Ekijuto is a rare kind of mochi that was first created by a pharmacist with the intent of combining medicine and sweets. Contemporary Ekijuto mochi is flavored with cinnamon and walnut.

Miwa says: Peko bought these sweets for after dinner and was quite a surprise for me. I opened the package and found the softest gyuhi ever! It made me wonder how being so soft it could keep its shape. The taste was also very nice, strong taste makes nice contrast to soft texture. It was a homerun for me! I just regret that I didn’t know about this shop or kind of mochi before.

Peko says: This is the softest gyuhi I have encountered. It was like bubbly soft, yet remarkably the cubic shape remains intact. Enveloped in this softness are hard, pea-sized chunks of walnut. For Kyoto wagashi, I thought that the cinnamon taste was quite strong. I liked it a lot.

The 105 yen price is quite reasonable for the complex and high quality taste.

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Cut and Served

About Ekijuto Gyuhi Mochi 益寿糖
Ekijuto was very popular in the Edo period, it is said that a Chinese medicinal pharmacy invented this confection as a kind of medicine that doubled as a sweet. (Clever marketing strategy!) Chinese herbal medicine was added to the soft gyuhi mochi. Emperor Meiji gave his young son, the future Emperor Taisho, this confection when he was in poor health.

Ekijuto mochi is one of several wagashi confections whose production was permitted by the government during the war.

Production of this unusual confection ceased for some time. In 1980, there was only one person left that could make it. It was revived by an enterprising wagashi shop, now there are several shops in Kyoto that make it.

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Wrapping

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Served

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Cut and Served

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Cut and Served Detail

Walnut Gyuhi Mochi with Cinnamon: Cross-section

English and Service
百万遍 かぎや政秋
No English menu or signs. Staff was not especially friendly when I was there.
tel: 075-761-5311
Kyoto-shi Sakyo-ju Hyaumanben-kado (京都市左京区百万遍角)
Japanese language website

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