Imagawayaki Ph Sandwich Pancake

           

Yesterday, I was not able to buy hopia (it is a well-known Filipino-Chinese snack, more like a sweet savory pastry, with filling inside).

I searched on the internet today about the Japanese dessert called Wagashi but I couldn't find any store. I want to try it out because I was curious of its taste and I am currently watching a Japanese drama entitled Cursed in Love, which is about that Japanese dessert.  I found one online but they already closed and halted their operations now. 

I was lead to a Japanese cake Facebook page online, named Imagawayaki Ph. The owners are Filipinos, namely Mr. Albert Arevalo. I forgot the name of the his business partner, I just saw their video online and their business story. This well known snack is also popular in Japan. Seeing this snack online reminded me of the movie Red Bean. I ordered 12 pieces. The store has a promo today of 10% discount. My husband ordered various flavor namely oreo, yema (custard),  ube cheese (purple yam) and choco peanut. I ordered the OG bestseller which is the red bean, and I also tried their macha. 

I remember I had another pancake dessert before called Dorayaki, it also has a red bean filling. For more information regarding the Imagawayaki dessert read below. I got the information through Wikipedia.

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Imagawayaki (今川焼き) is a Japanese dessert often found at Japanese festivals as well as outside Japan, in countries such as Taiwan and South Korea. It is made of batter in a special pan (similar to a waffle iron but without the honeycomb pattern), and filled with sweet azuki bean paste, although it is becoming increasingly popular to use a wider variety of fillings such as vanilla custard, different fruit custards and preserves, curry, different meat and vegetable fillings, potato and mayonnaise. Imagawayaki are similar to dorayaki, but the latter are two separate pancakes sandwiched around the filling after cooking, and are often served cold.

Imagawayaki began to be sold near the Kanda's Imagawabashi Bridge during the An'ei era (1772–1781) of the Edo period (1603–1867). The name imagawayaki originates from this time.

Imagawayaki have been known by various names throughout different eras. Names also vary regionally, and some varieties sold only in certain stores have their own names.

Ōban-yaki (大判焼き) – Kansai region.

Kaiten-yaki (回転焼き) or Kaiten manjū (回転饅頭) – Kansai and Kyūshū region.

Nijū-yaki (二重焼き)

Koban-yaki (小判焼き)

Gishi-yaki (義士焼き)

Tomoe-yaki (巴焼き)

Taiko-yaki (太鼓焼き) or Taiko manjū (太鼓饅頭)

Bunka-yaki (文化焼き)

Taishō-yaki (大正焼き)

Jiyū-yaki (自由焼き)

Fūfu manjū (夫婦饅頭) or Fū man (フーマン)

Oyaki (おやき) – some of Aomori Prefecture and Hokkaidō, and different from the oyaki of Nagano Prefecture.

Gozasōrō (御座候) – product name for imagawayaki produced by Gozasōrō Inc, established in 1950 in Himeji. It means "thank you for the purchase" in an archaic style.

Higiri-yaki (ひぎりやき) – product name for imagawayakiproduced by Sawai Honpo Inc in Ehime. It originates in Higiri jizō near the Matsuyama Station.

Jiman'yaki (自慢焼き) – product name for imagawayaki used by the Fuji Ice shop in Nagano.

Fukkō-yaki (復興焼き, "revival yaki") – in the song on the occasion of the revival after the Great Kantō earthquake in 1923, is mentioned that imagawayaki was renamed fukkōyaki.

(source: Wikipedia)

Movie Review: Sweet Bean (あん, An)

      

I really love this movie! This movie diverts from the usual popular movies plot, like romance, action, and suspense films. It falls into the drama category, and sort of a slice of life film. It is also a good film, and has an advocacy awareness. So it is really worth watching.

    This film is about a man who manages a small dorayaki shop. (What is dorayaki? It is a pancake that is filled with sweetened red-bean paste), and about an elderly woman who wants to work in his shop. This story evolves around them, and a young student customer who frequents the shop. The story line is very simple yet it can tug the strings in our hearts. I also love the portrayal of Kirin Kiki 樹木 希林 , a Japanese actress who is popular for her elderly or grandmother roles. If you love food,  you will also enjoy watching this movie. I really recommend this movie for everyone to watch.  This is one of the notable Japanese movie in the food genre, life, and drama that you really need to see.

Why Japanese Culture?

         Hello everyone! For my first blog post. I'm going to enumerate why I am interested in knowing more about the Japanese culture. Here's why:

1. I grew up watching Japanese Super Heroes or what they call sentai, (スーパー戦隊シリーズ Sūpā Sentai Shirīzu). I fondly remember Bioman (超電子バイオマン Chōdenshi Baioman, lit. Super-Electron Bioman), Shaider (宇宙刑事シャイダー Uchū Keiji Shaidā) , and Maskman 光戦隊マスクマン Hikari Sentai Masukuman.) They are the sentai series that I cannot forget. Please watch out for my upcoming blog post about each of the sentai series.

2. Aside from the live action heroes, people from all over the globe love watching Japanese cartoons, or we simply know it as anime. One anime that is close to my heart is Candy, Candy (キャンディ・キャンディ Kyandi Kyandi). I like this one because its closer to reality, and it has a love story. Candy is always waiting for her 'prince'. Other animes that I have liked through the years are namely, Flame of Recca, and Ghostfighter. I almost forgot mentioning Sailormoon which I have watched during my teen years.

3. I am drawn to East Asian cultures, (China, Korea, and Japan).  

4. I am into paper art, I do paper cuts, and also I appreciate the art of paper folding which is called, Origami. 折り紙. 

5. I have learned a lot while I was growing up by watching Japan Video Topics, very educational videos, aired in a local channel that talks about Japanese culture/lifestyle, technology, food, and arts. 

6. I also appreciate Japanese music. The first Japanese song I heard was Sweet Soul Revue by Pizzicato Five, a Japanese pop-band, Utada Hikaru's, First Love song, and I like the rendition of La, La, La, Love Song by a Korean singer who can sing, and speak Japanese by the name of Boa. I also like the upbeat and groovy, song Feel Like Dance by Japanese group called Globe. My favorite Japanese singer is Ayaka Iida 飯田 絢香 , because her voice is soulful. 

7. I also love to watch Japanese movies. My favorite Japanese movie is Kimi No Todoke, it is originally an anime. Also, I like the manga made live action Parasyte movie. Also, another Japanese movie that is close to my heart is Red Bean あん, which stars Kirin Kiki, a very good Japanese actress well-loved for her grandmother roles. 

8. Last but not the least, I have ties with the Japanese since I have nieces who are Japanese citizen.So that's all for now, and there are still many reasons why I, and everyone likes Japanese culture.