Desserts from Around The World - 4: Japan

Japan: Dorayaki

Japan has always been known for its futuristic technology and unique culture, making it a staple choice for vacations and visiting. The country has a long history of customs and traditions, along with another famous part of their legacy: food. Japan’s cuisine, especially its desserts, has a lot of recognition across the world. One of these confections can be found all over Asia, being a staple of Japan’s history: Dorayaki.

History

Dorayaki’s origin starts in the Edo period of Japan, around 1603 to 1868. During this time, a legend about a famous monk started to arise as the creation of dorayaki. Saito Musashibo Benkei, a famous warrior, left his musical gong at a farmer’s house when hiding. The farmer then used the gong to fry bread to make what is known as “Dorayaki”, which literally means “gong cake”.

However, in the Edo period, these pastries were single layered and folded unlike the one today, that is, until 1914. The famous Ueno Usagiya Bakery claimed to have invented the “two layered sandwich” style of dorayaki. This version remained popular only in Asian and major countries until 1979, when a certain anime would make dorayaki explode in popularity.

Doraemon’s Dorayaki   

The Doraemon anime released in 1979, where it stood out against other groups of animation with its unique art style. This made it grow in popularity across multiple countries such as America and China. However, the anime was not the only thing that became famous, as dorayaki soon followed. Doraemon, the protagonist’s best friend, loves to eat dorayaki, the pastry seen throughout the series. With Doraemon’s growth also came the growth of Dorayaki, securing its legacy around the globe.

Ingredients

Dorayaki consists of two fried pancakes sandwiching a red bean paste. Red bean is known to be very sweet, making it a fan favorite amongst Asian populations. The pancakes themselves have a long history of different varieties, but the modern version is composed of flour, eggs, sugar, honey, and baking powder. To make a delicious dorayaki recipe, use the recipe below:

Recipe

Ingredients

• Large Eggs (50g each) - 4 eggs

• Sugar - 140g

• Honey - 2 tbsp

• All-Purpose Flour - 1 ⅓ cup

• Baking Powder - 1 tsp

• Water - 1-2 tbsp

• Oil - Enough to grease pan

• Sweet Red Bean Paste (Buy in market) - 1.1 pounds

1. To make the pancake batter, mix large eggs, sugar, and honey in a large bowl. Mix until mixture becomes fluffy. 

2. With a sift, put flour and baking powder into the mixing bowl and mix until combined. Cover and let it sit for 15 minutes.

3. Take the mixture out and slowly add 1-2 tablespoons of water, at least until the mixture has a consistency of pancake batter.

4. Preheat a nonstick cooking pan over low heat for 5 minutes. When it becomes thoroughly heated, set heat to medium-low.

5. Coat the bottom of the pan with a thin layer of oil, and leave no streaks if possible. To cook, pour 3 tbsp of the batter at a time to make one pancake every round.  Every 

1 ½ minutes or until the batter starts to bubble, flip the pancake, and repeat.

6. To assemble, take 2 pancakes and some of the red bean paste (called anko) as filling. Sandwich the bean paste between the pancakes so that the middle is thicker than the edges, which are sealed.

   
   

   If all steps are done correctly, you should have a result that looks like this: