🍱 Karukan
"Karukan" is a famous confectionery of Kagoshima Prefecture, made from "karukan flour", Japanese yams, and water, and is well known throughout the country. There are various theories about its origin, but the most popular is that it was invented by Rokubei Yashima, a confectioner from Akashi city, who was invited from Edo to study preserved foods by Nariakira Shimazu, the 11th lord of the Satsuma Domain. Despite the geographical conditions that most of the land, except for Mt. Kirishima, is on the Shirasu Plateau, which is very well drained and is frequently hit by typhoons, which can easily damage the crops that have been grown there, It is believed that "Karukan" took root because Japanese yam, the ingredient of "Karukan," grew wild on the Shirasu Plateau, and sugar was easily obtained from the Amami area and the Ryukyu Islands. But at that time, however, sugar was extremely precious, so it was not eaten by the general public, but was a "lord's confectionery" eaten mainly by feudal lords' families. It is said that it was not until the Meiji period (1868-1912) that karukan spread to the general public. "Karukan" is written "軽羹" in Chinese characters, which means "light kan (yokan). The reason for this is that when the dough is steamed, it becomes lighter than it was before steaming. In recent years, "karukan manju," a sweet bean paste wrapped in "karukan" dough, has become common, and is a popular souvenir for tourists from outside the prefecture.