A great after-school snack or breakfast meal. Ochazuke is made with hot green tea poured on top of rice sprinkled with some ochazuke seasoning. It tastes especially good when you add some leftover salmon on top.

Aya's sister's favorite snack. It's made with salted, dried broad/fava beans. You can find this in 7-Eleven.

Japanese persimmon is a type of fruit that tastes so good when it's ripe. You can also cut off the top and then freeze it so that when it's slightly defrosted you can scoop it out like sorbet.  

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Dried persimmon is also common dessert in Japan. 

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There’s a famous yet unfortunate story about a haiku poet named Mukai Kyorai whose house became known as Rakushisha (House of Fallen Persimmons). 

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In 1869, a merchant came to Kyorai's house to buy what's now equivalent to $10,000 worth of persimmons. That night, a giant storm arrived in Kyoto and blew all the persimmons off the trees. The merchant came back the next day and Kyorai felt sorry so he returned all the money.  

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His small cottage is still standing today and you can visit it in Kyoto. 

Natto is fermented soy beans. It's an acquired taste and has a strong, distinct smell.  

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Aya's uncle would eat so much for breakfast and Rebecca likes it.

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​Natto usually comes in a foam container so you need to stir it up and put it on top of rice. 

Yuki no Yado is a type of senbei (rice cracker) that's topped with a sweet glaze. There's a combination of saltiness and sweetness. You can find this in any Asian market.

Awesome snack. Aya's favorite is

salmon and Meimei's is 梅干し (pickled Japanese plum), tuna mayo, and イクラ (salmon eggs). 

Karinto is a traditional type of Japanese snack that is made with fried dough.

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Personally, honey karinto is the best but you'll usually see ones that are made with brown sugar. 

Aya's dad would always bring back jars of this black sesame paste to eat with bread. It has a bit of a milky texture.

A crispy soy-sauce senbei you can find in any Asian market. They have mini-sizes but the larger ones taste better.

Boro is a type of egg biscuit that's meant to be given to babies when they're teething but Aya and Hinako still like it so who cares...  :(

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You'll usually see it packaged in Asian markets with a nursery animal-type print.

Brown sugar karinto that you can find in most Asian markets. 

Kinako is roasted soybean flour and it's one of the hardest things to describe if you haven't tried it. It's not sweet but it's not savory either. 

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Meimei and Aya like kinako mochi but just make sure you don't choke on the powder.