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Sweet sell of success: Giant Pudding.
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Hong Kong's position as a shop window for Chinese mainland consumers - and its reputation for fine foods - could work well promoting the distinctive Japanese puddings that are already beginning to attract Mainland diners.
Some of the most popular sweets among women, both in Japan and in China, puddings are traditionally Japanese winter gifts and are presented in a number of unique forms.
Products on sale over the Internet include the so-called Giant Pudding (a monster of a pudding that could be as large as a bucket), the Sweet and Salty Pudding and the Baked Pudding, all being among the most favoured.
Nikkei Woman Online is a website that introduces food and dining trends, and it is run by the famous Japanese connoisseur, Rika Koyabe. Last September, Koyabe's site mentioned five unique puddings that were evaluated by foodies in a special section.
These included Maroyaka (or mellow) Pudding, which was priced at US$15.4 for six slices and produced by Longchamp Confectionary. Then again, Shio (or salty) Pudding was baked by Amaimon Wholesalers and sold at US$16.6 for six pieces, while Cream Pudding (made from black chicken's eggs) sells at US$46.4, from Kanazawa Ukeian.
On the website the Bucket Pudding is priced at US$50.7 for a one litre pudding from Kamasho Sweets, while the Hokkaido Baked Pudding, costing US$20.8 comes as a single piece from Laverite.
Maroyaka Pudding has a mild and tasty flavour and is made from fresh cream and condensed milk. It was selected as forth best selling gift item for 2007. Being a handmade pudding, only about 200 pieces are produced daily but its rich caramel flavour keeps about 800,000 diners in rapture per year.
With an uncommon salty taste, Shio Pudding has been developed as an hors d'oeuvre in pubs and bars. The product is claimed to contain natural rock salt imported from France. Its mix of sweet and salty tastes makes the pudding a favourite for Japanese sake lovers.
Premium puddings made from black chicken's eggs are regarded as among the most expensive dessert products in Japan. Its key content, its eggs, come from chickens reared in the manufacturer's own farm in Ishikawa Prefecture, in the central and northern part of Japan.
The Giant Pudding can be shared among a few people during parties or gatherings. Its taste is that of a traditional Japanese sweet, much favoured by children, while Hokkaido Baked Pudding is a specialty from the northeastern part of Japan and is handmade and specially baked, resembling a French Crème Brûlée.
Besides mobilising Hong Kong bakers and patisseries, this form of speciality requiring skilled assembly could well play into the re-emerging sense of monozukuri - or the art of making things perfectly - which is seen as an important recipe for the re-emergence of Japan's economy.
It's a term which describes what Japanese companies can do to re-evaluate their mindsets and produce innovative and distinctive products. Again, Hong Kong could prove a useful conduit.
from Masahiro Ito and Aya Murota, Tokyo Office
