Mochi Diaries: Gomatamago ã”ã¾ãŸã¾ã”
Welcome to another instalment of the Mochi Diaries, Chapter 6 Gomatamago ã”ã¾ãŸã¾ã”! While these guys really aren’t mochi but in fact intricately designed cakes, they are omiyage ãŠåœŸç”£ and so kawaii I couldn’t resist!!!
During my last top to æ±äº¬ I picked a box of Gomatamago ã”ã¾ãŸã¾ã” (Lit. Black Sesame Egg) cakes on my way home as the packaging intrigued me. Furthermore Gomatamago are a meibutsu å物 (specialty product) of the Tokyo region, so it’s not as if I would have the opportunity to purchase them again in the near future. As far as omiyage go, these are on the pricey side of things at 700円 for a box containing 8 eggs. That said, they are each individually wrapped and sizeable.
The centre is a sweet paste consisting of kurogoma 黒胡麻 (black sesame seeds) and anko 餡å (red bean paste) which is supposed to constitute the ‘yolk’ of the egg – perhaps they are meant to be piitan 皮蛋 (Chinese century eggs) ( ^ω^ ). This ‘yolk’ is then coated in a thin layer of kasutera カステラ (castella cake), a type of Japanese cake whose origins lie in 16th century Nagasaki and trade with Portugal. It is immensely popular these days. Finally the tamago is coated in a thin layer of white-chocolate to form a delicious crispy ‘shell’.
All in all I was quite impressed by this tasty treat. I imagine they would go hand in hand with a cup of afternoon tea.
The centre retained a perfect level of moistness and was not overly sweet.
If you’re ever in Tokyo give a box a try!
