Warabi mochi is usually flavored with soybean powder, but not in the case of these treats from Osaka.

It’s hard to find a dessert that feels more Japanese than warabi mochi. Linguistically tied to mochi (Japanese rice cakes), warabi mochi is actually made from fern starch, with the resulting gelatin cut into cubes and typically dusted with kinako, a roasted soybean powder that tastes a little like cinnamon.

▼ Warabi mochi

But while tradition is all well and good, Osaka-based confectioner Asuka Foods also thinks that desserts are supposed to be fun, and so it’s not interested in being bound by orthodox warabi mochi dogma. In the summer of 2016, Asuka released a special warabi mochi flavored like ramune, a refreshing cider that’s popular in Japan. Now, the company is getting ready to start selling a brand-new soft drink-inspired snack: cola warabi mochi.

Warabi mochi is often clear, but Asuka’s cola version is a dark reddish brown meant to be evocative of Coca-Cola or Pepsi (or Mets Cola, if you’re someone who maintains absolute brand loyalty to the Kirin Beverage product lineup). Attached to the package is a packet of flavoring powder, which Asuka says will cause a bubbly carbonation-like sensation in the mouth.

▼ The cola warabi mochi’s packaging for western Japan, which is different than the eastern Japan packaging shown at the top of this article.

In other words, Asuka’s cola mochi is sort of a Japanese version of Pop Rocks, combining an old-school part of Japanese cuisine with some modern, kid-friendly kitsch. Pricing is yet to be announced, but considering the company’s ramune mochi cost just 100 yen (US$0.90) a pack, you can probably expect the cola warabi mochi to be simmialrly affordable when it goes on sale in April across Japan.

Source: Asuka Foods press release
Top image: Asuka Foods press release (edited by RocketNews24)
Insert images: Wikipedia/Tomomarusan, Asuka Foods press release (edited by RocketNews24)
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