is a traditional Japanese confection, usually a small, dense bun with a sweet filling. They come in many shapes and varieties.
The standard manjà « has a skin made of flour, and is filled with anko (sweet azuki bean paste). Some varieties use kudzu starch or buckwheat flour for the skin. Other types of filling include sweet potato, chestnut jam, or custard.
Manjà « is usually steamed or baked, though fried manjà « can be found in some modern restaurants. Traditional manjà « are usually round, but many different shapes exist today, and some are proprietary to specific bakeries.
Manju is a traditional Japanese flour-based pastry (instead of rice-based like mochi). During the Kamakura period (1185âÂÂ1333), Japanese Buddhist monks who studied in the Song dynasty brought the tea culture to Japan, and the custom of eating confections with tea began in Japan.
The monks also introduced , a light meal, and the history book mentions , , and as .
It is believed that the monk Enni introduced manjà « production techniques in Hakata, Fukuoka Prefecture in 1241. Upon returning from China, he built Joten-ji, a temple of the Rinzai sect in Hakata. He then gave a manjà « recipe to a teahouse owner who was always kind to him when he went on takuhatsu (begging rounds) around Mount Aratsu, to the west of Hakata. At that time, he gave the teahouse owner a hand-written signboard with the words "Omanjà « Dokoro" ("Place to Eat Manjà «"), which is now in possession of Toraya Kurokawa in Akasaka, Tokyo. There is also a stone monument in the garden of Joten-ji temple that commemorates the introduction of manjà « to Japan.
However, the manjà « and yà Âkan brought to Japan by the monks were not sweets as we know them today, but were prepared in a completely different way. At that time, manjà « resembled Chinese mantou, which is written with the same kanji. It was not a confection, did not contain red bean paste, and was not sweet. The history book clearly describes manjà « as a dish eaten with chopsticks along with soup and pickles. Later, manjà « changed from a light meal to a confection to suit Japanese tastes. In the Muromachi period (1336âÂÂ1573), depicted sweet manjà « made with sugar. This manjà « is considered the prototype of today's manjà «.
Of the myriad varieties of manjà «, some more common than others. In Hawaii, one can find Okinawan manjà « that are made with a filling of purple sweet potato, butter, milk, sugar, and salt, but the most common filling is bean paste, of which the several varieties include koshian, tsubuan, and tsubushian.