of Asian descent. “Confectionery in this style has only become popular because the public has matured in relation to sugar”, she says.

According to the three chefs, the greater acceptance of these sweets is also related to a perception that they are healthier. “A sweet like this will weigh less on the conscience. But none of this would be conquered if it weren’t very tasty”, says Shiraishi.

Japanese confectionery glossary

• Anko: sweet adzuki bean paste
• dorayaki: pancake stuffed with sweet bean paste
• moti (or mochi): sweet dumpling made from rice and water
• Ichigo shortcake: strawberry cake (“ichigo” in Japanese)
• Kanten: seaweed-based gelatin, also known as agar-agar
• Taiyaki: fish-shaped pancake dough, usually filled with sweet bean paste
• yokan: delicacy made from sweet bean paste and agar-agar, usually in block form
• yogashi: Japanese confectionery with western influences
• yuzu: citrus fruit often used in Japanese recipes
• wagashi: traditional Japanese confectionery