Hirosaki Apple Pie is a local sweet enjoyed in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture, which boasts the highest apple production in Japan. Around 2009, as inquiries about apple sweets to the city's tourist information center increased, staff conducted their own survey of confectionery shops in the city and found more than 40 shops offering apple pie. This led to the 2010 publication of the "Hirosaki Apple Pie Guide Map," marking the beginning of "Hirosaki, the City of Apple Pie." A wide variety of businesses — Japanese and Western confectioners, bakeries, Nanbu senbei shops, cafes, and hotels — each compete with their own original recipes, and the apple varieties used as well as preparation methods, such as baking whole apples, coarsely chopping, slicing, or making a paste, vary distinctively from shop to shop. With each new edition, the guide map has featured more shops, now growing to over 50. Many tourists enjoy sampling pies from shop to shop, making it one of the local foods not to be missed when visiting Hirosaki.
Origin
Around 2009, as inquiries about apple-based sweets to Hirosaki City's tourist information center increased, the information center staff conducted their own survey of confectionery shops in the city. They found more than 40 shops offering apple pie, and compiling this into a single guide map, they published the first edition of the "Hirosaki Apple Pie Guide Map" in March 2010, marking what is considered the beginning of "Hirosaki, the City of Apple Pie."
History
The April 2010 edition of the guide map introduced 34 shops in the city, but it attracted attention and was covered repeatedly by the media, and the number of shops listed grew year by year. Through repeated revisions, the 10th edition surpassed 50 listed shops. It also became a topic on social media as something people wanted to sample shop by shop, and it took root as a tourism draw symbolizing Hirosaki, a center of apple production.
Features
Its defining feature is that shops from different types of businesses — Japanese confectioners, Western confectioners, bakeries, Nanbu senbei shops, cafes, and hotels — each make apple pie using their own original recipe. The apple variety used and the preparation method, such as baking a whole apple, coarsely chopping, slicing, or making a paste, also differ from shop to shop, making it enjoyable to sample and compare.
Food Culture
Its most distinctive feature is the absence of a single official recipe, with diverse shops across different business types each competing with their own original creation. What began as a grassroots effort with a handmade guide map from the tourist information center has grown into a tourism draw symbolizing Hirosaki, the city of apples.
How It Differs from Home Cooking
At home, apples are often simply simmered down into a jam-like filling for convenience, but Hirosaki's specialty shops take great care from the choice of apple variety, such as Kogyoku, to the preparation method — baking a whole apple, layering slices, or coarsely chopping — resulting in a rich variety of flavors and textures.
Famous Shops
シャロン洋菓子店 城東本店
弘前市城東4-5-2
A long-established Western confectionery famous for its generously filled, hearty apple pie made with simmered apples. Sold year-round at 346 yen per slice or 2,322 yen per whole pie.
ジークフリート イトーヨーカドー弘前店
弘前市駅前3-2-1 イトーヨーカドー弘前店内
A Western confectionery founded in 1983. Its handmade dough is filled with thinly sliced apples seasoned with cinnamon and raisins, then brushed with apricot jam after baking. 430 yen each.
ラグノオ アプリ店
弘前市表町2-11 弘前駅ビル「アプリーズ」1階
A popular shop conveniently located inside the Hirosaki Station building, offering easy access for visitors. Its appeal lies in its affordable price of 230 yen each, perfect for eating on the go.
FAQ
Q. Is there a set way to make Hirosaki apple pie?
A. There is no unified recipe; shops of various types, including Japanese confectioners, bakeries, and senbei shops, each make it using their own methods. The apple variety used and the preparation method (whole, coarsely chopped, sliced, etc.) also differ from shop to shop.