Sasamaki is a local dish of Yamagata Prefecture in which glutinous rice soaked in water is wrapped in sasa (bamboo-grass) leaves into a triangular or bale shape, tied with a cord such as rush grass, and boiled in hot water — it corresponds to what other prefectures call 'chimaki.' It has traditionally been made in each household for the Boys' Festival (Tango no Sekku, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month) to pray for children's healthy growth. Sasa leaves are said to have antiseptic and antibacterial properties and have long been valued as a wrapping material for preserved and portable food. The way it is wrapped varies by region: it is shaped into a cone in the Mogami region and into a fist shape in the Oitama region, while the southern part of Tsuruoka City has its own distinctive method of boiling it in lye water (aku-mizu). To eat it, the sasa leaves are untied and the rice cake is topped with roasted soybean flour (kinako) and black sugar syrup (or sugar).
Origin
Even the Heian-period compendium 'Wamyo Ruijusho' records that on the fifth day of the fifth month, people ate a food made by wrapping glutinous rice in plant leaves and boiling it in lye, suggesting that the custom of eating chimaki-like rice cakes at the Boys' Festival dates back a very long time. In Yamagata, this tradition took root region by region as 'sasamaki' — glutinous rice wrapped in sasa leaves and steamed or boiled, making use of the leaves' antiseptic and antibacterial qualities.
History
It has been made in each household and passed down as a seasonal food offered at the Boys' Festival to pray for children's healthy growth. The lye-boiled sasamaki handed down in Tsuruoka City is said to have a history of more than 230 years, with a description of it appearing in a document from 1788 (Tenmei 8). In 2023 it was recognized as one of the Agency for Cultural Affairs' '100-Year Foods,' and the 'sasamaki-making techniques of Shonai' have been registered as a national Intangible Folk Cultural Property. Regional traditions continue to be passed down today, such as in the Amarume district of Shonai Town, where sasamaki is still customarily eaten at New Year and at the Nanatsu Iwai (seventh-birthday celebration).
Features
A defining feature is the regional variation in how the glutinous rice is wrapped in sasa leaves: it is shaped into a cone in the Mogami region and into a fist shape in the Oitama region. The southern part of Tsuruoka City has its own distinctive method of boiling it in lye water, and after untying the leaves it is typically eaten topped with kinako and black sugar syrup, or sugar. Its simple, rustic flavor comes from the fragrance of the sasa leaves transferring to the glutinous rice.
Main Ingredients
Food Culture
Sasamaki has been passed down in each household as a seasonal food eaten at the Boys' Festival to pray for children's healthy growth. Regional traditions remain in the way it is wrapped and boiled: in the Amarume district of Shonai Town it is also eaten at New Year and at the Nanatsu Iwai celebration, and Tsuruoka City's sasamaki was recognized as one of the Agency for Cultural Affairs' '100-Year Foods' in 2023.
How It Differs from Home Cooking
At home it is common to use the glutinous rice grains as they are, but in some areas of Tsuruoka City the rice is boiled in lye to give it a yellow color, and both the method and the seasoning vary by region and household.
| 手づくり笹巻（庄内観光物産館・清川屋ほか） | Sasamaki, recognized as a local dish of the Shonai region, can be purchased as a gift set that comes with kinako and black sugar syrup. A set of 20 pieces from JA Shonai Tagawa (with black sugar syrup and kinako included) costs around 3,900 yen.Where to buy →PR |
|---|