私の大好きなおせんべい

note: sorry for the bad, blurry photos in this post. i make do with a simple canon sd10 that i inherited from a friend.

煎餅（せんべい, senbei) are japanese rice crackers that are traditionally flavored with a soy sauce-mirin glaze. they are undoubtedly delicious and their addictive crunch is unparalleled. i can (and do) easily go through not one, but several packs in one sitting. there have been instances where i've eaten them to the point where my tongue numbs over from the sodium content.

so yeah, they're pretty damn good. every now and again, i get incredible cravings for them. they range anywhere from salty-sweet to spicy and crispy-flakey to a hard crunch. last week's paper-writing provided a particularly good opportunity to munch on senbei, and i worked my way through 5 packs, of which i have reviewed below:


kameda brand "kare-sen" (curry flavored senbei)

very light and crisp texture, but of the styrofoam-like variety (potato starch is added to the mochi rice). mild curry flavor and not spicy at all. nor salty enough to bring out the richness of the curry. of course freshness is key to any good rice cracker, and here, the product’s shortcomings is probably due the local jas-mart’s (under new management) poor stock maintenance.


kameda brand "soft salad" (salad flavored? senbei)

again, i don't really care for styrofoam-type crackers. however, they tend to have greater variety in terms of flavors (whereas traditional rice ones rarely deviate from the shoyu-mirin combo). nevertheless, these were also disappointing: very little flavor of any sort, reminiscent of popcorn...


kameda brand "onidaiko tamari aji senbei" ("devil's drum" senbei)

these are an oversized version of classic round senbei. these crackers were rather hard and really gave the jaws a workout. the flavor was salty and lightly sweet, but i would've preferred it to have a bit of heat (the angry sumo head would probably agree with me).


masuya brand "onigiri senbei" (riceball crackers)

these were pretty standard senbei, although the riceball shape and mascot were a cute touch. taste-wise, a nice tangy soy sauce & mirin combo with nori confetti to amp up the umami.


toko brand "friendly pack" (a gregarious collection of tiny crackers)

not really senbei proper, this "party mix" type has an assortment of mini-crackers, coated peanuts and peas. i was surprised by how fresh this package was. though we are talking about MSG-laden snacks, it seems to me that this product tasted brighter and bolder than most of the other bags i worked through. the crunch was crisper than that of the others'. the peanuts were especially fresh and their sweetness complimented the spiciness of the half-moon crackers.


toko brand "mamegashi" (coated peanuts & peas)

further deviating from the subject of senbei are coated peanuts (don't really know the correct term here, they’re usually called “mame”-something). my love for these snacks rivals that of my love for senbei. whereas peanuts are a pretty boring snack for most of the world, the japanese have given the lowly peanut new life by dressing it up in different flavors. my favorites in this mix are the yellow ones (curry flavored) and the red ones flecked with nori (spicy squid flavored, i think). there's just so much variety to be had! and yet, each piece has a shelled peanut in the middle, whose nutty sweetness is the perfect accompaniment to its salty, crunchy exterior.


kameda brand "ume no kaori maki" (ume-plum flavored senbei with nori)

my favorite flavor in the senbei family. mostly b/c I ADORE EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING UME. ume is the greatest: it's salty, sour, sweet and umami-y all at the same time (maybe even a little spicy?). i went through these the quickest (you can see there are very few crackers left in the package). the nori was stale though.


toko brand "shisomaki noritsuki" (shiso (beefsteak plant) flavored senbei with nori)

shiso is used to make umeboshi (pickled ume), so i suppose that's why this product tastes almost exactly like the ume flavored crackers above. i liked these better since the nori was crisper and the ume flavor was stronger. both products boast real ume flesh in their list of ingredients, but these crackers simply tasted better. also, plus points for not packaging crackers individually (a wholly unnecessary and wasteful practice)


glico brand "pretz - salad flavor" (pocky’s savory brother)

also not a type of senbei, but they're sort of in the same family of snacks. pretz are buttery little sticks that are made to resemble western crackers in taste and texture. the classic "salad" flavor is my favorite, though in china, i was able to taste other varieties like curry, roasted corn, pizza and butter. though they don’t taste like salad per se, their inexplicably rich taste is addictive. pretz are a testament to the great things that the japanese can do with a little ingenuity helped along by a little MSG.