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Valentine's Day in Japan

torakris

By torakris
in Japan: Cooking & Baking

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torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

The new thing I heard for the first time this year is tomo-choco, short for tomodachi (friend) chocolate. This seems to be most popular among school aged girls and it is chocolate, most commonly homemade, given to fellow female friends. My daughters both received a couple pieces of this tomo-choco this year.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

Hiroyuki

Hiroyuki

Posted
Posted

I have a feeling that the term giri choco is falling out of use very quickly, being replaced by sewa choco. By definition, sewa choco is chocolate that a female gives to a male who has done a favor for her or has taken care (=sewa) of her, but the term is used almost synonymously with giri choco.

Other common terms related to Valentine's Day are

tomo choco, mentioned by torakris.

Some girls give tomo choco to male friends too!

jibun choco (also my choco)

Chocolate that a female buys for herself.

Important terms related to White Day

ni-bai gaeshi

Giving something in return that costs twice as high as the chocolate one was given

san-bai gaeshi

Giving something in return that costs three times as high as the chocolate one was given

My blog
  • 11 months later...
torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

It is that day again! :biggrin:

My husband came home with boxes of Pocky for the kids and this for me :biggrin:

gallery_6134_1960_34368.jpg

He said it looked like something I would like...

little did he know I already had half a box stashed away so no one would find it.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

prasantrin

prasantrin

Posted
Posted
It is that day again! :biggrin:

My husband came home with boxes of Pocky for the kids and this for me :biggrin:

gallery_6134_1960_34368.jpg

He said it looked like something I would like...

little did he know I already had half a box stashed away so no one would find it.

I am so getting me a box of those. I just have to find them!

I made out like a bandit yesterday! This year, for some reason, my students went all out for Valentine's Day. Some of them had two huge shopping bags filled with goodies to give away to their friends--homemade ones, at that! And one of the pluses of being a teacher is that you don't have to reciprocate...just a sincere and enthusiastic "Thank you" is enough!

torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

Yes the tomo-choco, short for tomodachi (friend) chocolate, seems to really be growing and the best part is that it seems to be mostly homemade.

Rona,

You have got to find that sasha chocolate, I am addicted!

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

Hiro

Hiro

Posted
Posted

:smile: HI I am new here .. so nice to meet you all. maybe my english is not very well so i hope you all will understand. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.

and to the angel who help me to enter this forums >> arigatou gozaimasu..!!

torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
:smile:  HI I am new here .. so nice to meet you all. maybe my english is not very well so i hope you all will understand. Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.

and to the angel who help me to enter this forums >> arigatou gozaimasu..!!

:wub:

I am assuming you are talking about me..

I am glad you made it and I hope to see more posts from you.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

Pompollo

Pompollo

Posted
Posted

And in speaking of Valentine's Day in Japan we're not just talking just plain choco here like a Hershey's kiss or a meager Mars bar. No--oh! I mean we're talking -- CHOCOLAT -- as in the most expensive, extravagant, decadent FRENCH chocolat that the women here can get their hands on. Forget the men, the women here go all out to get the best money can buy for themselves, as has been mentioned.

Price is no object. This fancy stuff costs in the thousands of yen. In fact, Valentines Day has become such a gala affair extraordinaire that the most respected and celebrated chocolat chefs from France are flown to Japan to do their thing at department stores--whipping up all kinds of tantalizing goodies that sell out in minutes to women who have learned of these chefs' arrival dates months in advance and have come, lined up and waited for hours. It's amazing how a simple idea like the giving of chocolate on Valentine's Day has escalated into a chocolat frenzy here. NOT to sound bitter (as in 86% pure cacao), but since Valentine's Day has grown into such a huge mass-marketing extravaganza to separate women from their money, that most men like me are left without as much as even a candy-bar wrapper anymore on that special day. :sad:

Hiro

Hiro

Posted
Posted

:laugh: you got it right tora sama !! i was talking about you. Thank's to the others in this forum too.

i am just a person who love pastry, boulangerie and chocolate. i making chocholate praline for my self sometimes.

I have some web site address about great chocolate boutique maybe some of you have known about this site ??,

www.lamaisonduchocolat.com

www.leonidas.com

www.marcolini.be

www.theobroma.co.jp

i've tried chocholate with liquor, have you ever think to change it with Ume-shu / plum wine
torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

Yes, some of these choclates are expensive!!

About 2 years ago a chocolaterie opened up down the street from me and I went to check it out. When I saw the prices on most were about 1,000 yen ($10) I just assumed this was for 100 g (3 1/2 ozs) as everything is sold by 100g. I picked out a couple things (some of the cheapest things) and was shocke to discover that the 1,000 yen price was per 10 g!! (that is less than 1/2oz)....

I have never been back.

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

Hiro

Hiro

Posted
Posted

maybe if you have some spare time you could try to make it by yourself, hmm maybe not good as in store.

by the way i just found out :biggrin: the web site i've gave you, is from this forum by torakris, who is this woman anyway ?? :raz: she's so good about this food things. i just found it out, because i always save it into my links in my favorites section, and accidentally, brought it up again by me.

i'll be careful next time.

  • 4 weeks later...
helenjp

helenjp

Posted
Posted

White Day...my son2's friend confided that he wwas relieved it was finally over - one of the class princesses had given him some chocolate on Valentine's Day, and spent the intervening month reminding him that she expected MAJOR REPAYMENT on White Day!

:laugh:

Helenjp

* Pickles foodblog

* New Year foodblog

  • 10 months later...
torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

Valentine's Day is less than two weeks away...

Since men are usually the recipients in Japan, alcohol filled chocolates are quite popular. For many years brandy seemed to be the leader in this field but recently other spirits are emerging.

For the sake lover

For the beer lover

For the shochu lover

For those who love it all!

a combo of Campari, tequila and Jack Daniel's

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

  • 2 weeks later...
torakris

torakris

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted
Yes the tomo-choco, short for tomodachi (friend) chocolate, seems to really be growing and the best part is that it seems to be mostly homemade.

More tomo-choco this year. My daughters both had a couple friends they wanted to give it to and we didn't have much time sooo...

gallery_6134_4148_442357.jpg

marshmallow treats made with strawberry flavored cereal (and a little pink dye added for color) drizzled with melted milk chocolate.

My son (age 6) came home from kindergarten very excited today because he received his first chocolates from a girl!

Pokemon chocolates

gallery_6134_4148_399587.jpg

Kristin Wagner, aka "torakris"

 

Domestic Goddess

Domestic Goddess

Posted
Posted

Kris, it is the same phenomenon here in Korea. I just wandered into a stationary shop filled with giggling girls of all ages buying chocolates by the dozen. My 12 year old son got some chocolates from his classmates but refused to tell me from who. My youngest son got chocolates from all his teachers and his favorite was Hershey's kisses crazy mint flavor.

I didn't get anything for hubby since I reminded him he's american and I'm filipina and HE'S suppose to give me chocolates. He gae me a huge box of Hawaiian Host Chocolate Macademia nuts - my favorite. :wub:

Doddie aka Domestic Goddess

"Nobody loves pork more than a Filipino"

eGFoodblog: Adobo and Fried Chicken in Korea

The dark side... my own blog: A Box of Jalapenos

prasantrin

prasantrin

Posted
Posted

I got lots of homemade treats for Valentine's Day from my students, although I did better last year... Luckily, White Day falls around exam time, so I don't really have to reciprocate! :smile:

helenjp

helenjp

Posted
Posted

7th grader son2 was offered a home-made Valentine chocolate on the school bus, but maintains that it was offered with such contempt that he turned it down...and later heard the giver giggling with her friend that she had mixed a lot of WASABI in with the chocolate. Now he'll never know if it was true or not!

9th grader son1 was philosophical about his lack of popularity, and maintains that Valentine's Day is just a fiction: 2/14 is really Niboshi no Hi...(ni=2 bo=stick=1 shi=4). Niboshi are tiny dried sardines.

I spotted some Wallace & Gromit chocolates and couldn't resist getting the boys a small pack each. Surprisingly, they didn't have a cheese filling :biggrin: .

I notice that in recent years Valentine's Day chocolates are never discounted...last night they were being packed up carefully, so I assume they are recycled for White Day a month later? :unsure:

Helenjp

* Pickles foodblog

* New Year foodblog

Hiroyuki

Hiroyuki

Posted
Posted

New additions to the Valentine's Day Glossary in Japan:

kansha choko (thank-you chocolate)

papa choko (dad chocolate)

I got a box of Maxim de Paris chocolate (made in Germany) from my wife, and my son got a box of Doraemon chocolate from my daughter.

My blog
_john

_john

Posted
Posted

I had a hot chocolate tasting party at my house on Valentine's day. I made up some special hot chocolate with 86% cacao chocolate and vanhouten cocoa powder and we put various flavors and did a blind taste test. the winners were curry powder, smoked paprika, and turmeric. no one seemed to like the tonkatsu sauce, beer, black pepper, or green tea.

GlorifiedRice

GlorifiedRice

Posted
Posted
I'm a little confused :wacko:

Do the men get away with not giving anything at all or is it just the chocolates?

Is dining out as big of a deal as it is in the US?

Sorry to confuse you, the men basically give nothing on Valentines Day, instead teh Japanese have created a day called White Day on March 14 and this is the same as Valentines Day except now the men give chocolates to all the women they know.

Though it is a popular day for couples to go out, their isn't much given except for the chocolate, no flowers, presents, wine, etc...

Interesting choice of date for White Day!

March 14th!

If you google that date and the word 'steak' you will find the mens version of Valentines Day in the states!

NSFW!!!

Wawa Sizzli FTW!

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