It's time for another Jungle Stand Tasting BAR! (Please see my original Jungle Stand post for all the subscription details.)
This month's theme is 'Taste Of Japan"
Front of the card: Welcome to the Jungle Stand. The nest stop on our summer-time "taste around the world", is Japan. They discovered the 5th taste, UMAMI, which means "pleasant savory taste". Did you know that soy sauce's taste is umami? It's an ingredient & taste that figures prominently on the Japanese palate. So welcome, or as they say in Japan....Yokoso!
Back of the card: Before you are 6 delights from the island nation known as the Land of the Rising Sun. More than any country, the Japanese revel in their delights. In this BAR, you'll discover that umami & sweet make a tasty pair. Although some of these tastes seem subtle, they DO have strong after-tastes. You'll probably need milk and/or water as an extra palate cleanser. Will any of these tastes change your life?
The Tastes:
Green - Baked Cake (Issa Tsutsumi Manju): Our Japan tasting begins w/ their version of a mini-baked cake. Called "Manju", it's prepared by steaming the cake after filling it with a sweetened white bean paste. As you taste, notice how the cake first tempers the bean flavor, then the sweetness takes over.
Yellow - Nori Koiwa: This taste is really unique. A rice cracker dusted w/ seaweed. It looks like it'll taste salty. But pop one in your mouth & you'll get a sweet surprise. The seaweed flavor comes on strongly in the after-taste. (umami & sweet) Arguably the best taste in the BAR.
Pink - Rice Cracker (Age Ichiban): Smells and tastes like sweet soy sauce. The texture is crispy and crunchy but it's not too hard. Japanese Rice Crackers are known as Senbei. They come in various shapes, sizes, and flavors. They're usually savory/sweet or sometimes both. Senbei are often eaten with green tea. (umami & sweet)
Red - Hitokuchi Kurobo: Never judge a taste by it's cover. This "Wheat-Cracker" doesn't look too appealing. But you'll never guess which of the 5 tastes it falls under...heehee.
**SPOILER ALERT** Give this a chance. Sweet after-taste. Cake-like texture & sweetened with brown sugar. Sweetest taste in the BAR.
Blue - Taruyaki Goma Senbei: The only pure salty/savory taste in the BAR, these crunchy rice crackers have a thin glaze of salty soy sauce on the outside and toasty black sesame seeds baked on the inside. After the previous sweet tastes, this is a nice change of pace for your palate.
Orange - Strawberry Caramel Corn: To finish our tour of Japan, we present their crispy, crunchy Strawberry and Caramel-flavored puffed corn taste! Open the bag, take a smell....that's strawberry heaven.
This subscription is $9.92 per month, charges at the beginning of the month, and ships your BAR via Priority USPS in the middle of the month.
No comments:
Post a Comment