# Tenyose Jelly Cake ｜ Our Regional Cuisines

**Cuisine Name**: Tenyose Jelly Cake

**Region**: Our Regional Cuisines

## Main Lore Areas
Suwa Region

## Main Ingredients Used
Kanten (agar agar), somen noodles, food coloring

## History, Origin, and Related Events
The Suwa region’s kanten (agar agar) producing industry developed due to the area’s low temperatures and stable weather, which allowed for longer production seasons than other areas, and the opening of the railroad at the end of the Meiji period (1868 - 1912). The kanten industry started in the Edo period (1603 – 1868). It is said that Kumezaemon Kobayashi, a migrant kanten producer, brought the process back to his hometown. Kanten is made by boiling red algae, such as Gelidium amansii and gracilaria, letting it set, and then freezing and drying it repeatedly.In the Suwa region, tenyose is a delicacy that is a regular feature in summer dishes, and is served as a confectionery and at annual events. Tenyose is a jelly-like cake made with kanten (agar agar). It is served at the Suwa-taisha Shrine’s Onbashira Festival as a festive dish to welcome visitors. It is also an indispensable dish at weddings and funerals in the Suwa region, with the ingredients and taste varying depending on the event and season. Tenyose is often made when people gather, adding color to the table.

## Opportunities and Times of Eating Habits
Held once every seven years, the Onbashira Festival begins with the Yamadashi ceremony at Suwa Taisha’s upper shrine in April and ends with the Hoden Shizashai in June. During this period, the Onbashira Festival plays a central role of the daily lives of Suwa locals, with tenyose being served as a dish to welcome visitors to the festival. It has also been used in home cooking, at festivals, celebratory occasions, and post-funeral meals.

## How to Eat
Tenyose is a dish suited to any event or season, depending on the ingredients to be included in the jelly cake. These range from somen noodles to eggs, walnuts, and so on. One of the charms of this dish is that it be made to Japanese or Western tastes depending on the season or event.

## Efforts for Preservation and Succession
(Outline of the traditions, the preservation society, social media use, modern approaches at commercialization)Recently, there are more opportunities to order tenyose from restaurants and supermarkets, but it is still made and served at festivals and events.(Reference) For the purpose of popularizing kanten, the Nagano Prefecture Kanten Marine Products Processing Association (located in Chino City) introduces various ways to use kanten on its website.

## Ingredients
- Kanten bars: 1
- Water: 500ml
- Sugar: 100g
- Salt: A pinch
- Somen noodles: 10-15 （to your liking）
- Food coloring (green): A dash

## Recipe
1. 1. Wash the kanten bars, remove any debris, and soak in water for 30 minutes.
2. 2. To a pot with the measured amount of water, add 1, which has been squeezed thoroughly to remove any liquid and torn into small pieces, and dissolve over a medium to low heat.
3. 3. Boil the somen noodles and rinse them in cold water.
4. 4. Once the kanten has dissolved, add the sugar, salt, and food coloring, and stir to combine. When the mixture comes to a boil, turn off, and remove from the heat.
5. 5. Pour the mixture into a moistened container (such as a kanten jelly mold) and when it cools down a little (before the kanten liquid hardens), arrange the cooked somen noodles (to your liking) on top so they look like they are floating and refrigerate to set.

## Provider Information
provider : Recipe provided by: Oishii Shinshu Food Net （Agricultural Policy Planning Section, Agricultural Oolicy Planning Department, Nagano Prefecture）

![Image](Not found)