-=> Quoting Carol Shenkenberger to Nancy Backus on 12-20-08 10:00 <=-

 CS> Sure, but got the day off and may get to it today.  Have to soak some
 CS> sweet beans first.  Thats one of the things I might get in a can
 CS> sometimes as we use them only in small amounts.  Azuki.  (When they say
 CS> it in Sasebo, sounds like a 'd' is in there which is why I so often
 CS> spell it adzuki). 

I think I've seen it other places spelled adzuki... on cans, in books...
so it never seemed strange for you to put the "d" in.  Maybe it's a
Peking/Beijing sort of thing?

 > Japan has some interesting "sweets"...  I remember one from
my Japanese
 > friends in high school that was a very salty treat.  I remember even
 > more vividly the twinkle in Cal's eye as he handed it to us, expecting a
 > more typical "American" reaction...  ;)  But the rice and sweet beans

 CS> I can picture it!  The tip is that if it seems to have little green
 CS> bits, (nori likely) then it's probabl a salty one.  Some are both at
 CS> the same time with seems strange to us, but you get used to it and it's
 CS> good. 

I don't remember the little green bits... although it may have been
green in color... I remember it looking more like a jellied candy, like
a spice drop without the sugar on the outside... little cubes...  The
texture was like a sweet.

 > would be definitely more a sweet treat.  :)  I've quite fallen for Red
 > Bean Paste and for Lotus Bean Paste... whether in a bun or even by
 > itself...  :)  (Yes, I know those are more Chinese, dimsum-y, than
 > Japanese... but also not syrupy sweet like most of what we'd designate
 > as candy or sweets.)

 CS> True.  Most of their 'sweets' are not quite the sugar laden levels we
 CS> europeans eat.  *some* are, but generally they arent.
 CS> Thats where I learned to carmelize an onion properly so it really adds
 CS> sweetness to a dish.

A somewhat different approach to sweet and savory.  And very good stuff,
too...  ;)

ttyl         neb

... Two guys walk into a bar...  *clang*  *clang*  "OOF!" 
"OW!"  -SLR