This is a gift yokan from the Shikishima Yokan Honpo shop. It's my first time trying it. The shop seems quite famous. Yokan is a traditional Japanese sweet, but this one is not black... it's brown. Let's try it. Oh, it's not as sweet as I expected. It's rare to find a yokan that isn't very sweet. I heard they use beets as one of the ingredients, which is unique to Hokkaido. The yokan was surprisingly light in flavor, maybe because it has a high proportion of agar. If I ever visit Shikishima, I'd like to stop by the shop. Thank you for the meal.

In September 2021, I purchased a Hoppo yokan at Tobu Super in Shiretoko. It looks like an anpan with red bean paste, even though I'm not a fan of red bean paste, I still bought it thinking my partner would eat it. When I took a bite, the surface was coated with yokan, not too sweet, and tasted delicious like anpan. If you like anpan, you will surely enjoy it. My partner said he wants to eat it with milk. I don't drink milk because it upsets my stomach. It's funny how there are things I like to eat but can't. Thank you for the meal.

On the way to Shiretoko La Vista, I was lured by a large sign for "Shibetsu Yangyan" and decided to stop by. I bought a set of one-bite yangyan as a souvenir for my mother, and two Japanese sweets for myself. The "one-bite yangyan" (173 yen) made with sweet potatoes and beet sugar is a light brown color with a gentle sweetness compared to regular yangyan. The "Salmon Street" (118 yen) is a square-shaped soft pie filled with red bean paste, reminiscent of the Norseman style from Senkyuan. The ingredients include walnuts, sesame seeds, and raisins, giving it a unique flavor. The milk manju is also delicious, so I'll try that next time! Thank you, Shibetsu Yangyan!

Hokkaido's long-established confectionery store, Hyosetsu Yougan, located in Shibetsu Town. The simple ingredients and moderate sweetness make the youkan light and delicious. Previously, only large sizes were available, but now bite-sized versions are also available. This is a set of bite-sized youkan. The packaging faithfully reproduces the regular youkan in mini size. While there are many confectionery stores selling youkan in Hokkaido, this is my favorite. In addition to youkan, the store also offers baked goods and manju. Thank you for the meal.

When I went to Cape Nosappu, I bought this. (Keipon-san also said, "There are very few Todowara left." It was a fierce storm, so I wonder if they will decay. There were large and small sizes of yokan available. When I opened it, I was surprised! It was a brown yokan. I checked the ingredients. "Sweet potatoes" and "beet sugar," it says, madam. It has a refined sweetness and is delicious. I will buy this again, it's delicious! The color is also beautiful. Sweet potatoes are refreshing and delicious! Yokan tastes even better when eaten with kelp tea, it's a great combination!)

This is the famous Hoshino Hoshino store in Nakashibetsu, Hokkaido. It is a long-established store founded in 1927, and it is my favorite item to buy whenever I come to this area. When I first saw it, the color was light and I was a bit puzzled, but when I took a bite, it was delicious! It has a very light and gentle sweetness, so even those who don't like sweet things can enjoy it. It is made with 100% natural ingredients such as sweet potatoes, beet sugar, and others sourced from Hokkaido, so you can enjoy it with peace of mind. In short, it is one of my favorite confectioneries. It was delicious as always! Thank you for the meal!

I searched for Kushiro gourmet food for work, but there weren't many options... I couldn't bring dairy products as souvenirs (*_*). Since it had the place name in it, I felt like I had visited there, so I bought it. ★ Shibetsu Yokan It is made from simple ingredients such as beet sugar extracted from tencha sugar, agar, adzuki beans, and malt sugar, which are used as a sugar substitute in Hokkaido. I found it unusual that it uses adzuki beans instead of red beans, but in Hokkaido, adzuki beans are often used in red rice, so it may be popular there. When I opened it, the color was light... It was a small size, so I ate it all at once. So I forgot to take a picture (^.^; The sweetness was also different from regular sugar because it uses natural sugar. I love sweet bean paste, so it was a new taste for me♪

When it comes to yokan in Hokkaido, you might think of Goshokuya, right? Their yokan is really delicious and hard to resist. But what I always end up buying is the Shibetsu yokan! It's sold near the register at Seicomart for about 150 yen for a mini yokan. It's a simple, unassuming box but that's what makes it so great. Finally, I visited the shop that makes this yokan! It turns out they don't just sell yokan, but also cakes, cream puffs, and steamed buns like a regular sweets shop in town. In addition to the mini yokan that I often see, they also have regular-sized ones. Of course, I ended up buying a bunch of mini yokan. What sets this yokan apart from the regular ones is that it uses adzuki beans instead of kidney beans, and beet sugar and maltose instead of regular sugar. All ingredients are sourced from Hokkaido, and the sweetness is refreshing. The pale color of the adzuki beans may seem fragile, but it actually adds a rich flavor. As it says on the back of the box, "Created seeking the flavor of the clear flow of the Shibetsu River flowing into the Okhotsk Sea through the harsh wilderness of the Nemuro Plain, Shibetsu yokan has a refreshing taste." Highly recommended!

At the end of the year, my husband and I went to Hokkaido. On the third day in the evening, before heading back, I checked to make sure we didn't forget to buy any souvenirs. That's when I found "Makiba Manju Milk" at the Siretoco Sky Sweets in the domestic terminal building 2F. The packaging had a cow illustration, very Hokkaido-like. The prices were as follows: 5 pieces for 735 yen (tax included) / 8 pieces for 1155 yen (tax included) / Individual pieces for 126 yen (tax included). Normally, the prices are as stated above, but luckily they were having a New Year special sale, and the individual pieces were half price at 63 yen. The 5-piece and 8-piece sets were also about 200 yen cheaper. I bought 2 pieces and my husband and I each tried one later. Each piece weighs 40g. The texture was moist, similar to a Japanese sweet with a few black sesame seeds on top, resembling sweet potato. The white bean paste inside had a lovely aroma, made with ingredients like fresh cream and condensed milk, and melted smoothly in the mouth. If you're hungry, you might end up eating it all at once (lol). It felt like the white bean paste in "Makiba Manju Milk" had a higher proportion of milk compared to other similar sweets like Amaou Strawberry Milk Harbor or Hakata Torimon. The back of the bag had the URL of the Shibetsu Yokoan Honpo, but I couldn't find "Makiba Manju Milk" listed as a new product on their website. It's individually wrapped, making it a great choice for souvenirs. I recommend trying "Makiba Manju Milk" from Hokkaido, originating in Nakashibetsu.

My parents received this yokan from a friend in Nakashibetsu, who said, "When relatives go back, they always have to bring this with them, right? Sorry, this is all we have around here." Apparently, when you think of Hokkaido, this yokan is what comes to mind. When I opened the package, I was surprised by the light color. It wasn't completely transparent, but it was about half as dark as regular yokan, making me momentarily think, "Water yokan?" And when I took a bite, I was even more surprised. It was refreshing yet had a familiar sweetness to it... What is this taste? Even though I've recently become unable to handle overly sweet things, this natural sweetness was just right for me. Looking at the ingredients, I saw, "Sweet potatoes, beet sugar, agar, malt sugar," and it made sense. It was the flavor of sweet potatoes, not red beans. And beet sugar made from Hokkaido sugar beets. I've been using it since I learned about it at Seikatsu Club. (Beet sugar is a mineral-rich and stomach-friendly sugar.) For those who think Toraya's yokan is the best, this may be too refreshing and not satisfying enough in taste. But for those who don't like sweet things or have recently become unable to handle overly sweet flavors, I highly recommend it. To me, the subtle aroma of sweet potatoes and the natural sweetness different from red beans make it an exquisitely delicious favorite. I envy my friend who lives near this shop in my hometown.

I received a souvenir of "Shibetsu Yokan bite-sized 16 pieces" (´∀｀) Despite being called bite-sized, you can't really eat it in just one bite (*^_^*) It's made from Hokkaido beet sugar and sweet potatoes, and it has a light brown color. It's very sweet, but not too heavy, making it perfect with tea (´∇｀) I ended up eating it all in no time♪ Even if you're not a fan of sweet bean paste, you might enjoy it with tea. I hope someone will give me this souvenir again (*´д`*)

Hokkaido souvenir called "Shibetsu Yokan" is sold near the checkout at Seicomart. It's a simple yokan, similar to Yamazaki Bakery's yokan, but tastier. Maybe because it's from Hokkaido, the azuki beans are good? It's reasonably priced and easy to just add it to your shopping basket.

For those who don't like heavy sweet red bean jelly, I highly recommend this red bean jelly (*^ー^*) I usually prefer sweets with less sweetness, so I don't like red bean jelly, but I discovered this red bean jelly after my parents bought it at Shibetsu Airport a while back, and I have been enjoying it ever since (o^∀^o) My child also loves this Shibetsu red bean jelly, and sometimes my relatives send it to us♡ The regular price of this set is 4104 yen. Now, this red bean jelly is made with Hokkaido-grown Kinugoshi beans, Hokkaido beet sugar, agar, and malt sugar. That's why it is slightly translucent and light brown in color (^-^) It has a subtle sweetness and an elegant taste. I enjoy it as a tea snack and finish it in no time (o^∀^o) The expiration date is written on the box, but it was about 1 year for me. However, since there are consignment sales as well, the official expiration is around 10 months. If you don't like red bean jelly or find overly sweet treats unpleasant, I highly recommend trying this out. It's not something you can easily find elsewhere, so it's a great souvenir from Nakashibetsu.

Received a gift from a valued customer at work - it's a famous sheep jelly from Nakashibetsu. According to their website, it is made using Hokkaido-grown "kinshichimame" and Hokkaido-produced beet sugar, using a unique traditional method since its founding. The taste is soft with a restrained sweetness. It had been a while since I last had sheep jelly, and it was quite sweet. I was treated to a delicious meal.

Lately, I've been buying a lot of yokan for some reason. I think it's because you can forget about buying it and it'll still be good. I bought this a while ago, and the expiration date was getting close. I think it's a relaxed treat, you can keep it for a long time and when you feel like having something sweet, you can enjoy it right away. This yokan isn't too sweet, it has a nice light aftertaste. It's a 380g yokan, but if you try, you could probably eat about half of it at once. There's no need to force yourself, so I'll just have two pieces, it's just the right amount to enjoy.

I received a souvenir from my grandmother, who knows my mother loves Shibetsu yokan. I have been eating it since I was a child. When I tried other yokan in the past, I was surprised by the difference with Shibetsu yokan. Now, I can only eat Shibetsu yokan. It has a refreshing sweetness and is very delicious. There are palm-sized pieces as well as longer ones that can be cut with a knife and eaten.

I'll join in on the reviews since everyone else is doing it ^_^ I don't know why, but we have a lot of these small Shibetsu yokan at home. Maybe for offerings? It's true that large yokan wouldn't be suitable for offerings, right? Maybe it's for when my wife gets a little hungry? It's convenient because you can just take a bite and eat it, and as yokan goes, it's pretty delicious ^_^ Having multiple pieces at home is also a valuable source of calories for emergencies! How about that? Thanks for the meal ^_^

Yome-san said she wanted to go to Naka-Shibetsu, but I pretended not to hear. Even though our schedules aligned, she wanted to go to Naka-Shibetsu, not Asahikawa or Obihiro. So when she said she wanted to go to Naka-Shibetsu, I put on a confused face and said, "Naka-Shibetsu???" However, I couldn't come up with a follow-up response. But then, she realized I knew and asked where I was going. When I said I was going to Naka-Shibetsu, she asked me to bring back some sheep jelly. There's a famous sheep jelly shop in Naka-Shibetsu, you see. So even though I said I was going to Naka-Shibetsu, the correct response should have been, "Nakashibetsu??? Really??" Because the sheep jelly shop is closed on Sundays. But she knew of another place that sells it, so we decided to stop by. It turned out to be quite a large store. There was an old man inside, and we bought some sheep jelly as a souvenir. It was much lighter in color than I expected. When I tried it, the taste was also light and easy to eat. Perhaps it's because they use golden beans instead of red beans. The sweetness was just right for sheep jelly, not too overpowering. Basama loves sheep jelly and used to make it herself. When she was a child, she would take the bus to the station to buy sweet bean paste. I always hated it and never ate it. Even now, I don't actively seek it out, but having a piece once in a while is not bad.

Received as a gift in 2019, this is a specialty treat from the eastern region of Hokkaido. It seems to be a shop specializing in yokan, a traditional Japanese sweet jelly dessert. I remember my late father, who had a sweet tooth and insisted that red rice must have plenty of sweet beans to be called "red rice." If dinner included ohagi, he believed it was a taste of heaven. I, on the other hand, often found myself despairing at the dinner table with only ohagi to eat. Watching my father peel yokan like a banana made me feel heartburn just thinking about it. Due to this upbringing, I have steered clear of sweets. The gift I received is a cute packaged manju from Chishima Town, known for its dairy industry, specifically the "Milk Ranch Manju" with a subtle milk flavor. Chishima Town now boasts the Chishima Airport, and the Nekan district has become a lively town. I used to travel to this area when I worked in Tokachi, but I have not been back in a while. Chishima Town, home to the beloved Yoro Gyu Onsen, is a place I would like to visit again for a relaxing hot spring experience.