Together with soy sauce and miso, mirin is a fundamental condiment in the Japanese kitchen and for many recipes for Japanese food. It’s a sweet rice wine that has lower alcohol content and higher sugar content when compared to sake, adding a sweet flavour to dishes.

Today, we’re taking a look at a recipe that uses “Mikawa Mirin,” a brand of mirin made from high quality rice, to make carrot and cream cheese chawanmushi. Chawanmushi is a savoury egg custard dessert eaten in Japan.

Carrot & Cream Cheese Chawanmushi

Chawanmushi is made using mirin and has a smooth texture to it as well as a subtly sweet flavour. It’s the perfect accompaniment to a hot summer’s day.

Ingredients (Serves 1)

●Chawanmushi
60g carrots
240ml dashi
20ml soy sauce
120ml Mikawa Mirin
8g sugar
18g cream cheese
1 egg

●Okra-an
Okra
30ml dashi
0.5g salt
3ml Mikawa Mirin

Method

We will start by making the chawanmushi.

1. Slice the carrots and boil them until they become soft.

2. Add the soy sauce, sugar, and lots of mirin and cook through the dashi.

3. Cook for approximately 20 minutes on a medium heat, then cool with ice. Add the cooled carrots, cream cheese, and 20ml of the dashi into a blender and bend.

4. Add the egg to the mix and steam the mix for 12 minutes on a medium heat.

While the chawanmushi is cooling, we’ll make the okra-an.

5. Mix together the okra-an dashi, mirin, and salt together. Add watered potato starch and thinly sliced okra. Leave to cool in the refrigerator.

6. Add the okra-an to the cooled chawanmushi and tuck into your cute two-layered dessert.

Carrot & Cream Cheese Chawanmushi

The dessert is an enjoyable mix of the sticky texture from the okra-an and smooth chawanmushi. It’s great to have not only at lunch or dinner, but at home parties with friends too.

–How’s the taste?

Misa Kimura: “It works really well with the mirin. The chawanmushi is like a sweet treat. It’s super easy to make too, so I think I’ll be making it at home!”

Mirin is indispensable to any Japanese cupboard and can be used in many ways, whether it be a classic Japanese dish or a dessert like this one.

Mikawa Mirin 700ml: ¥1,122 (Tax Included)

This authentic brand of mirin is made using a traditional method of Japanese brewing which blends in the delicious taste of rice. It’s so delicious that you just want to drink the whole bottle. A high quality mirin, it has a distinct sweetness, colour, and texture. It has a rich flavour, and the taste of the rice elevates the flavours of its ingredients.

Mikawa Mirin Official Website: http://www.mikawamirin.jp/
Official Online Store: http://mikawamirin.jp/product/product_step1.php?m=n
Official Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikawamirin

Recipe

This recipe was conceived by ITEMAE, a famous restaurant serving Japanese cuisine that is listed in the Michelin Guide.

Model: Misa Kimura
Photographer: Haruka Yamamoto

Japanese bridal company ESCRIT INC. launched its new “Rilakkuma Bridal Fair” on July 22, 2020 in collaboration with Sun-X’s popular character Rilakkuma. This will be the first ever wedding service produced in collaboration with the beloved relaxed bear.

All who join the service will receive a free “Rilakkuma & Korilakkuma Ring Pillow.” Moreover, all brides and grooms who get married through this bridal fair will also receive a welcome board, cake topper, decorative stickers, soup with a design of San-X’s Kiiroitori character, and a Rilakkuma dessert—all specially prepared for and exclusive to this service. There is also a “Greeting Plan” whereby Rilakkuma and Korilakuma will visit your wedding service on the day of the wedding to celebrate with everyone. This is a dream come true for any fan of Rilakkuma.

If you’re planning to get married in Japan, and love Rilakkuma, then how about it?

©2020 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Tower Records is collaborating with Rilakkuma for “Rilakkuma x TOWER RECORDS Campaign 2020” which will run at Tower Records, TOWERmini, and Tower Records Online in Japan from August 1 to 30.f

For the campaign, Tower Records selling a range of merchandise with exclusive designs illustrated for the event, and there’ll even be Rilakkuma themed cafes. Tower Records began collaborating with Rilakkuma on merchandise in 2009 and has done so every year since. This year sees the arrival of Chairoikoguma for the first time too.

Yhose who use the Tower Records app to show their coupons in-store, they will receive the above-pictured selection of must-have exclusive goodies including a mirror, postcard, bag, and bookmark. These are available on a first-time, first-served basis. Additionally, Rilakkuma themed cafes will be held at TOWER CARDS CAFE branches in Omotesando, Nagoya SKYLE, and Sapporo PIVOT which will have entirely original menus and bonus items for dining there.

Collaboration Merchandise

The merchandise collection will drop on August 1 and will include a range of Tower Records exclusives. Pre-sales opened on July 15. You can see the full list here.

Available at all Tower Records branches and Tower Records Online

Exclusive to Tower Records Shibuya, Tower Records Sapporo PIVOT, TOWER RECORDS CAFE Omotesando, TOWER RECORDS CAFE Nagoya SKYLE, Tower Records Online

Exclusive to Tower Records Online

Rilakkuma and the Honey Forest’s Concert Cafe

The entire cafe menu line-up is so cute you’re completely spoilt for choice.

Rilakkuma and the Honey Forest’s Concert Dessert Plate: ¥2,500

“Honey Forest Concert” is the theme of the cafe, and this image is captured in the adorable dessert plate which is topped with various desserts and fruits. Everyone who orders one of these also receives a free sticker.

Rilakkuma’s Meatball Stew: ¥1,580

This hot meatball stew is served in a cute bread cup with Rilakkuma poking his head out from inside.

Kiiroitori’s Omurice: ¥1,580

Kiiroitori’s face is made from omelette and rice. Served with a side of healthy veg.

Rilakkuma’s Honey Lemon Drink: ¥850

A sweet and sour mix of honey and lemon.

Korilakkuma’s Strawberry Calpis: ¥850

Strawberries are Korilakkuma’s favourite, and that’s the flavour of this refreshingly sweet Calpis drink, topped with Korilakkuma vanilla ice cream.

There are lots of other dishes to look forward to in addition to the ones above, making this cafe one to go back to many times. And you can special free merchandise when visiting and dining there too.

Collaboration Cafe – Participating Stores

Omotesando/Nagoya SKYLE: August 1, 2020 – August 30, 2020

Sapporo PIVOT: August 1, 2020 – August 17, 2020
Official Website: https://tower.jp/rilakkumacafe

©2020 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

With just a small bit of ingenuity, turn everyday food into something cute using Kaori’s Easy Recipe! With a few simple ideas, an ordinary recipe magically transforms into a cute dish.

Today, I’ll be showing you a dreamy recipe on how to make the healthy Taiwanese snack douhua topped with Yukimi Daifuku mochi ice cream.

Ingredients

400ml soy milk
2-g Lakanto (Zero-calorie natural sweetener)
Pinch of salt
8g gelatin (dissolved in 1 tbsp water)

Pre-preparations

Stick bear-shaped sliced chocolate around the side of a glass and leave to set in the refrigerator.

1.

Warm soy milk and Lakanto in a saucepan until the Lakanto is completely dissolved.

2.

Add the gelatin and mix until fully dissolved.

3.

Leave the mix to cool. Once cooled, remove the glass from the refrigerator and pour the mix into the glass. Place back into the fridge until it sets.

4.

Add sliced almonds and use a chocolate pen on Yukimi Daifuku to create Korilakkuma’s face, or a face of your choice.

5.

Remove the glass from the fridge and add the Yukimi Daifuku. Choose your choice of toppings, like soy flour and brown sugar syrup, then enjoy!

Kaori invites you into her world of character-themed food dishes in her recipe series. Be sure to check out her Instagram where she has uploaded many pictures of her character dishes!

Wedding and reception planning company ESCRIT INC. is producing its first wedding plan in collaboration with the adorable San-X character Rilakkuma. The Rilakkuma Bridal Fair will be available for reservation from mid July 2020.

As the number of weddings taking place has fallen drastically, ESCRIT INC. has been working hard to breathe life back into the industry, collaborating with a number of businesses and insourcing dresses, flowers and other services to make every couple’s dream day come true. They have also been running a variety of bridal fairs to help customers with a more personal approach.

From the welcome board to the cake-topper and desserts, the Rilakkuma collaboration sees a number of adorable ways to accessorise your dream wedding. The sign-up for this service opened yesterday on the Rilakkuma Bridal Fair Official Website. After signing up with your email address, you will receive a notification to reserve the bridal fair service during mid July along with the latest information.

If you and your partner love Rilakkuma, the Rilakkuma Bridal Fair is sure to exceed your expections.

With just a small bit of ingenuity, turn everyday food into something cute using Kaori’s Easy Recipe! With a few simple ideas, an ordinary recipe magically transforms into a cute dish.

In today’s recipe, I’ll be showing you how I made a batch of Pompompurin cheese tarts made using store-bought tart cups.

Ingredients (Makes 9-10)

9-10 store bought tart cups
200g cream cheese (brought to room temperature)
20-30g sugar
1 egg yolk
50ml fresh cream
8g potato starch (katakuriko)
Vanilla beans to taste (can be substituted for vanilla extract)
1 tbsp lemon juice

Step 1

Pour the following ingredients into a bowl in this order: cream cheese→sugar→egg yolk→vanilla beans→fresh cream→potato starch. Mix well. Make sure when you put the potato starch in last that you sprinkle it thinly.

Step 2
Bake the tart cups in an oven at 180℃ for 15-20 minutes. If you don’t have store-bought cups, you can use small cocotte dishes.

Step 3

Leave to cool. Now you can start drawing the face.

For the hat I used sliced chocolate, for the ears sliced cheese, and for the facial features a chocolate pen.

Once you’ve drawn the face, it’s time to tuck in!

Kaori invites you into her world of character-themed food dishes in her recipe series. Be sure to check out her Instagram where she has uploaded many pictures of her character dishes!

With just a small bit of ingenuity, turn everyday food into something cute using Kaori’s easy recipe! With a few simple ideas, an ordinary recipe magically transforms into a cute dish.

Today, I’ll be showing you how to make a Gudetama parfait made with a yogurt mousse and topped with orange and peach jelly.

Ingredients
Yogurt Mousse Ingredients:
100g sugar free yogurt
50ml fresh cream
20g sugar
3g gelatin
*With the gelatin, mix well with 1 tbsp water

Mikan & Yellow Peach Jelly Ingredients:
100ml mikan juice (or any orange juice)
150g tinned peaches (with syrup)
5g gelatin
*With the gelatin, mix well with 1 tbsp water

1

①Mix the sugar into the yogurt well. Add in 7/10 of the fresh cream and mix well again.

②Microwave the gelatin for 10-20 seconds at 500w. Add into the mixture from ① and mix well.

2

Once the mixture has set in about ⅓ of a glass, add sliced chocolate on the inside for the eyes and mouth. I cut mine into shape using a toothpick.

Make sure the chocolate is properly fixed to the glass at this point.

3

Put your yellow peach and mikan orange into a blender (but not the gelatin part). The syrup of the peaches is already sweet so there’s no need to add sugar.

②Microwave the gelatin for 10-20 seconds at 500w. Add into the blended mixture and mix well.

Pour on top of the mix inside the glass. If there are any peach pieces left, cut them up and use them as toppings.

Top with fresh cream and chopped fruit, and you’re done! I stuck Gudetama’s face on well and good so it looks like his chocolate face is on the outside. Be sure to try doing the same.

Kaori invites you into her world of character-themed food dishes in her recipe series. Be sure to check out her Instagram where she has uploaded many pictures of her character dishes!

A new series of Rilakkuma hanko stamps was released by Hankos on April 21 featuring an adorable collection of stamp pattern designs of Rilakkuma and his friends.

Hanko stamps are often used in Japan in place of signatures where you have your name printed onto the stamp itself. These Rilakkuma hanko are made to order and you can have Japanese characters written onto them.

There are 20 different illustrations featuring the cute faces of Rilakkuma, Kiiroitori, Korilakkuma, and Chairoikoguma.

There are also three fonts to choose from the orthodox, easy to read style to a cuter style. You can use them in Japan for sending deliveries, at home, and more. There’s the classic type where you can dip into ink and stamp as well as two wooden types.

©2020 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

Japan’s biggest social media photo aggregator Snaplace has curated a Top 10 menu list of the most popular drinks and desserts people have been posting on Instagram Japan with the hashtag #おうちカフェ (“Cafe at Home”) with which people are making their own tasty treats to bring the cafe experience indoors during the lockdown.

The line-up features coffee, ice cream, cream soda and lots of other delights which have ranked due to how little preparation is needed and how easy the recipes are to follow. Let’s take a look.

1sr Place: Dalgona Coffee

Dalgona coffee has taken the internet by storm for its beautiful two-layered appearance. Popular in South Korea, the drink has also garnered much attention in Japan. And you can substitute the coffee part to create a completely different beverage like a matcha, strawberry latte, chocolate, and so on.

How to make Dalgona Coffee: https://www.moshimoshi-nippon.jp/312230

2nd Place: Candy Strawberries

Candy strawberries have taken over candy apples in terms of popularity this year. And you can have fun trying it out with other fruits too while at home during the lockdown like grapes, fruitsーwhichever fruit is your favouriteーand skewer them.

3rd Place: Toast Arrangements

Top your toast with ingredients like fresh cream, Greek yoghurt, cream cheese, sliced cheese, fruits, vegetables, and so on to change up your morning breakfast. There are so many different recipe inspirations for toast arrangements to find on social media.

Related Article: Stay Home: 6 Toast Arrangements to Bring the Cafe Experience to Your Home During the Lockdown

Related Article: Stay Home: 6 More Toast Arrangements to Bring the Cafe Experience to Your Home During the Lockdown

4th Place: Marshmallow Cookies
5th Place: Fruit Sandwiches (Check out recipes here)
6th Place: Cream Soda
7th Place: Eggs Benedict
8th Place: Snoopy Gyoza
9th Place: Candy Marshmallows
10th Place: Deko (“Giant”) Ice Cream

Try making your own Instagram-worthy menu at home.

Here at MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON, we post news and information about Japan in six languages. Our aim is to deliver a variety of content related to Japan for those who love and enjoy Japanese culture.

Right now, people across the globe are in self-isolation as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The same goes for Japan too, so we’ve taken this opportunity to create a new series on the website to show how we’re spending time at home here in Japan. The future is yet uncertain, and we hope for normality to return for all of us soon. We created a new articles series called Stay Home with which we hope to take your mind off the situation, even for just a little bit, to help you feel calmer. It might give you some tips on what you can do while spending time at home.

In this edition of Stay Home, we’re taking a look at six more cute, easy-to-make toast recipes that were featured with the trending Japanese hashtag #おうちカフェ (“Cafe at Home”). Try making them yourself at home for breakfast, lunch, or as a snack.

Related Article: Stay Home: 6 Toast Arrangements to Bring the Cafe Experience to Your Home During the Lockdown

1: Orange Toast | @candyrose914

Candy Rose’s recipe shows us how to make orange toast. Orange and chocolate is a tried and tested combination. The fresh cream adds a dessert-like quality to the toast.

Ingredients
・Bread 　・Navel Orange & Chocolate Jam 　・Orange Jam　・Fresh cream　・Orange

Method
1: Simmer the orange in white wine and granulated sugar.
2: Toast bread and smear with the jam.
3: Add a dollop of fresh cream on top.
4: Top with sliced orange and tuck in!

2: Mini Strawberry & Red Bean Paste Butter Toast | @__yk._

yk.’s toast recipe is a combination of Japanese and western flavours with red bean paste and buttered brioche which looks cute when it’s cut thick and small like in the picture♡

Ingredients
・Brioche toast　・Strawberries　・Red bean paste　・Butter　・Fresh cream

Method
1: Toast the bread and add the red bean paste.
2: Top with a strawberry and fresh cream.
3: Finish with a knob of butter and enjoy!

3: Apple Toast | @ruko_0519

KAORUKO’s toast recipe is a great dessert idea too. It’s a super simple recipe made with microwaved apple compote.

Ingredients
・Bread　・Apple　・Lemon juice　・Sugar　・Fruit granola

Method
1: Slice apple with the skin on.
2: Add 1 tbsp of lemon juice and 30g sugar to the apple and microwave for 3 minutes.
3: Slice a thin slice of bread and toast. Add the apple compote to the toast and finish with a sprinkle of fruity granola.

4: Marshmallow Toast | @woo.rrei

Rei has added marshmallows to their toast to create a fluffy, dessert-like, and cafe-worthy recipe.

Ingredients
・Bread　・Marshmallows　・Chocolate Sauce

Method
1: Slice a thin piece of bread and toast. Top with marshmallows.
2: Toast once again under a grill until the marshmallows take on colour.
3: Drizzle with chocolate syrup and you’re done!

5: Open Avocado Sandwich | @keijunrin

Keiko’s recipe makes a fresh open-style sandwich with lots of avocado. The egg yolk adds a melt-in-the-mouth texture. The texture of the whole thing is nice and smooth.

Ingredients
・Bread　・Avocado　・Pink pepper　・Egg yolk　・Mayonnaise

Method
1: Add the avocado to a slice of bread and grind on some rose pepper.
2: Drop on an egg yolk and lightly toast under a grill.
3: Drizzle with mayonnaise and enjoy!

6: Bread Gratin | @izumxx_37

izumi’s recipe is a combination of bread and “naporitan” which is a Japanese pasta dish. It’s a hearty serving that makes for a great lunch.

Ingredients
・Bread　・Naporitan pasta　・White Sauce　・Cheese

Method
1: Make naporitan and white sauce in advance. Cut the naporitan into small pieces.
2: Slice 1 thin and 1 thick slice of bread.
3: Cut out the inside of the thick slice. Place this hollowed-out thick piece on top of the thin slice of bread. This thin slice forms the bottom of your bread.
4: Add the naporitan inside. Drizzle in white sauce so it’s like a lid over the pasta.
5: Sprinkle on cheese, toast, and you’re done!

Bring the cafe experience into your own home by making your own fun toast arrangements.

Here at MOSHI MOSHI NIPPON, we post news and information about Japan in six languages. Our aim is to deliver a variety of content related to Japan for those who love and enjoy Japanese culture.

Right now, people across the globe are in self-isolation as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The same goes for Japan too, so we’ve taken this opportunity to create a new series on the website to show how we’re spending time at home here in Japan. The future is yet uncertain, and we hope for normality to return for all of us soon. We created a new articles series called Stay Home with which we hope to take your mind off the situation, even for just a little bit, to help you feel calmer. It might give you some tips on what you can do while spending time at home.

In this edition of Stay Home, we’re taking a look at five simple and kawaii drinks that were featured with the trending Japanese hashtag #おうちカフェ (“Cafe at Home”). Try making one of these drinks yourself to bring the cafe experience into your home.

Related Article: Stay Home: 5 Simple and Delicious Drinks to Try Making During the Lockdown

1: Dalgona Strawberry @i.c.h.i.g.o.q.159

This is a strawberry version of the dalgona coffee which is hugely popular right now. It’s a super simple recipe that you can make in just 3 minutes, so give it a go yourself.

Ingredients
・3 packs of Milmake powder (strawberry flavoured)　・4-5 tbsp fresh cream　・Milk

*If you can’t get your hands on Milmake, use another strawberry flavoured powder as a substitute 

Method
1: Add the Milkmake and fresh cream to a bottle.
2: Shake the bottle until the mix becomes thick.
3: Pour the mix over milk, top with a strawberry, and enjoy!

2: Colourful Cream Soda @miki__718

Miki’s made a serving of several colour and cute cream soda drinks. This is another easy recipe where she added coloured syrup to soda poured into cute glasses.

Ingredients

・Soda　・MONIN syrup　・Ice cream　・1 strawberry

Method

1: I recommend using MONIN syrup to make your colourful soda.

2: Mix together the soda and MONIN syrup, then add a dollop of ice cream and finish with a strawberry!

3: Strawberry Cream Cider @onew_tc72

Chihiro’s beverage is a cream soda with fresh fruit inside. If you’re looking for a fruity drink then this one’s for you.

Ingredients

・Strawberries　・Vanilla Ice Cream　・Soda　・Thyme (for decorating)

Method

1: Slice the strawberries into small pieces.

2: Add the cut strawberries into the soda and spoon in a large dollop of ice cream.

3: Adorn with the thyme and a whole strawberry and enjoy!

4: Mango Soda @lemmokit

chii’s mango soda is made using a homemade jam. The orange drink looks super stylish with the giant ice cube inside. A cool and refreshing pick for those hot days.

Ingredients
・100g mango　・15 sugar　・A squirt of lemon juice　・1 tsp rum

Method
1: Boil all of the ingredients together.
2: Mix in soda and jam.
3: Top with rosemary and drink up.

5: Mikan Latte @hit0m._.mi

HITOMI’s choice is the popular mikan latte! You can use sliced orange for the topping too if you can’t get your hands on mikan.

Ingredients
・200ml milk　・Sugar to taste ・Yoghurt ti taste　・1 mikan　・Sliced mikan (for topping)

Method
1: Blend all of the ingredients together in a blender.
2. Once smooth, add to a cup a finish with a slice of mikan or orange.

Character-inspired Japanese confectionery series Tabemas has revealed that its next batch of sweet treats will see Rilakkuma and Kiiroitori arrive at Lawson convenience stores in Japan (excluding Lawson Store 100 branches) on April 28, 2020.

Tabemas Rilakkuma 2020 Strawberry Rilakkuma/Strawberry Kiiroitori – ¥285 Each (Tax Included)

The adorable confections feature Rilakkuma donning a sweet strawberry hat while Kiiroitori has gone the full fruity mile by dressing snug in a strawberry onesie. As you’d imagine, both of these sweet treats are strawberry flavoured.

‘Tabemas’ is an abbreviation of the Japanese words taberareru masukotto, meaning ‘mascots that you can eat.’ It is a Japanese confectionery series that combines well-known characters and Japanese sweets made from ingredients like red bean paste, sugar and rice flour. The sweets are also made with a dough called “nerikiri” which is used in making traditional Japanese wagashi sweets.

What better way to spend your time indoors right now than with a cute Rilakkuma or Kiiroitori sweet?

© 2020 San-X Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.