4 out of the box chocolate delights in Japan

In Japan, the land of sushi and breakthrough technology, chocolate is well-loved. And as one of the world’s quirkiest inventing/reinventing group of people and leading producers of chocolate, the Japanese like to surprise us time and again with their bizarre twists on our favorite food.

Take a look at these four unusual Japanese chocolate delights I’ve gathered:

• Chocolate Beetle Larvae

Who wants creepy larvae for dessert? Definitely not me, and most likely, not you. Unless, of course, it’s made of chocolate. Created by Komatsuya Honten, these edible beetle-larvae and caterpillar lookalikes are so like the real thing, holding them would give you the creeps. Of course, it’s a different story once you get them in your mouth, as these babies are made of yummy dark chocolate, orange peel, and chocolate body flakes gently coated with white chocolate.

• Black Garlic Chocolate

Okay, garlic is a sweet and sour spice, while black chocolate tastes bittersweet. Putting those two flavors together would be a very unlikely combination. But alas, Takko Shoji has fused the two popular ingredients into a yummy delicacy. Developed last year, the Black Garlic Chocolate is made of Aomori fermented black garlic coated with chocolate and sprinkled with cocoa powder. Just make sure to brush your teeth after eating, as this lip-smacking treat contains real garlic, after all.

• Melon Kit Kat

Kit Kat, one of the world’s most popular chocolate brands, originated in England. However, as one of Japan’s favorite chocolates, it is halfway around the world, in the land of the rising sun, where various reincarnations of the original chocolate wafer bar arose. And mind you, these reincarnations are far from ordinary. We’re talking about Kit Kat made of beans, an apple Kit Kat, and what I find the weirdest: Melon Kit Kat. It’s one thing to put chocolate syrup in your fresh melon slice, but a melon-chocolate bar?

• Vinegar Chocolate

If you want to go for broke and really taste the weirdest of the weirdest, I’d say go for Vinegar Chocolate. We’re talking about acid now. But this out-of-the-box combination actually came to be because of a healthy purpose. Knowing the purported health benefits of acetic acid that is largely found in vinegar, the research team of the Okayama Prefectural University scientists and confectionery maker Minamoto Kitchoan decided to put it in regular chocolate, resulting to confectionery with a distinct sweet and sour flavor.

Picture of Japanese chocolate box originally posted by bhollar

Topic:  Restaurants & Food | 5 Comments
Tags:  chocolate, food

About the author

Isey is a graduate student who supports her education and idiosyncrasies by teaching music, writing educational materials, and involuntarily enslaving herself to Internet marketing. In her spare time, she likes to read, tinker with designing, and wander in search of enlightenment and a scrumptious feast.