🍱 Yanagi-batto

The cool climate of Northern Iwate makes it difficult to grow rice, which has led to the continued production of cereals that grow well in harsh environments, such as Japanese millet, foxtail millet, and buckwheat. As a result, many dishes incorporating cereals were created, one of which is "Yanagi-batto," made with buckwheat flour. During the Edo period, the Nanbu clan that ruled the area prohibited farmers from eating thin-cut soba noodles because they took a long time to cut, and thus were considered a luxury. People began making willow-shaped dumplings with buckwheat flour, and were able to continue to eat soba by saying "this isn't soba, it's Yanagi-batto.” The "Yanagi (willow)" in the name "Yanagi-batto" refers to the shape of the dumpling, and "batto" is said to come from the word "hatto," which means to ban something. The dumplings are formed into a willow shape because willows sprout the earliest in the spring and wither latest in the autumn, and thus are said to represent the wish for health and longevity. Depending on the region, it is also called Yanagi-battou, Yanagi-ba, Yanagi-dango, and Suri-dango. The texture is springy and chewy.