Sweets
Kanrobai
Kanrobai — green plums preserved in sugar and wrapped in salted shiso leaves
A plum sweet from Ogose, a town long known for plum growing since the Nanboku-cho era. Green plums are de-bittered, sugared, wrapped in shiso leaves soaked in plum vinegar, and left to mature in the fridge for about a month.
- Origin: Saitama Ogose
- About 50 km northwest of Tokyo
Lineage
What it's made of
Pitted green plums, wrapped in red shiso leaves, are steeped in sugar and their own syrup for this confection. The plum's crisp tartness meets the fragrance of shiso and the sweetness of sugar, keeping a satisfying crunch in every bite, with the plum's aroma rising gently as each piece is eaten.
How it's made
Green plums are soaked in water for a long time to remove bitterness, then pitted and packed in sugar. Red shiso leaves are steeped in plum vinegar before being wrapped around the plums, which are then steeped further in sugar and their own syrup. The syrup that emerges is sometimes diluted with water and drunk, and the steeping time is said to shift the balance of tartness and sweetness.
Why it took this shape
The town, known for its fine plums, is said to have planted its orchards from trees brought in during the Nanboku-cho period, refining its cultivation over generations. Made only while the plums are still crisp, this confection is said to be a seasonal, hands-on craft tied to a short harvest window, with each household said to shape it slightly differently.
Before You Go
- How to shop in a depachika (department store food hall)A guide to browsing prepared foods and bento, choosing wagashi as a gift with a good shelf life, sampling etiquette, end-of-day discounts, asking for cold packs and wrapping, and finding your way around a depachika floor.
- At Kissaten, Cafes, and Kanmi-DokoroThe difference between jun-kissa and chain cafes, the morning-set custom, and kanmi-dokoro staples like anmitsu and zenzai.
Dishes in the same style
- Abekawa MochiFresh-pounded rice cake is dusted in soybean flour mixed with sugar. Named for the Abe River, it's said to have been famous among Tokaido travelers as a teahouse specialty and to appear in the travel novel Tokaidochu Hizakurige.
- Iga ManjuSweet bean paste is wrapped in rice flour dough, then coated with dyed sticky rice grains. One account ties the name to the grains' resemblance to a chestnut's spiny husk, and in the western Mikawa region it's said to be offered to Hina dolls at the Doll Festival.
Ingredients and dishes from this land
Also from Saitama
- Sakekasu Miso RamenA winter-only ramen from Ageo City, where sake lees from a long-running local brewery are worked into a Chinese restaurant's miso broth. The lees' depth and aroma layer over the miso's savoriness, leaving a mellow finish that warms the body in the cold months.
- Dojo NiPond loach caught in the paddies of eastern Saitama, simmered sweet and savory with shaved burdock, from a land fed by the Arakawa and Tone rivers. Rich in nutrients, it was valued as a tonic and a food for pregnant women.
- Gyoda Furai"Furai" from around Gyoda, Saitama, despite its name, isn't fried — it's grilled. Chopped scallion and pork go on a wheat-flour batter cooked on a griddle, an okonomiyaki-like snack said to have caught on with the women working the town's tabi-sock factories.
- Higashimatsuyama YakitoriPork cheek grilled over charcoal and brushed with a spicy miso sauce.
- HiyajiruSesame and miso ground in a mortar, mixed with summer vegetables like cucumber and shiso, then chilled with cold water. It serves as a dipping broth for udon in noodle-loving Saitama, and Kawajima town calls it suttate.
- Iga ManjuA sweet bean bun wrapped in red rice and steamed, said to originate in Konosu. Named for its resemblance to a spiky chestnut burr, it balances a sweet-salty flavor with a chewy bite.