🍱 Urajiro Manjuu

“Urajiro manjuu” is a traditional Japanese confectionary made using fresh leaves of the perennial plant “oyamabokuchi” (=synurus pungens), which grows in the sunny mountainous areas. The name “oyamabokuchi” comes from the fact that the hairs on the back of its leaves were used as tinder to start fires. In Japanese, tinder is “hokuchi” which is incorporated in the name of the plant. Also, the hairs on the back of the leaves make the back of the leaves white, which is how “urajiro manjuu” got its name. “Urajiro” literally means that the back is white. This confectionary is like kusa mochi (yomogi mochi) in texture. However, the taste of the leaves is not as strong as “yomogi” (=Japanese mugwort). In the past, the fibers extracted from the leaves were used as an ingredient to bind hoto (flat udon) noodles in the Yamato area of Koshu city. The same idea was used to make “urajiro manjuu.” In Makioka of Yamanashi city and the eastern parts of the prefecture, “urajiro dango,” made with “oyamabokuchi” (=synurus pungens) leaves, maize flour, and wheat flour, was eaten on March 3rd to celebrate “Hinamatsuri.”