Wagashi is a traditional Japanese confection that is often served with green tea, especially the type made of mochi, anko, and fruit. Wagashi is typically made from plant-based ingredients with an emphasis on seasonality, and generally making use of cooking methods that pre-date Western influence in Japan.
Nerikiri (練り切り) in various shapes and colors. Asian skunk cabbage, rose of Sharon, hydrangea, and rose.
A bowl of matcha tea on a black lacquered tray with wagashi
Karakudamono
In the Kamakura period, yōkan (羊羹) was a sheep meat soup, and today's mainstream yōkan was born in the 1800s after the Japanese invented kanten (寒天, agar) in the 1600s. This thick Japanese jellied dessert is now made of adzuki bean paste, agar, and sugar.
Mochi is a Japanese rice cake made of mochigome (もち米), a short-grain japonica glutinous rice, and sometimes other ingredients such as water, sugar, and cornstarch. The steamed rice is pounded into paste and molded into the desired shape. In Japan, it is traditionally made in a ceremony called mochitsuki . While eaten year-round, mochi is a traditional food for the Japanese New Year, and is commonly sold and eaten during that time.
Rice cake kirimochi or kakumochi
Rice cake marumochi
Steamed rice in a stone mortar being mashed with a wooden kine (pestle) during mochitsuki
Making mochi with modern equipment