DIY Japanese sweets

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Little One has a school-friend with family in Japan, and consequently she visits at least once a year. And last time she brought back a small packet of some sort of Japanese sweet for Little One. Little One was touched of course, and brought it home, but nevertheless she then just left it because although she likes sweets, she is quite particular about which ones! Eventually I got fed up of seeing it lying about and asked her if she actually wanted it, and she said no, but I was curious about what was inside the colourful but practically weightless packet which was covered in writing (in Japanese of course) and pictures. I opened it up and inside were three little sachets, covered in writing but also conveniently labelled ‘1’, ‘2’, and ‘3’, plus a little two-compartment plastic tray and a tiny spoon. The back of the outer package had step-by-step instructions shown in pictures. So we followed the instructions, which was more like a science experiment than a treat. Basically we were instructed to fill the little tray with water, add the contents of sachet 1 and mix. This made a sort of blue paste with a very synthetic sort of smell. Next step was to add the powder from sachet 2 and mix again, which converted the paste into a more purplish sort of foam, with a different synthetic smell, possibly with a slight hint of artificial strawberry flavour. Next we were supposed to take a spoonful of the foam, dip it in the multicoloured crystals and then eat it. I confess that, unusually for me, I just couldn’t bring myself to do that! Little One wouldn’t either. Big One tried some and said it wasn’t too bad but not an experience she wanted to repeat. Have you tried anything like this? All rights reserved. © Text and image copyright Fleur 2026.