Japanese Cherry Blossom Specials, Springtime Treats From

Mochi

To Matcha

Nerikiri 

Wagashi are Japanese confections that are edible art, which change with the season.  Nerikiri is made from sweet white bean paste, glutinous rice, and sometimes Japanese mountain yam, which is moulded into extraordinary forms by expert craftspeople. Nerikiri made in spring are shaped into cherry blossoms, nightingales, canola flowers, and spring landscapes. No two pieces from a quality wagashi maker look alike. Nerikiri dates to the Edo period and is still used in formal tea ceremonies, where it's served with thick matcha as a counterpoint to bitterness.

Sakura Crepes

The sakura crepe is a more modern addition to the season's food lineup, particularly popular in Harajuku and Tokyo's café culture. A thin crepe wrapped around whipped cream and cherry blossom-flavoured fillings, sometimes sakura and bean paste, sometimes fresh strawberry, sometimes both, is served in a cone-folded style that became a street food signature. Some cafés go further, and even use cherry blossom powder in the batter for a pale pink colour and faint floral taste.

Dorayaki 

Dorayaki is two fluffy pancakes sandwiched around sweet red bean paste, which is a year-round Japanese snack that gets a spring makeover during sakura season. The seasonal version typically adds sakura-flavoured cream or mochi to the anko filling, and some versions knead matcha into the batter for a green tint. The name comes from dora, meaning gong – the round shape is the reference. Dorayaki has been around since the Edo period in various forms and became widely popular in the 20th century.

Monaka

This one’s a kind of wagashi, and is a cross between mochi and dorayaki, but crispy. The two thin, crisp wafers are made from mochi flour, with a sweet azuki bean paste filling between them. The wafers are baked in moulds and can be shaped into anything from squares, rounds, to chrysanthemums. In spring, sakura-shaped monaka are standard: pink shells, sometimes filled with cherry blossom-infused bean paste or white bean paste mixed with cherry blossom liqueur.

Matcha

Matcha doesn't need cherry blossom season, but sakura season is arguably when matcha is at its peak. Every hanami spread includes some form of it, as hot tea from a thermos, as a cold latte at a café, as matcha ice cream from a street stall. The earthy taste of matcha works specifically with the sweetness of sakura sweets; it's why nerikiri and dango are traditionally served alongside it. During spring, cafés across Japan release matcha-sakura combination drinks.

A Few More Worth Knowing

Beyond these, spring in Japan produces a longer tail of sakura-flavoured things worth trying if you're there. There’s sakura-cha, which is cherry blossom tea made by pouring hot water over pickled sakura flowers, and there’s sakura onigiri that uses rice cooked with cherry blossoms and a pickled leaf on the outside, crossing the line between sweet and savoury. 

Kusa mochi, made with mugwort kneaded into the rice dough, is a spring wagashi that runs parallel to sakura mochi; it’s green rather than pink, and earthier in flavour. And at the commercial end, limited-edition sakura wafer bars and sakura lattes come out every year and sell out almost immediately, which says something about how seriously Japan takes the season's food window.

The Bigger Picture

Cherry blossom season is short on purpose. The blossoms last about two weeks, and so does most of the food. That fleetingness is part of the point, and the Japanese aesthetic of mono no aware, the bittersweet beauty of impermanence, is built into the culture around sakura. The food is a reflection of that.