Kikufuku from Sendai Japan, Gojo Satoru Favorite Dessert
I watched for Jujutsu Kaisen series this week that I got from my friend’s anime recommendation. I got inspired by one snack too in that film. In episode two, one of the characters — Gojo Satoru talks about the snack that he picked up before a big fight with Sukuna. It’s actually Kikufuku.
Kikufuku is a small cream daifuku (a type of wagashi or Japanese Confection) with soft mochi (glutinous rice cake) filled with a sweet classic Japanese taste and cream inside. There are matcha, hojicha tea, zunda (sweet crushed edamame), and also anko (sweet red bean paste) for the variants of the filling that are added with sweet white cream.
In real, Kikufuku is called “ずんだ生クリーム or Zunda Nama Cream” because the first kikufuku consists of sweet crushed edamame with a cream. Honestly, it’s great for snacks as Gojo Satoru said he will eat his kikufuku on the trip to Tokyo using Shinkansen.
Kikufuku, Sendai Specialty
The Kikufuku is a specialty of Japan’s Miyagi Prefecture — Sendai. The original tea shop called “Ocha no Igeta Ichibancho, お茶の井ヶ田一番町” found the kikufuku recipe for the first time. This tea shop start a business in November 1920 until now. Ocha no Igeta become popular with high-quality teas using traditional Japanese tea standards. They also sell the one-season tea year-round that becomes a waited for local people there.
For friends to drink their tea, they also make their own sweets. The popular sweet is kikufuku. They make it using a local sticky rice product from Miyagi and almost all of the locals and tourists who come to the shop enjoyed the tea and the dessert well.
Kikufuku just can find in Sendai — but not only in Ocha no Igeta Main Shop, you can also find it at the Ocha no Igeta stall called “Kikusuian, 喜久水庵” at Sendai International Airport. Not only kikufuku you can also buy local tea too as a souvenir.
Kikufuku Taste
As told before, kikufuku consists of sticky and chewy mochi filled with a sweet filling. The fresh filling balance perfectly with a tender mochi becoming the best combination in your mouth. The taste of kikufuku is not too over-sweet but it’s perfect for people who love sweets.
This sweet also becomes the best combination to drink with a cup of tea — especially matcha tea. Sometimes you can try fresh tea too to enjoy with your kikufuku in the hot summertime. Sencha Tea Pack or Variants of Wakocha Tea can be the best tea recommendation in Ocha no Igeta.
Kikufuku is a fresh dessert that can last longer in the freezer. Remember to keep refrigerated your kikufuku to save the freshness. You can consume it within two days. Don’t put kikufuku in the fridge, but keep it in the freezer and defrost it as desired to keep the texture and taste.
Making Homemade Kikufuku at Home
From many information that I get, making kikufuku at home is possible but it’s need patience too. When making the mochi we need an accurate measure to make sure the mochi becomes sticky and chewy for wrapping the filling and also we need to put the filling as usual too — not too much or not too few.
Here, I found the kikufuku recipe from Babish Culinary Universe on Youtube with a sweet crushed edamame filling that was recommended by Gojo Satoru. According to me, watching the tutorial will make it easier to see and imitate step-by-step well instead you read the recipe.
So, I hope you can make it at home and enjoy your mochi practice!
