🍱 Amanatto no osekihan

Ama-natto no Osekihan (red rice with sweetened soybeans)" is, as the name suggests, red rice cooked with ama-natto (sweetened soybeans). It tastes sweet, and is popular among the locals for its delicious sweetness when sprinkled with sesame salt. Since it is made without using sasage or azuki beans, the glutinous rice does not turn red, but is instead colored with food coloring. Japanese confectionery stores and supermarkets sell both sweet sekihan made with amanatto and non-sweet sekihan made with sasage or azuki beans, which are well-known throughout Japan. Since ancient times, the color red has been believed to ward off evil spirits. For this reason, "sweet red rice with red beans" is just as essential for festive occasions as non-sweet red rice. Although sweet sekihan seems very unusual, it is also eaten in parts of Hokkaido and Tohoku, far from Yamanashi Prefecture. There are many theories about its roots, including one that the Nanbu clan, who moved from Kai no Kuni (Yamanashi Prefecture) to Aomori Prefecture during the Kamakura period (1185-1333), introduced it to the region, and another that amanatto was added to school lunches in Yamanashi Prefecture 50 years ago after hearing about it from people in Aomori.