Ala Moana is a beautiful high end mall, but I didn't go there for Bvlgari, Burberry, or BCBG. I wasn't even there for Gap or Old Navy. Well, I take that back; I once bought a pair of green argyle socks on clearance for $1.99 at The Gap. I wore them yesterday. Anyway... the sole reason I went to Ala Moana was for the mochi.
If I bought just one, I'd let myself ride the bus home. If I bought two, I was walking home, but it was two miles of peanut butter and adzuki bean mochi bliss. I was afraid that the staff at Shirokiya (a Japanese department store) would begin to notice my somewhat embarrassing pattern of weekly Mochi binges, so I would wander around the store, acting like I was in the market for a new rice cooker. I'd then casually walk past the bakery counter..."Please tell me what this mochi stuff is, I've certainly never tried it. Why yes, I suppose I will try a piece of mochi, even though I'm actually just here to shop for a rice cooker. You know, while you're at it, make it two. One for my friend...wait, where did she go? Oh well, thank you!" I'd then go wander the store for a bit longer, acting like I was totally not in a hurry to get outside and start stuffing my face.
What did I learn from these shopping trips? 1. Mochi is flipping delicious. 2. Some hilarious/bizarre/awesome products come out of Japan. You can find a few examples here or here. A friend shared this video yesterday and I think this sushi is awesome!
Do you know of any unique, interesting or strange products from Japan? According to Blogger, I have several regular readers in Japan...can you give us the insider's view?
I always think of you whenever I see Mochi, Andrea. I might like it better if it was covered in dark chocolate.
ReplyDeleteOur aunt Terry used to eat little tiny dried fish. I would imagine that the "insides" were included because they were so tiny. And they were real fish not goldfish crackers. She also used to love pickled radishes.I wonder if she still eats this stuff.
ReplyDeleteTheresa W