While vising Japan during the winter, we had loads of fun activities. One of the unique experiences we had was Matcha & Wagashi Making Class (2,570 yen/person). My gourmet sister found it (of course), and we attended the class with her and my brother-in-law. The class was offered by Japanese Culture Experience An Tokyo. The building where the class is held was slightly hard to find, as it didn’t have super obvious signage outside. It is located on the third floor inside a small building, prepare to hike up some stairs. Once you arrive, you need to take you shoes off before entering the classroom. They have a shoe rack, and provide slippers to wear during the class.
They had individual work station set with everything you need. There was a picture of what we are making, and also an example of the finished sweets. Very helpful! Wagashi means traditional Japanese sweets, and we were going to make “Nerikiri Wagashi” on this day. Nerikiri is fresh Japanese confections made with colorful bean paste. They create seasonal design of Nerikiri sweets, and since we were there during the winter, the design was Winter Bunny and Snow-Covered Pine Tree!
It was not as easy as I thought, but at the same time, it was not as hard as I thought to make them either. Our teacher was very knowledgeable and kind, she started with some history of Wagashi (traditional Japanese sweets) and Nerikiri, which was very interesting. We were also informed that they get bean paste from a long-established bean paste shop in Kyoto to create authentic sweets. Impressive! She provided clear step-by-step instructions, so it was easy for follow. We get the white and dark bean paste to work with, and use the color powder to create red, green, and blue. Here are my finished creations! Looks pretty close to the samples, right?
And here are the finished creations of my hubby, my gourmet sister, and my brother-in-law. My sister used leftover red-colored bean paste to make the snow-covered pine tree look a bit like Christmas tree. And my brother-in-law copied her. LOL. I made a heart with the leftover red ones. I think we all did pretty good job!
Next experience was making your own matcha. The instructor again started with some history of matcha. Then, she showed us how the matcha powder is made with traditional stone mill. So fascinating! We didn’t get to try the mill, but it was interesting to see how it is done in person.
We were given our own matcha bowl, matcha whisk, and a few tools. I loved each bowl, especially the one my sister received with a lady’s face!
A container with fine matcha powder was passed around, and we each put the powder into our bowl. A hot water was added, and the teacher gave us step-by-step instruction on how to correctly whisk the tea. I whisked away following the instructions until I got the nice, creamy foam on top.
Now that I have my own, perfectly whisked (in my opinion only) matcha, I was ready for some sweets and tea! It was fun to see all the colors of the bean paste as I cut them in half with bamboo knife. It was smooth and sweet, comforting and well deserved after a hard-ish work! The tea was also smooth, creamy and tasty. The bitterness complimented the sweet bean flavor.
We had such fun experience during this Matcha & Wagashi Making Class. Such a unique way to experience traditional Japanese culture. The instructor was great. Her instruction was clear and easy to follow. As there was a non-Japanese couple in the class, she also provided the instructions in English as well, so that they can follow along. I am glad we signed up for this class, we had such fun time together! If you are looking for a unique, fun, educational and yes, tasty experience, you might want to sign up for this kind of classes.
日本文化体験 庵an東京 【抹茶2点体験コース】自分で点てるお抹茶と練り切り和菓子作り体験 – 千代田区鍛冶町2-2 第2登栄ビル3階
Matcha & Wagashi Making Class by Japanese Culture Experience An Tokyo – 2-2 Kajicho, Chiyoda-ku, No. 2 Toei Building 3rd floor, Tokyo, Japan