I have been making wagashi on my own but have always wanted to refine my skills.
Since I was visiting Kyoto, the beautiful city that have been known for its strong traditional and heritage roots, as well as their many stores selling wagashi (traditional Japanese confectionery) and of course, matcha sweets and tea. I wanted very much to learn from a native expert.
I was really lucky and thrilled to be able to meet Miyazaki sensei in Kyoto who was so gracious to arrange a session for me to learn 4 types of wagashi.
They were Sakura Mochi, Yaki Ayu, Inokomochi and Kanoko. It was such a wonderful experience and I highly recommend her lessons to everyone! (Note: lesson is conducted in Japanese)
Look at what I made!! I made all these yummy wagashi sweets~~
Her wagashi studio, called Wagashi Salon Ichi Sachi is conveniently located along Rokkaku-Dori and is accessible from both Karasuma-Oike or Karasuma subway train stations.
Check out her beautiful cosy studio, the photos don’t do justice as the studio looked even better.
I love the whole Japanese modern set up, lots of white color, bright and wooden furniture. Plus I loved how she arranged the wagashi tools and ceramics on the wall and they literally doubled up as wall decor.
Her recipes were clear and was of nice small doable portions.
The lesson was conducted in Japanese but she had even provided some of the recipes in English kindly for me.
A hands-on class where each of us (me and other student) got to watch her make the sweets and made them ourselves too.
Fees also included the food ingredients and was very reasonably priced. I can’t wait to go back again!
After the lesson, like many Japanese lessons I have been, we all sat down and enjoy tea and some of the sweets we made. We then took back the rest of the sweets we made.
I cannot wait to be back to meet her again next year.
If you are going to Kyoto and have a couple of hours to spare, I highly recommend that you take a class with Miyazaki sensei.
She is a well-known expert in her wagashi making and many Japanese locals take regular lessons from her.
Wagashi Salon Ichi Sachi
*Please confirm availability and book your lesson prior. Fees apply and menu changes on a monthly/seasonal basis
Blog post disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. I paid for the lesson and all views expressed are my own.
January 19, 2015
Without knowing Japanese would a person be able to follow and learn from this course?
January 19, 2015
It prob will be okay but some of the pointers might be harder for you to catch. But essentially its like seeing a cooking demo and following. The teacher can manage some simple English :)
November 20, 2014
Wow! Thanks for sharing dear!
November 20, 2014
my pleasure! It was such an amazing experience!