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Dorayaki, a beloved snack in Japan.
I still remember watching the Doraemon series when I was young. The main character, Doraemon, a blue robot cat, had an obsession with this round anko-filled pastry. So, if you go to Japan, don’t be surprised to find a picture of Doraemon in a dorayaki stand.
What is dorayaki?
However, if you make two pancakes and fill them with anko, you will notice that the taste and texture is not the same. This is because dorayaki has its origins in a Portuguese sponge cake known as “Castella” (kasutera). This cake came to Japan in the 16th century and can still be easily found.
It is this origin that gives dorayaki its characteristic consistency, fluffiness and softness that sets it apart from the American pancake.
For those of you who love Japanese culture, there is another legend about the invention of dorayaki. In Japanese, “dora” means Japanese gong. It is said that the warrior monk Saito no Musashibo Benkei (1155-1189) one day left his gong behind with a farmer with whom he was hiding. When the monk left, the farmer fried a cake on the instrument, and thus dorayaki was invented.
3 reasons to love dorayaki
Dorayakis are one of my favourite sweets for several reasons:
- They are delicious as they are.
- They are extremely easy to prepare
- They are easy to transport and hold up well. So they are perfect to take on a picnic or a long car journey.
Dorayaki’s fillings
As I told you, dorayaki is a very simple sweet, part of traditional Japanese confectionery (wagashi). It consists of two pancakes filled with anko, usually in the koshian style. I encourage you to try making anko at home, it is delicious and very easy to prepare, you only need sugar and azuki beans.
Nowadays, you can easily find them filled with chocolate, nutella, custard, cheesecake or green tea, among many other flavours. I’ve even tried one filled with strawberry cheesecake.
How do I store them?
In the fridge
There is nothing better than freshly made dorayaki, but if you are not going to eat them immediately, wrap them in plastic wrap and put them in a sealed container or ziplock and store them in the fridge. They will keep for 48 hours.
In the freezer
Another option, which will allow you to enjoy a delicious dorayaki without having to prepare it, is to freeze it. To do this, you should store the dorayaki that you do not eat in the freezer, well wrapped in cling film and in a hermetically sealed container or in a ziplock bag. In the freezer, the dorayakis will keep for up to 1 month.
Recipe
How to make dorayaki
EQUIPO
Video
Ingredients
- 4 eggs, large
- 140 g sugar
- 2 tbsp honey
- 160 g flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tsp oil
- Filling, anko, nutella, cream
Instrucciones
- In a bowl, add the eggs, the sugar and the honey. Mix until you get a fluffy consistency
- Add the sifted flour and the baking powder and mix until everything is well incorporated.
- Let the mixture stand for about 15 minutes in the fridge
- After this time stir and if necessary add one or two tablespoons of water if necessary. We look for a consistency similar to the one you see in the videos
- To achieve a uniform browning heat the pan over low heat
- Add a little oil and with the help of a paper towel, we remove all the oil until there is just a layer that is not visible. Do not skip this step, we will repeat it for each dorayaki.
- Add the batter and cook until bubbles start to appear, about 90 seconds
- Carefully turn it over and cook for another 30 seconds.
- Remove from the heat and keep it covered with a slightly damp cloth.
- Fill them and they are ready.
