Daifuku
Confection
Top 10 pairings
Daifuku is a Japanese wagashi (traditional confection): a small, round rice cake of soft, stretchy mochi wrapped around a sweet filling, most classically koshian or tsubuan red-bean paste made from adzuki beans. Dusted in potato or corn starch to keep it from sticking, it is pillowy and chewy on the outside and smooth-sweet within — the flagship everyday sweet of Japan, eaten year-round with green tea and sold in confectioners, supermarkets and convenience stores alike.
Picking a good onedrag
Pillowy, evenly dusted, cleanDried out, slimy, furred
A day on, still softEveryday bestThe shop-pack piece, held pillowy by the sugar and trehalose makers add to slow the staling. Serve it as it is with matcha or hojicha.
Press the shellStill yields but slower, a little firm at the pinched seam underneath
The white dustPatchy where it has been handled, bare shiny shell showing through in places
Smell it closeAlmost nothing until you break it open, then mild starch and quiet bean
The counter or the packA sealed shop pack carrying a use-by, still cold if it holds fruit or cream