Japanese Souvenirs That You Cannot Forget! 6 Recommended Okinawan Souvenirs
Thanks to the warm climate and abundant nature, Okinawa is a prefecture full of unique foodstuffs. There are plenty of foodstuff and traditional crafts made for souvenirs that you can buy throughout Japan, and here are 6 of the Okinawa recommendations.
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1. Beni-imo Tarts: the number 1 Okinawan souvenir chosen by Japanese people!
Beni-imo Tart is made by the well-established sweets maker, Okashi Goten, and it's a standard Okinawan souvenir. The vivid purple is easy on the eyes, and the combination of beni-imo (purple sweet potato) and the tart makes for a delicious treat. Its fluffiness and gentle sweetness makes it a treat that stands out from the rest.
HP: www.okashigoten.com/index.html (Japanese Only)
Address: 657-1 Uza, Yomitan-son, Nakagami-gun, Okinawa (Google Map)
2. Soki Soba: A collaboration between soki and the characteristic Okinawan noodles!
"Soki" is pork spare ribs. Okinawa soba noodles (not to be confused with regular soba, which are buckwheat noodles) are yellow and chewy, and they match perfectly with soki! The fresh texture of the soba and the richness of the soki is a flavor you should definitely try.
HP: r.gnavi.co.jp/prt/okinawa/column/0311/ (Japanese Only)
3. Ryukyu Cocktail Glasses: pour drinks in these fetchingly colored glasses
Ryukyu glass, Okinawa's traditional glass craft, is known for its beautiful characteristic transparent colors such as blue and green. The recommendation are cocktail glasses, so you can enjoy drinking from the beautiful colors. This is a perfect souvenir for people who are picky about their liquor or their glassware!
HP: ryukyuglass.web.fc2.com/longglass.html (Japanese Only)
4. Moringa Tea: A tea loved by Japanese health nuts!
Okinawa's moringa tea is a health tea that's gentle on the digestive system and has gathered lots of attention lately. It's full of polyphenols, which are antioxidants. In fact, it has 8x the polyphenols that red wine does! It also has anti-aging effects, such as helping prevent under-eye wrinkles and age spots.
HP: www.glocore.com/ (Japanese Only)
5. Koshu Awamori Sake Cake: Okinawa's liquor, awamori, is used to make sweets!
Awamori, Okinawa's representative liquor, is used in plentiful amounts to make this delicious cake. Awamori's richness goes well with the cake's sweetness and it brings forth a high-quality flavor. Since you can only taste and smell the liquor in perfectly balanced amounts, this might be good for people can't or don't often drink.
HP: www.okinawafarm.co.jp/sale/jusho-sakecake.html (Japanese Only)
Address: 1-9-9 Makiminato, Urasoe-shi, Okinawa (Google Map)
6. Mimiga Jerky: You can easily enjoy Okinawa's famous mimiga!
Okinawa is famous for "mimiga," which is pig ear skin. This is mimiga jerky, and its crisp texture goes perfectly with beer or liquor. The slightly spicy chili pepper is a wonderful accent, and the more you chew on it the deeper the flavor gets!
HP: okiham.co.jp/index.html (Japanese Only)
Address: 2822-3 Zakimi, Yomitan-son, Nakagami-gun, Okinawa (Google Map)
The information in this article is accurate at the time of publication.
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