Kuzumochi

Kuzumochi at the Yagyu Iris Garden, Nara, in June Translucent squares of kuzumochi under a dusting of kinako, set beside a cut iris for the season. The jelly is set with kudzu starch, and the name is a trap for visitors: in the Kanto region around Tokyo, kuzumochi is a different, whitish sweet made from fermented wheat. If the pieces look like glass, as here, you are looking at the Kansai kudzu kind.