Fighting food enters the ring for the September Grand Tournament.

Yamazaki Baking Company isn’t just the biggest bread-baking corporation in Japan, it’s the biggest bread-baking corporation in the world. So it’s fitting that Yamazaki’s latest collaboration involves some heavyweights, in the form of big names and big bodies from the Japan Sumo Association.

The new lineup has been produced to help celebrate the September Grand Sumo Tournament, due to be held at Tokyo’s Kokugikan from 11-25 September. There will be four tasty new products coming our way, which are inspired by a selection of specialty gourmet and popular souvenirs sold at Kokugikan.

▼ “Japan Sumo Association x Yamazaki Delicious Autumn Tournament“

The first offering is a new take on Yamazaki’s iconic “Lunch Pack”, the crustless soft white sandwich pack that recently received worldwide acclaim during the Tokyo Olympics. This new lunch pack is called “Kita no Fuji Curry Style“, as it’s filled with the same retort curry that’s one of Kokugikan’s most popular souvenirs.

▼ Kita no Fuji Curry is popular not only for its great taste, but for the fact that it was made by former Japanese professional sumo wrestler Kitanofuji Katsuaki.

The next item in the range is the Kokugikan Yakitori Flavoured Bread. We love eating charcoal-grilled yakitori skewers anytime we can, so we can’t wait to find out what this yakitori-flavoured bread tastes like. According to Yamazaki, it contains the same flavours as the yakitori grilled in the basement of the Kokugikan, including the same style of sauce, and a mayonnaise-flavoured dressing.

Next up, we have the Oiri Anpan, a bread filled with sweet red bean paste that plays on the word “Oiri“, which can be read as “big filling” and “big entrance”, although it’s used to mean “big audience” in the sumo world.

▼ The bread itself contains a big filling, as it’s said to be packed with red bean paste and sweet, sticky mochi rice cake.

The last product in the new range is the Hakkei Dorayaki, which contains a mound of tsubuan (coarse red bean paste) sandwiched between large dorayaki, a Japanese sweet that looks and tastes similar to pancakes. This treat is delightfully buttery, and has been given the stamp of approval from Onokuni Yasushi, a former yokozuna (highest-ranking sumo wrestler) who’s become famous for his love of baking and baked goods since his retirement from wrestling.

Yamazaki’s sumo line of baked goods will be available in stores nationwide from 1-30 September. Wearing the top knot hairband while you eat them is optional.

Source, images: Yamazakipan
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