Dango

File:Preparing mitarashi dango Mino Gifu.JPG

Yaki dango being prepared

is a Japanese dumpling made with regular rice flour and glutinous rice flour. They are usually made in round shapes, and three to five pieces are served on a skewer, which is called . The pieces are eaten with sugar, syrup, red bean paste, and other sweeteners. Generally, dango falls under the category of wagashi (Japanese confectionery), and is often served with green tea. It is eaten year-round, but the different varieties are traditionally eaten in given seasons. Dango is sometimes compared with mochi, but is different in that mochi is generally made only with glutinous rice.

A popular type of dango, the hanami dango, has been made into a Unicode emoji (🍡).

Types

File:Mitarashi Dango at Kyoto.jpg

Mitarashi dango, covered with sugar and soy sauce

The many different varieties of dango are usually named after the various seasonings served on or with it.

Popular dango

File:Dango (15858819741).jpg

Various dango being sold at a store

• is commonly covered with sweetened red bean paste; ingredients other than azuki are used on rare occasions. Other toppings for anko include made from edamame paste and kurumi (walnut) paste.
• is green tea (matcha) flavored dango.
• is a kind of baked dango () and is seasoned with soy sauce. Furthermore, the one wrapped with nori is called .
• also known as is eaten during hanami. It has three colors (pink, white and green), and is traditionally made during sakura-viewing season, hence the name (hanami means "flower viewing"; hana meaning "flower", and mi meaning "to see"). The order of the three colored dumplings is said to represent the order in which cherry blossoms bloom. Pink represents cherry buds, white represents cherry blossoms in full bloom, and green represents leafy cherry blossoms after they have fallen. This one was chosen for the Dango Unicode emoji, 🍡
• is made with millet flour. This variety is prominently featured in the tale of Momotarō, a folkloric Japanese hero, who offers the rounded ball (not skewered) to three talking animals in exchange for their aid in fighting demons.
• is made with toasted soy flour.
• is mixed leaves of yomogi, like kusa mochi. It is often covered with anko.
• is covered with a syrup made from shouyu (soy sauce), sugar, and starch.
• is produced and eaten primarily in Niigata Prefecture. Sasa dango has two varieties: onna dango and otoko dango. Onna dango (literally "female dango") is filled with anko, while the otoko dango (literally "male dango") is filled with kinpira. The dango is wrapped in leaves of sasa for the purpose of preservation.
• is eaten in anmitsu or mitsumame.
• is a white dango eaten during Tsukimi, related to the Mid-Autumn festival.

Various other dango

• has three colors. One is colored by red beans, the second by eggs, and the third by green tea. Botchan dango is a product name of Ehime’s miyagegashi, which was named after Natsume Sōseki’s novel Botchan.
• is a slightly sweet, light treat usually eaten as a dessert.
• from Hokkaido is made from potato flour and baked with sweet boiled beans.
• is coated in chestnut paste.
• is a type of Japanese meatball. Chicken niku dango is called tsukune, served on a skewer.

• Hanami dango
  Hanami dango
• Kusa dango
  Kusa dango
• Anko dango
  Anko dango
• Goma dango
  Goma dango
• Chichi dango
  Chichi dango
• Tsukimi dango
  Tsukimi dango
• Kinako dango
  Kinako dango
• Roasted with fish
  Roasted with fish

Derived terms

A common Japanese proverb refers to a preference for practical things rather than aesthetics.

A hairstyle consisting of dango-like buns on either side of the head is sometimes known as odango.

Dorodango is a Japanese art form in which earth and water are molded to create a delicate, shiny sphere, resembling a billiard ball.

In Vietnam

Bánh hòn is a specialty dessert of Phan Thiet. The cake is made from tapioca flour, coconut, roasted peanuts, salt and sugar. When finished, it is rolled over shredded coconut and skewered like Japanese dango.

Unicode character

The Unicode emoji character 🍡 is used to resemble hanami dango. The character was introduced in October 2010.

See also

• Jian dui
• Wagashi, traditional Japanese confectionery