flipKarakudamono — rice fritters with vine syrup
Karakudamono — rice fritters with vine syrup
Why this dish? Karakudamono, fried cakes from Tang China, were the sweet luxury of the grand banquets (daikyō) held by the Fujiwara, Teishi's family. Sei Shōnagon, her lady-in-waiting, mentions these refined court sweets.
Small fritters of rice and wheat flour, shaped into twists or buttons, fried in sesame oil then glazed with amazura syrup. Crispy outside, tender inside, delicately sweet.
Here is a dish come from across the seas, from the Tang court, and we reserve it for great festivals. My pastry chefs knead the flour, roll it into fine twists, then plunge them into fragrant sesame oil until they turn golden like autumn. Upon removal, they are drizzled with amazura, that vine syrup so precious that one never pours it without measuring every drop. Eat one, slowly: it is the sweetness of an evening banquet beneath the lanterns.
- •Rice flour — one part (dough)
- •Wheat flour — half part (binder)
- •Hot water — as needed (dough)
- •Sesame oil — for frying (frying oil)
- •Amazura (vine syrup) — for glazing (signature sweetness)
Karakudamono — rice fritters with vine syrup
Small fritters of rice and wheat flour, shaped into twists or buttons, fried in sesame oil then glazed with amazura syrup. Crispy outside, tender inside, delicately sweet.
Why this dish? Karakudamono, fried cakes from Tang China, were the sweet luxury of the grand banquets (daikyō) held by the Fujiwara, Teishi's family. Sei Shōnagon, her lady-in-waiting, mentions these refined court sweets.
Here is a dish come from across the seas, from the Tang court, and we reserve it for great festivals. My pastry chefs knead the flour, roll it into fine twists, then plunge them into fragrant sesame oil until they turn golden like autumn. Upon removal, they are drizzled with amazura, that vine syrup so precious that one never pours it without measuring every drop. Eat one, slowly: it is the sweetness of an evening banquet beneath the lanterns.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rice flour — one part (dough)
- Wheat flour — half part (binder)
- Hot water — as needed (dough)
- Sesame oil — for frying (frying oil)
- Amazura (vine syrup) — for glazing (signature sweetness)
Ingredients
- Glutinous rice flour — 150 g (dough)
- Wheat flour — 75 g (binder)
- Hot water — ~120 ml (dough)
- Sesame oil (or blend sesame/neutral) — for frying, ~500 ml (frying oil)
- Light maple or rice syrup (if amazura unavailable) — 4 tbsp (signature glaze)
- Sesame seeds — 1 tbsp (finish)
Method
- Mix the flours, gradually add hot water and knead until a soft, smooth dough; let rest 20 min.
- Divide the dough into small ropes, form regular twists or knots.
- Heat sesame oil to 160-170°C and fry the fritters in batches until golden brown; drain.
- Warm the syrup, generously glaze the fritters, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and serve immediately.
How it was made : Karakudamono were fried in sesame oil, then very costly, making them a sign of prestige. Lacking refined sugar, they were sweetened with amazura, a syrup obtained by slowly reducing vine sap — a substance so rare it appeared in court accounts.
The contemporary twist : Present them in a pyramid on a bamboo leaf, like petit fours, with a brushstroke of syrup.
Sources : Sei Shōnagon, Notes de chevet (Makura no Sōshi) · Engishiki (延喜式)
Empress Teishi · Charactorium
