🍡 Tojiko Mame / Mame Gashi (Steamed Soybean and Flour Sweet)

The name of this sweet comes from the fact that it is made by locking up soybeans with a sweet wheat flour dough. In the cities of Yamaga and Kikuchi, and the areas surrounding them, “tojiko mame/mame gashi” was prepared at the same time as osechi to be eaten during New Year's. Sugar and water are cooked in a pan and after that, roasted soybeans are added. Once the soybeans become soft, wheat flour is added, and the ingredients are mixed. Oil is heated in a frying pan and the dough is kneaded until it becomes transparent. The dough is then wrapped in some dry bamboo skin and steamed. Traditionally, soybeans were used but recently, people like to use peanuts instead. Peanuts do not need to be roasted and they are crunchier and have more flavor. The ingredients used differ depending on the family and region that makes it, and some people like to add yuzu or ginger and use different types of sugar such as muscovado sugar, soft brown sugar, and cane sugar or blend different types of sugar together. Sometimes, this sweet is not steamed and a bamboo rolling mat is used to shape the dough.