Tsukimi Foods That Will Make You Love The Season!
Linh Le
Just bear the summer heat for a little longer because Otsukimi, or the Mid-Autumn Festival, is right around the corner. Also, some special limited-time tsukimi foods are released around Japanese restaurants and fast-food franchises to celebrate the season.
Tsukimi in Japan refers to the traditional moon-viewing festival in September. It’s also a special term in Japanese cuisine, describing a cracked egg added to a dish. Japanese creativity and love for seasonal food have led to various tsukimi-based dishes, from traditional to Western-style, suiting anyone’s taste.
Raw Egg Dishes
The egg yolk’s round shape and yellow color resemble the full moon, symbolizing good luck. During this season, some noodle restaurants in Japan serve tsukimi soba (thin buckwheat noodles) and tsukimi udon (thick wheat noodles) with raw eggs.
It’s made by topping soba noodles or udon with a raw egg and finely chopped green onions. Additionally, Japanese mountain yam or vegetables like okra can also be added. The broth usually consists of dashi (soup stock), soy sauce, sake, and mirin (cooking wine). This noodle dish is one of the most delicious tsukimi foods you can enjoy for the season!
Tsukimi-themed Fast Food
In Japanese fast food chains, the Tsukimi theme also applies to their seasonal fall menus, and Japanese people love the combination of traditional and modern food styles!
Looking for a fun treat to embrace the coming fall season? TokyoTreat has everything you need! TokyoTreat delivers Japan’s best Japanese snacks, drinks, and sweets to your door every month, so you can have a memorable moon viewing time at home with your friends and family!
McDonald’s
When it comes to Tsukimi-themed food, no fast food chain can beat McDonald’s Tsukimi collection. Last year, McDonald’s introduced the Tsukimi Family. The Tsukimi Burger was the main star. It was accompanied by the Cheese Tsukimi and the Tsukimi Muffin, available only on the morning menu.
There was also a special edition of Rich Melty Tsukimi with scrambled eggs, cheese sauce, and buns made with cheese. Even the French fries had a limited edition version named Yuzu Shichimi Mayo, specially designed to taste well with the Tsukimi burger. So, we might expect some special French fries to complement this year’s Tsukimi burger too!
As usual, Tsukimi Pie is a staple on McDonald’s sweet menu. It combines red bean and sticky mochi inside a crispy pie crust. The Tsukimi McFlurry always makes a splash with three flavors: warabi mochi (bracken starch mochi), kuromitsu (brown sugar syrup), and crushed waffle cone with kinako (roasted soybean flour). Last year, the Tsukimi McShake debuted, containing wasabon (refined Japanese sugar) and kinako. Everyone expects it to return this year!
KFC Japan
Although KFC‘s Tsukimi foods may lack variety compared to McDonald’s, KFC’s Tsukimi fried chicken sandwiches still managed to win our hearts with their awesome taste.
This season has two types of sandwiches: the Melty Tsukimi Japanese-style Chicken Filet Sandwich and the Western version. Along with KFC’s 11 herbs and spices, the difference lies in the sauce used for the chicken cutlet and the veggies.
In the Wafuu (Japanese-style) version, the deep-fried cutlet is flavored with teriyaki sauce, fried egg shredded cabbage, and mayonnaise for toppings. On the other hand, the Western version replaces the teriyaki sauce with olive oil and uses lettuce instead of cabbage.
Domino’s Pizza
Pizza is a perfect choice for any party, and Domino’s Pizza also has a selected menu for the Tsukimi season. The Tsukimi Creamy Egg and Bacon pizza is a simple combination of Hokkaido white sauce, mayonnaise, and parsley together with sausage, smoked bacon, and sliced eggs.
The other one is the Tsukimi Teriyaki Chicken Tamago (egg) which is topped with Camembert cheese, teriyaki chicken, spinach, mayonnaise, and sliced boiled eggs.
If you’re looking for a convenient and tasty party treat in the fall, a Tsukimi-themed pizza from Domino’s is ideal since you can easily share it with your friends without hustling for the preparation part!
Krispy Kreme
In 2020, Krispy Kreme released the premium Tsukimi doughnut exclusively in Nagoya’s Takashimaya Department Store branch. While other Tsukimi foods usually use egg or sticky rice cake to represent the moon, Krispy Kreme’s special Tsukimi-inspired doughnut is just on another level.
The whipped cream was used to recreate the image of a lovely rabbit – the first inhabitant of the moon, according to ancient Asian myths – and chestnut cream was used as the donut filling. A chocolate layer was coated on the outside to represent the night sky surrounding the rabbit moon.
If such an adorable Tsukimi doughnut was made available nationwide, we bet Krispy Kreme would be flooded with long lines of people every day during the autumn festival! What tsukimi foods or snacks would you love to try? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!
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