Making Wasanbon Sweets in Kagawa with My Kids
When people think of Kagawa Prefecture, they probably think of Sanuki udon first.
But Kagawa is also known for another traditional specialty, Wasanbon sugar.
I was born and raised in Kagawa, and as someone who studies Japanese tea ceremony, I had always wanted to try making Wasanbon myself. Wasanbon sweets are often served with matcha during tea ceremony, so they are very familiar to me as part of tea culture.
So during our summer stay in Japan, I took my 10-year-old twins to HIYORI WASANBON tea stand in Takamatsu.
It turned out to be such a fun hands-on experience for all three of us.
What Is Wasanbon?
Wasanbon is a traditional Japanese sugar that is especially associated with Kagawa and neighboring Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku.
It has a delicate sweetness and a smooth texture and is often used to make small Japanese dry sweets called higashi. As I mentioned earlier, higashi are often served during Japanese tea ceremonies and enjoyed with matcha.
I grew up in Kagawa, so Wasanbon has always been familiar to me.
But eating Wasanbon and actually making sweets with it are two completely different experiences.
This was my first time making them myself.
So Many Beautiful Wooden Molds
One of the first things that caught my attention was the collection of wooden confectionery molds.
There were so many different designs.
Flowers, leaves, geometric patterns and other tiny motifs were beautifully carved into the wood.
The molds themselves were fascinating to look at.
I love experiences like this because you get to see the tools behind something you may have eaten many times without ever thinking about how it was made.
Then it was time for us to try it ourselves.
Time to Make Our Wasanbon Sweets
We started by preparing the Wasanbon mixture, adding color and a small amount of water.
Then came the most important instruction from our instructor.
Work quickly!
Once the mixture was ready, we had to keep moving because it gradually became more difficult to work with as it dried.
We packed it firmly into the wooden molds, leveled off the top, and carefully removed each piece.
And that was the part that surprised me most.
It already held its shape!
A tiny Wasanbon sweet came out of the mold with all the beautiful details of the carving. It seemed almost too easy!
And Finally, Time to Taste!
After making our Wasanbon sweets, it was finally time to taste them!
We chose a few of the sweets we had just made and enjoyed them with drinks from the tea stand.
There was something extra special about tasting the Wasanbon we had made ourselves.
And we didn’t have to eat them all at once. We packed the rest into small boxes to take home.
It was the perfect way to end the experience.
Experiencing Wasanbon in Kagawa
There’s nothing quite like experiencing something for yourself.
My kids had so much fun making Wasanbon. They said they wanted to do it again, and they even wanted their own wooden molds!
We did our Wasanbon-making experience at HIYORI WASANBON tea stand in Takamatsu, located near Ritsurin Garden, one of Kagawa’s most famous attractions. This beautiful traditional Japanese garden is well worth a visit, so it’s easy to enjoy both the garden and a Wasanbon-making experience on the same day.
If you are visiting Kagawa, this is a fun and memorable way to experience one of the prefecture’s traditional specialties.
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