Toh-yo-ka

Rice-flour manju with delicious chewy dough

Yamadaya, a long-established confectionery shop on Miyajima in Hatsukaichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, is famous for producing Momiji Manju, another of Yamadaya’s signature products, is called “Toh-yo-ka” Another of Yamadaya’s signature products is “Toh-yo-ka” a sweet made of glutinous rice flour dough wrapped in a mixture of sweet red bean paste and sweet red bean paste.

A square sponge cake dough manju coming out of the package. The branding on it is probably a paulownia leaf.

When halved, there is a layer of chewy dough mingled with the Ogura-an (sweet bean paste) inside, which is as soft as a fresh pastry. The dough itself is transparent, perhaps due to the use of rice flour.

The light red bean paste and the flavor of the dough are exquisite. The texture is a bit similar to “Ajari-Mochi” but the dough is a bit thicker than that of “Toh-yo-ka” The chewy sponge cake dough made from rice flour and azuki red bean paste is a classic combination without a doubt.