Wagashi chef crafts amazing edible characters with leftover scraps 【Photos】

Wagashi are traditional Japanese sweets usually made from mochi, bean paste, or fruit. If you’ve been to Japan or a nice Japanese restaurant, perhaps you enjoyed one sculpted to look like a flower, crane or some other very old-fashioned Japanese image.

Like most things in Japan, no matter how venerable, give it enough time and it will be kawaii-ified. Enter sweets shop Kuramoto Hinode, where a veteran wagashi chef has begun crafting anime and pop culture based sweets with leftover bits and bobs.

The chef is the fourth generation to work in the family sweets shop in Tokushima Prefecture and has been crafting traditional wagashi for about 12 years.

One day, he had some bits of dough left over and thought that he could make a Kinnikuman figure. After that, he began making sweets for his family and friends based on Pokémon, Doraemon and other popular series. He estimates he’s made about 400 different characters at this point.

Unfortunately, if you were hoping to nibble on a Niobat or chomp on a Chocobo, these cute characters are not for sale, as the chef says he does them just as a hobby and only when the mood takes him. However, he does post pictures of his new creations on his Twitter account, so at least you can feast your eyes on them.