WEBVTT - Taiyaki: Bursting at the Breams 0:00:09.680 --> 0:00:12.360 Hello, and welcome to Savor Prediction of iHeartRadio. I'm Annie 0:00:12.360 --> 0:00:13.000 Ream and I'm. 0:00:12.920 --> 0:00:15.120 Lauren bubble Bum and today we have an episode for 0:00:15.160 --> 0:00:16.280 you about Tai Yuki. 0:00:17.480 --> 0:00:21.439 Yes, and it's going to be fun with pronunciation or 0:00:22.079 --> 0:00:22.880 at least. 0:00:23.920 --> 0:00:27.920 And y'all get to hear my slightly hilarious Japanese accents. 0:00:27.960 --> 0:00:33.400 So here we go. Yep, it's going to be fun. Yeah. Yes. 0:00:33.560 --> 0:00:35.520 Was there any reason this was on your mind? Lauren? 0:00:36.000 --> 0:00:39.159 Ah, it had been on my list for a while. 0:00:39.320 --> 0:00:42.239 I think, you know, maybe I just had one and 0:00:42.280 --> 0:00:45.080 I was like, why don't we do that as an episode. 0:00:45.320 --> 0:00:48.080 I have no idea why I originally added it to 0:00:48.120 --> 0:00:51.640 our list. Maybe I was avoiding doing a red bean 0:00:51.680 --> 0:00:56.880 paste or a zookie bean episode in general. Anyway, they're delightful. 0:00:56.960 --> 0:00:57.400 Here we are. 0:00:59.280 --> 0:01:02.560 They are delightful, and yes, here we are. I did 0:01:03.720 --> 0:01:10.679 encounter some recently at a festival, and my friends all 0:01:10.720 --> 0:01:16.039 got some. I definitely have had them in the past, 0:01:17.040 --> 0:01:19.200 but it's been a minute. I did not partake in 0:01:19.240 --> 0:01:20.000 this thing. 0:01:21.240 --> 0:01:25.520 You're not usually a sweet human, so yeah, yeah, And it. 0:01:25.520 --> 0:01:27.520 Was a fest. It was like a food festival, so 0:01:27.560 --> 0:01:31.920 I had to pick and choose my battles, but I 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:34.320 did have them and they are delightful. I do love 0:01:34.680 --> 0:01:38.000 red bean paste, oh yeah, meaning of red bean paste. 0:01:38.640 --> 0:01:39.679 And they're just kind of fun. 0:01:40.400 --> 0:01:44.160 They are, I know, right. Yeah. A shout out to 0:01:44.319 --> 0:01:47.000 friend of the show Brandy, who recently gave me a 0:01:47.040 --> 0:01:49.840 little like wafer and chocolate taiyaki for my birthday. 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:52.200 So it was really nice. 0:01:52.240 --> 0:01:54.200 I was just like, oh, this is this is so nice, 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:59.520 just cute, just cute and nice. Yeah yeah, nice little 0:01:59.560 --> 0:02:03.440 bite and it's it feels very it feels very fustive. 0:02:03.680 --> 0:02:09.600 It does it does? You can see, perhaps weirdly, our 0:02:09.680 --> 0:02:15.400 Pizel episode for more on like this type of treat. 0:02:17.919 --> 0:02:22.120 Yeah, you never know how things will connect in the 0:02:22.280 --> 0:02:23.800 food Savor universe. 0:02:23.919 --> 0:02:26.919 Yeah, if you're talking about like waffle iron desserts, then 0:02:27.040 --> 0:02:27.520 here we are. 0:02:28.800 --> 0:02:30.880 Here we are. But I guess that does really to 0:02:30.919 --> 0:02:38.200 our question. Taiyaki what is it? 0:02:39.440 --> 0:02:43.079 Well, taiyaki are fish shaped pastries that are made with 0:02:43.240 --> 0:02:47.680 a light, slightly sweet wheat flower batter encasing some kind 0:02:47.800 --> 0:02:51.160 of sweet filling like sweet red bean jam or maybe 0:02:51.240 --> 0:02:54.919 like a milk based custard, something like that. The fish 0:02:55.000 --> 0:02:59.040 shape is specifically this kind of cartoony version of a 0:02:59.160 --> 0:03:03.519 red sea breeze, which are these flat but tall fish 0:03:05.400 --> 0:03:07.840 taiyaki do not contain any fish or fish flavoring, it's 0:03:07.919 --> 0:03:11.120 just the shape. They are cooked quickly until golden brown 0:03:11.240 --> 0:03:13.880 in molds that are heated on a burner or over 0:03:13.919 --> 0:03:17.119 a flame, or in an electric mold, and served hot 0:03:17.280 --> 0:03:19.680 as a snack or dessert, often on the go from 0:03:19.680 --> 0:03:24.320 street venders and especially at festivals. There are also iterations 0:03:24.440 --> 0:03:26.720 like frozen treats made out of like a thin wafer 0:03:26.800 --> 0:03:30.560 shell containing ice cream, and packaged treats of a wafer 0:03:30.639 --> 0:03:36.440 containing chocolate filling. The shape and just simple delight really 0:03:36.520 --> 0:03:40.480 are the main points here. In those traditional fresh ones, 0:03:40.560 --> 0:03:44.520 you get this crisp outer layer giving way to maybe 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:47.480 a little soft inner dough and then even softer filling, 0:03:48.360 --> 0:03:52.760 not too sweet, and they're so cute. They're just they 0:03:52.800 --> 0:03:56.520 are a fish shaped waffle with a sweet filling. Like 0:03:56.800 --> 0:04:02.720 eating taiyaki is a direct portal to feeling the uncomplicated 0:04:02.840 --> 0:04:05.400 joy of being five years old and getting a nice treat, 0:04:06.200 --> 0:04:08.680 just pure childlike whimsy. 0:04:10.720 --> 0:04:16.800 Yes, I agree on they're just fun. 0:04:17.640 --> 0:04:25.960 They are, right, Okay, So why a fish shaped treat? 0:04:26.560 --> 0:04:30.520 Well in Japan, where taiyaki are from. The red sea 0:04:30.560 --> 0:04:33.760 bream is like a special occasion protein and a symbol 0:04:33.800 --> 0:04:36.040 of good fortune. It features in a bunch of like 0:04:36.120 --> 0:04:39.800 idioms about luck. The red seabream is sometimes called tai 0:04:40.440 --> 0:04:44.120 in Japanese, and the association with good luck is possibly 0:04:44.240 --> 0:04:48.520 because of a pun involving like the fish tie and 0:04:48.680 --> 0:04:54.240 the word metatai, which means auspicious or joyous puns. Yeah, 0:04:55.720 --> 0:04:59.080 the word taiyaki comes from the fish tie plus yaki, 0:04:59.160 --> 0:05:01.360 which is a word for cooked, like cooked with heat, 0:05:01.480 --> 0:05:04.560 like on a grill or in a pan, and taiyaki 0:05:04.640 --> 0:05:08.800 get their shape from specialty pans. They're basically waffle irons 0:05:09.040 --> 0:05:11.080 in the shape of a fish, with like scales and 0:05:11.160 --> 0:05:13.840 fins and tails the whole thing, and they can come 0:05:13.880 --> 0:05:19.840 in either individual or multi fish pan sizes. It's a 0:05:19.880 --> 0:05:22.440 two sided, three dimensional mold with some kind of handle, 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:25.120 So like you heat the mold, you pour in the batter, 0:05:25.560 --> 0:05:27.640 close it up, and then place it over a heat 0:05:27.720 --> 0:05:30.840 source and flip it to get even coverage. Oh yeah, 0:05:30.839 --> 0:05:32.919 there are electric models these days that you can use 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:36.000 at home the or I mean you can use the 0:05:36.040 --> 0:05:38.000 regular ones at home too, depending on your level of 0:05:38.040 --> 0:05:42.640 bravery here we are. The traditional batter can be anything 0:05:42.720 --> 0:05:45.800 from like basically just like a thin cracker batter to 0:05:46.680 --> 0:05:49.880 a puffy waffle batter right meant to get crispy on 0:05:49.920 --> 0:05:53.040 the outside but stay soft and fluffy on the inside, 0:05:53.560 --> 0:05:56.640 And it can range from like super thin to fairly 0:05:56.800 --> 0:06:00.600 thick and chewy, depending on how you like them. The 0:06:00.680 --> 0:06:04.040 traditional filling is a zuki bean paste, also called uncle 0:06:04.279 --> 0:06:08.359 or on. Azuki beans are a typically like deep brownish 0:06:08.400 --> 0:06:12.040 red colored type of mung bean that have a thick 0:06:12.120 --> 0:06:16.040 and slightly creamy consistency when they're boiled and mashed, and 0:06:16.080 --> 0:06:17.880 are usually cooked down with a little bit of sugar 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:21.920 into a variably thick paste or jam, either smooth or 0:06:21.920 --> 0:06:25.000 a little bit chunky, depending. It always reminds me of 0:06:25.520 --> 0:06:29.080 if peanut, butter and jelly were a single product, like 0:06:29.320 --> 0:06:35.120 slightly savory, kind of toothsome soft and nicely sweet, and 0:06:35.320 --> 0:06:40.440 the layer I know, right, so good, and the layer 0:06:40.480 --> 0:06:42.840 of filling inside the pastry can range from kind of 0:06:42.920 --> 0:06:45.920 minimal to like super thick, like bursting at the seams. 0:06:46.839 --> 0:06:50.240 Other fillings like flavored custards or chocolate are also common, 0:06:51.279 --> 0:06:54.080 but people do all kinds of things with the concept. 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:58.120 You can use like a flaky croissant dough instead of 0:06:58.160 --> 0:07:02.000 waffle type batter. Yes, In fact, there are magic harp 0:07:02.400 --> 0:07:05.960 taiyaki molds. Why wouldn't there be. They can come in 0:07:06.040 --> 0:07:09.760 other shapes as well, like Sega recently did Demon Slayer 0:07:09.840 --> 0:07:14.000 anime taiyaki that were shaped like the character's faces. There 0:07:14.200 --> 0:07:18.160 are molds made that are basically for making like taiyaki 0:07:18.320 --> 0:07:21.320 ice cream cones. Like the waffle fish has a big 0:07:21.400 --> 0:07:23.560 open mouth, that's a deep pocket that you can fill 0:07:23.640 --> 0:07:27.880 up with soft serve, ice cream or whatever. The filling 0:07:27.920 --> 0:07:30.360 can be anything you want. You can put mochi or 0:07:30.480 --> 0:07:34.200 fruit compote, or ntella or cookie butter in there. I 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:38.280 don't know. I've seen fusion takes like tayaki filled with 0:07:38.360 --> 0:07:41.560 guava paste and cream cheese, or like trist late chase 0:07:41.800 --> 0:07:46.720 macha soft serve in American Japanese restaurants. They're often served 0:07:46.760 --> 0:07:48.920 with a side of like ice cream or whipped cream. 0:07:50.800 --> 0:07:54.320 You can put savory batter and ingredients in there, like 0:07:54.480 --> 0:07:58.440 basically make like a tai shaped okamiyaki, or maybe a 0:07:58.520 --> 0:08:02.360 taiyaki filled with sausage or curry or ham and cheese. 0:08:03.280 --> 0:08:06.960 There are street vendors serving tayaki everywhere from like Rhode 0:08:07.000 --> 0:08:08.240 Island to Switzerland. 0:08:08.440 --> 0:08:16.000 So yes, there are so many iterations. Look it up. 0:08:16.160 --> 0:08:16.600 Oh yeah, I. 0:08:16.600 --> 0:08:20.160 Recommend, And I do want to specify here that I 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:23.640 didn't make any of those things up. Everything that I 0:08:23.800 --> 0:08:26.920 just said to you is something that I personally saw 0:08:27.200 --> 0:08:30.520 or read about on the internet today, So these are 0:08:30.560 --> 0:08:36.520 all real world examples. I do also understand that there's 0:08:36.720 --> 0:08:40.800 like a playful debate about how to eat taiyaki headfirst 0:08:41.040 --> 0:08:43.559 or tail first, and like what that says about you. 0:08:44.720 --> 0:08:47.840 Apparently if you go headfirst, you you're like a very 0:08:47.960 --> 0:08:50.559 like seize the day kind of person. And if you 0:08:50.640 --> 0:08:54.040 go tail first, you might be a little bit more cautious. 0:08:54.760 --> 0:08:57.560 But maybe you just like the crunchy of the tail better. 0:08:57.679 --> 0:08:59.800 I don't know. I don't know, man, you do you anyway? 0:09:01.559 --> 0:09:03.559 See I thought about this because I saw this too, 0:09:03.679 --> 0:09:06.280 and I feel like I'd be worried about the filling 0:09:06.400 --> 0:09:08.200 coming out, so I would go for the head. 0:09:08.480 --> 0:09:10.800 Yeah that's how I feel, because the filling tends to 0:09:10.880 --> 0:09:12.120 concentrate towards the head. 0:09:12.720 --> 0:09:12.920 Yeah. 0:09:14.240 --> 0:09:19.720 Well, listeners, please let us know. I love these kinds 0:09:19.760 --> 0:09:23.480 of things. Well, what about the nutrition. 0:09:24.280 --> 0:09:25.000 Treats are nice. 0:09:25.360 --> 0:09:30.600 Treats are nice. Treats are nice, and people love them. 0:09:31.440 --> 0:09:34.640 They do. We do have some numbers for you. 0:09:35.000 --> 0:09:37.880 Yeah, this one was difficult to find numbers four because 0:09:37.960 --> 0:09:43.040 taiyaki are largely made and sold by individual vendors. But 0:09:44.200 --> 0:09:47.800 I did find a report on the larger industry of 0:09:48.040 --> 0:09:52.640 both traditional and electric taiyaki irons, and as of twenty 0:09:52.720 --> 0:09:55.480 twenty four, the global market for those was worth nearly 0:09:55.559 --> 0:09:56.680 twenty two million dollars. 0:09:58.559 --> 0:09:58.800 Wow. 0:10:02.440 --> 0:10:06.160 And I did read that in traditional shops the bean 0:10:06.280 --> 0:10:09.840 paste can take eight hours to cook and the taiyaki 0:10:09.920 --> 0:10:11.559 themselves take thirty seconds. 0:10:13.000 --> 0:10:18.959 Wow. I did find a lot of videos about people 0:10:19.040 --> 0:10:23.480 going to visit shops where taiyaki are made, and I 0:10:23.640 --> 0:10:28.439 was looking for pronunciations. I enjoyed the watching of them 0:10:28.480 --> 0:10:32.760 get made, but it was fast. I was like, whoall, 0:10:35.600 --> 0:10:40.959 all right, Well, we've got a very interesting history for you. 0:10:41.040 --> 0:10:43.240 I have to say, oh yeah, yeah, and we are 0:10:43.360 --> 0:10:44.760 going to get into that as soon as we get 0:10:44.800 --> 0:10:46.959 back from a quick break. For a word from our sponsors. 0:10:56.559 --> 0:10:58.559 Error back, thank you sponsor, Yes, thank you. 0:10:59.800 --> 0:11:05.640 Okay. So researchers think that tayaki originated in Japan during 0:11:05.880 --> 0:11:09.040 the Meiji period, which was a period of modernization from 0:11:09.200 --> 0:11:12.920 eighteen sixty eight to nineteen twelve, and that it was 0:11:12.960 --> 0:11:16.679 an evolution of pastries that came before it. Anytime we 0:11:16.760 --> 0:11:21.480 do these pastry episodes, it's sort of hard to hard 0:11:21.520 --> 0:11:26.240 to really pin down exacts, but there is a very 0:11:26.320 --> 0:11:32.360 specific story about how this pastry was invented. It credits 0:11:32.440 --> 0:11:38.319 a tokyo shop called Naniwaya Sohonten. The owner said Jiro 0:11:38.520 --> 0:11:40.640 Kobe was trying to come up with a way to 0:11:40.800 --> 0:11:46.600 use up any unsold imagawayaki, which is another similar pastry 0:11:46.640 --> 0:11:50.760 traditionally filled with sweet azuki bean paste, and he got 0:11:50.800 --> 0:11:54.120 the idea to use this mold of a seabream fish, 0:11:54.440 --> 0:11:59.640 which symbolized good luck in Japan and is associated with celebration, 0:12:00.320 --> 0:12:05.280 to make a novel, festive pastry product that quickly became popular. 0:12:06.200 --> 0:12:08.640 It was fun, it was an accessible way for people 0:12:08.679 --> 0:12:11.840 who couldn't afford seabream, which was expensive at the time, 0:12:12.400 --> 0:12:16.880 to celebrate. However, there really isn't anything concrete backing this up. 0:12:16.880 --> 0:12:20.000 From what I can tell, It is possible that I 0:12:20.200 --> 0:12:24.319 couldn't get sources from Japan, but I tried to get like, 0:12:24.520 --> 0:12:25.960 where's the specific thing? 0:12:26.520 --> 0:12:30.959 Yeah, and I couldn't most in English, this is the 0:12:31.080 --> 0:12:33.199 story that is repeated. 0:12:34.320 --> 0:12:37.640 That it was at this shop by this guy. Yes, 0:12:37.760 --> 0:12:41.240 and some specifically cite a nineteen oh nine recipe from 0:12:41.320 --> 0:12:44.600 this shop as the first known recipe for tayaki. 0:12:45.720 --> 0:12:48.920 The story also goes that that Kobe was looking like 0:12:49.040 --> 0:12:53.040 he tried a few different shapes for this pastry before 0:12:53.080 --> 0:12:55.640 he landed on the fish shape. I don't know, you 0:12:55.720 --> 0:12:58.240 know here we are, yes. 0:12:58.520 --> 0:13:02.120 And kind of expounding on that. There's another story, and 0:13:02.240 --> 0:13:06.720 this is stepping back a bit and varied briefly because 0:13:07.760 --> 0:13:10.440 we can only do so many pastries in one episode. Everyone. 0:13:12.480 --> 0:13:18.040 Historians think that imaga wayaki was invented in seventeen hundreds 0:13:18.200 --> 0:13:22.439 and it was pretty popular. They were coin shaped pancakes 0:13:22.600 --> 0:13:25.000 made in special irons sort of like a waffle iron 0:13:25.080 --> 0:13:29.880 without the grid pattern, usually filled with sweet azuki bean paste, 0:13:30.080 --> 0:13:32.760 but could be a bunch of other things in there too. 0:13:34.000 --> 0:13:36.000 I actually am really interested to come back and talk 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.920 about them, because I was. I got fascinated by all 0:13:38.960 --> 0:13:45.439 the different iterations of bost and the irons specifically, but anyway, 0:13:45.840 --> 0:13:51.720 different time for that. By the nineteen hundreds. These pastries 0:13:51.760 --> 0:13:54.679 were sort of old news, though, so vendors got the 0:13:54.800 --> 0:13:58.360 idea to mold them into animal shapes and it was 0:13:58.679 --> 0:14:01.960 mildly successful at first, but it didn't really take off 0:14:02.120 --> 0:14:07.080 until someone used the seabream shape. Again, evidence is sparse, 0:14:07.200 --> 0:14:10.480 but this is the generally accepted history and it makes 0:14:10.559 --> 0:14:15.960 sense to me personally. Sure. Yeah, stepping back way way, 0:14:16.120 --> 0:14:21.640 further evidence suggests that azuki beans for domesticated in Japan 0:14:21.760 --> 0:14:25.240 for over ten thousand years. They have a long long 0:14:25.400 --> 0:14:28.520 history as an important food stuff there that we're going 0:14:28.560 --> 0:14:31.640 to have to tackle in another future episode. 0:14:31.760 --> 0:14:36.280 Oh yeah, yeah again. Super Briefly, red bean paste was 0:14:36.320 --> 0:14:39.160 originally like a salted savory filling that was used as 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:42.280 a vegetarian protein source, but morphed into the sweetened product 0:14:42.360 --> 0:14:45.560 we know today as sugar became more available, and it 0:14:45.680 --> 0:14:48.600 was also going into other treats like a pun which 0:14:48.640 --> 0:14:51.920 are like soft bread buns filled with red bean paste, 0:14:52.120 --> 0:14:57.240 and doriyuki, which are pancakes sandwiching red bean paste around 0:14:57.320 --> 0:15:01.920 the same time that Taiyaki developed. But yeah, other episodes 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:07.440 episode or episodes, Yeah, anyway, so. 0:15:07.560 --> 0:15:12.160 Many episodes were giving ourselves so much homework. But whatever, 0:15:12.280 --> 0:15:17.760 the case at the pastry. Taiaki in question was available 0:15:17.800 --> 0:15:20.800 across the country by the early nineteen hundreds, thinks in 0:15:20.880 --> 0:15:25.400 part to railroads, mass production, and department stores offering them 0:15:25.440 --> 0:15:31.040 for sale. Naniwaya itself franchised, setting up locations across the country. 0:15:31.440 --> 0:15:33.440 I read that at its height there were one hundred 0:15:33.440 --> 0:15:37.080 and fifty locations. Today there are about ten, so. 0:15:37.320 --> 0:15:39.880 Here we are one hundred and fifty, I know. 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:40.200 Right. 0:15:42.960 --> 0:15:46.280 During the Japanese occupation and colonization of Korea in the 0:15:46.360 --> 0:15:50.920 nineteen thirties, tayaki was introduced there, leading to the Korean 0:15:51.040 --> 0:15:57.560 version called Bounepong or carpret another separate episode, but from 0:15:57.600 --> 0:16:00.680 what I read, they were popular during tough times, and 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:03.240 many specifically associate them with winter. 0:16:04.000 --> 0:16:07.640 Yeah in general, but both of these treats that the 0:16:07.800 --> 0:16:11.680 Japanese version and the Korean version were probably originally cold 0:16:11.720 --> 0:16:15.280 weather treats because they were served hot, like piping hot 0:16:15.360 --> 0:16:17.440 out of the mold, which would be nice if you 0:16:17.520 --> 0:16:18.920 were walking or working outdoors. 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:25.680 Does sound lovely, But speaking of tough times, in the 0:16:25.920 --> 0:16:29.800 utter devastation of the aftermath of World War Two, tayaki 0:16:30.120 --> 0:16:33.080 was an affordable source of comfort for many in Japan. 0:16:34.000 --> 0:16:36.840 In the post war period, taiyaki spread to other Asian 0:16:36.920 --> 0:16:42.000 countries and then around the globe. I couldn't find an 0:16:42.080 --> 0:16:46.680 exact date, but sometime in the ensuing decades, grocery stores 0:16:46.760 --> 0:16:53.800 started offering frozen tayaki. This brings us to something I 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:57.800 had no knowledge of me neither, but very excited to 0:16:57.880 --> 0:16:58.680 talk about. Yeah. 0:16:58.720 --> 0:17:01.120 Super producer Android was like, oh, yeah, of course. 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:08.119 Knew immediately and new a facts about it. Okay. So 0:17:09.160 --> 0:17:12.200 this brings us to the popular children's song oh Yoka 0:17:12.720 --> 0:17:17.800 Taiyaki kun, sung by Masato Shiman, which debuted in nineteen 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:23.960 seventy five, and it really boosted taiyaki's profile in a 0:17:24.000 --> 0:17:29.080 way I feel like I can't even accurately encompass for you, 0:17:30.520 --> 0:17:36.080 and perhaps specifically the profile of Naniwaya Sohonten, the then owner, 0:17:36.320 --> 0:17:39.720 served as the model for the old man owner of 0:17:39.800 --> 0:17:44.600 the shop, which is in the lyrics and in the video. Yeah, 0:17:45.320 --> 0:17:51.600 and it's about a taiyaki coming to life and swimming 0:17:51.640 --> 0:17:54.280 away to avoid being cooked. He gets in a fight 0:17:54.840 --> 0:17:55.680 with the old man. 0:17:55.800 --> 0:17:55.960 Yeah. 0:17:56.119 --> 0:17:58.399 He's like, I don't want to be put to the fire. 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:02.879 I'm leaving, So he goes out into the ocean and 0:18:03.000 --> 0:18:03.680 swims away. 0:18:04.440 --> 0:18:08.880 He does, but Taiyaki kun is caught by a fisherman 0:18:08.920 --> 0:18:15.320 at sea, so you can never truly escape, and he's eaten. Yeah. 0:18:15.600 --> 0:18:18.800 Yeah. He goes on all kinds of adventures, he makes friends, 0:18:18.840 --> 0:18:21.960 he makes enemies, but eventually is caught eaten. 0:18:22.880 --> 0:18:29.639 Yeah. Yep. It sold four point five million copies. It 0:18:29.840 --> 0:18:33.440 was the first single to debut, is number one on 0:18:33.640 --> 0:18:37.560 the Oricon Singles chart in Japan, and it held the 0:18:37.640 --> 0:18:41.600 top spot for eleven weeks, and it holds the Guinness 0:18:41.640 --> 0:18:45.639 World Record for best selling physical single in Japan to 0:18:45.800 --> 0:18:48.639 this day and yeah, to this day, and it just 0:18:48.720 --> 0:18:53.240 had a resurgence recently. It's huge. 0:18:54.240 --> 0:18:59.760 It's really yeah. I had no idea highly recommend looking 0:18:59.760 --> 0:19:03.520 at it up. It's really catchy. I'm gonna be singing 0:19:03.600 --> 0:19:09.040 it to myself all day, and the recent pop metal 0:19:09.119 --> 0:19:10.320 version is just adorable. 0:19:10.520 --> 0:19:15.200 So yes, I was telling Lauren, I put off listening 0:19:15.240 --> 0:19:16.960 to it for as long as I could because I 0:19:17.080 --> 0:19:19.080 was worried I'd never get it out of my head. 0:19:19.640 --> 0:19:23.520 But I'm glad I listened to it. Yeah, this is 0:19:23.960 --> 0:19:25.440 pretty intense actually, yeah. 0:19:25.640 --> 0:19:29.840 Thematically, thematically, yeah, it probably helps that it's in another language, 0:19:30.000 --> 0:19:32.600 and so like unlike something that you can really get 0:19:32.680 --> 0:19:37.280 the hook in your head for in English. Yeah, I 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:40.159 know just enough Japanese to be in trouble there, so 0:19:40.760 --> 0:19:41.840 like welp here, I am. 0:19:43.640 --> 0:19:48.320 Best of blok Lauren. But that was a really fun 0:19:48.400 --> 0:19:51.879 thing to learn. I had no idea about that. Something 0:19:51.920 --> 0:19:56.080 else I didn't know anything about. In twenty sixteen, New 0:19:56.160 --> 0:20:00.520 York's Tayaki NYC restaurant got all a lot of traction 0:20:00.640 --> 0:20:04.520 on social media by offering soft serve taiyaki. It was 0:20:04.840 --> 0:20:08.240 essentially the taiyaki serve doesn't cone, Yeah, the soft serve, 0:20:08.320 --> 0:20:09.480 and it was very pretty. 0:20:10.240 --> 0:20:12.840 Yeah, yeah, no, it's super cute again, right, that just 0:20:13.119 --> 0:20:15.000 it's just the taiyaki has like a really big mouth 0:20:15.040 --> 0:20:17.399 and that's where you put the ice cream and they 0:20:17.560 --> 0:20:19.160 top it with other stuff and it's adorable. 0:20:20.160 --> 0:20:28.320 Yeah, yes, And taiyaki innovation and experimentation continues. They are cute. 0:20:28.440 --> 0:20:32.760 Like we've we've talked a lot before about how social 0:20:32.840 --> 0:20:38.119 media can really move these trends or or make a 0:20:38.160 --> 0:20:40.640 food more popular in places where it wasn't as well 0:20:40.720 --> 0:20:44.000 known before, and they just are visually kind. 0:20:43.920 --> 0:20:45.200 Of they're so adorable. 0:20:45.800 --> 0:20:51.800 Yeah, eye catching, you're like, yeah, yeah, But as as 0:20:51.880 --> 0:20:54.680 you were saying at the top, lorn people all kinds 0:20:54.720 --> 0:20:59.159 of fillings. People are trying all kinds of things, and. 0:20:59.359 --> 0:21:00.600 I want to try them all too. 0:21:02.119 --> 0:21:07.399 Yes, I love a good stuffed dough product. I mean, 0:21:07.440 --> 0:21:08.440 I'm in that's. 0:21:08.280 --> 0:21:13.720 Good, right, More animal shaped waffle treats please? 0:21:16.119 --> 0:21:17.480 Is that too much to add? 0:21:19.880 --> 0:21:20.040 Oh? 0:21:21.000 --> 0:21:23.440 Animal crackers are kind of boring, but I think that 0:21:23.520 --> 0:21:24.480 we're onto something here. 0:21:25.320 --> 0:21:31.600 Yes, I agree. Well, listeners, please write in, send photos 0:21:31.640 --> 0:21:36.880 if you have any, if you've made them, oh, yeah, 0:21:37.280 --> 0:21:38.360 let us know how that went. 0:21:38.560 --> 0:21:42.639 Yeah, if you possess one of these irons, if you 0:21:42.840 --> 0:21:46.440 have a memory, or have been to any of the 0:21:46.520 --> 0:21:51.080 famous shops, yes, the festivals. 0:21:52.560 --> 0:21:55.520 Please let us know. But I think that's what we 0:21:55.680 --> 0:21:58.399 have to say about Tayaki for now. It is. 0:21:58.920 --> 0:22:01.000 We do already have some listener mail for you, though, 0:22:01.040 --> 0:22:02.439 and we are going to get into that as soon 0:22:02.480 --> 0:22:04.280 as we get back from one more quick break for 0:22:04.320 --> 0:22:16.640 a word from our sponsors, and we're back. Thank you, sponsor, Yes, 0:22:16.800 --> 0:22:20.200 thank you, And we're back with a listeners. 0:22:26.480 --> 0:22:34.200 Now mom off of its head. I just feel like 0:22:34.600 --> 0:22:37.080 if I next time I have a Tayaki. I'm going 0:22:37.160 --> 0:22:39.000 to try to see what naturally I would do, but 0:22:39.000 --> 0:22:40.359 I just feel like I would go head first. 0:22:41.359 --> 0:22:44.200 The tail is kind of easier to hold on to. Yeah, 0:22:44.359 --> 0:22:46.240 it seems like a natural handle, you know. 0:22:47.080 --> 0:22:49.879 Yeah, that's what I think. And then I read some 0:22:50.000 --> 0:22:53.840 people go for the finn first. No, like the top fin. 0:22:54.080 --> 0:22:56.560 I see that. I see that. Yeah, that could be 0:22:56.640 --> 0:22:58.960 kind of an ease of operations thing. 0:22:59.119 --> 0:23:00.639 It's kind of like, you know, like nibble around the 0:23:00.680 --> 0:23:01.520 edges kind of situation. 0:23:01.600 --> 0:23:04.960 I get that. Yeah, well, listeners, let us know if 0:23:05.000 --> 0:23:10.679 you have thoughts about that as well. Okay, so listener, 0:23:10.840 --> 0:23:18.119 Ruth has once again really blessed us with an amazing song. 0:23:19.080 --> 0:23:24.560 Ruth was the one behind the Pumpkin smash. Oh yeah, yes, 0:23:25.520 --> 0:23:29.040 I will not be singing this, but I do think 0:23:29.400 --> 0:23:32.640 that if you hommet in your head. 0:23:33.280 --> 0:23:34.440 Yeah, it scans really well. 0:23:34.880 --> 0:23:45.320 That's good. Yeah, yeah, yes. So Ruth wrote a song 0:23:45.400 --> 0:23:50.400 about canon Bear to the Bear Necessities that I shall 0:23:50.600 --> 0:23:55.800 read for you now, with apologies to the mouse. It 0:23:56.000 --> 0:24:03.880 says the cam and Bare necessities a tasty cheese necessity. 0:24:04.280 --> 0:24:08.040 Who thought it caused such trouble and such strife? The 0:24:08.160 --> 0:24:12.160 camm bear Necessities one of Mother Nature's recipes to bring 0:24:12.280 --> 0:24:15.920 more cheesy goodness to your life. Now? Was it a 0:24:16.000 --> 0:24:19.600 monk's gift or just a gal from breed with a 0:24:19.680 --> 0:24:23.840 funky fungus brought it to be? Did Napoleon the one 0:24:24.040 --> 0:24:27.240 give it its name? Or was Number two the one 0:24:27.359 --> 0:24:30.840 to blame? Well? Whoever gave it the name. It's a 0:24:31.000 --> 0:24:35.240 great cheesy treat, just the same. We all agree, it's true. 0:24:35.720 --> 0:24:44.320 The canon Bear Necessities of Life taste real good too. Yes, yes, 0:24:46.760 --> 0:24:49.360 I was so happy to see this. Oh my goodness, 0:24:49.600 --> 0:24:52.760 thank you for sharing your gift. You could be like 0:24:52.880 --> 0:25:00.560 the weird aw Yankovic of just Food covers y yeah food. Yeah, 0:25:00.640 --> 0:25:10.359 that's amazing. I love it. Yeah, yeah, it's it's fantastic. Nos. 0:25:10.720 --> 0:25:10.960 Yeah. 0:25:11.400 --> 0:25:14.480 I also I have to say that The Bare Necessities 0:25:14.680 --> 0:25:16.520 is a is a song that I get in my 0:25:16.640 --> 0:25:20.280 head about like once a quarter, like once every couple 0:25:20.280 --> 0:25:24.840 of months or so apropos of nothing. M h, I 0:25:24.960 --> 0:25:27.320 just I watched too many Disney cartoons as a kid. 0:25:28.240 --> 0:25:33.760 But yeah, beautiful. Now, now I'm going to have this 0:25:33.920 --> 0:25:35.520 alternate version in my head. 0:25:36.240 --> 0:25:41.440 I like how we have two different ear potential earworms. Yeah, 0:25:41.800 --> 0:25:48.400 in this episode. That's that's fantastic, beautiful, Thank you, thank 0:25:48.440 --> 0:25:49.919 you genuinely. 0:25:52.680 --> 0:25:55.680 Melissa wrote, I've been meaning to write in for a 0:25:55.800 --> 0:25:59.560 while about strong tea opinions. I spent a year abroad 0:25:59.600 --> 0:26:02.400 in England during college and thought years of preferring tea 0:26:02.440 --> 0:26:04.880 to coffee would serve me well. I was there less 0:26:04.920 --> 0:26:07.560 than a month before shocking a British friend by putting 0:26:07.680 --> 0:26:10.960 milk in my earl gray. This is an insult to 0:26:11.040 --> 0:26:13.680 the tea. It should be drank black with sugar or 0:26:13.760 --> 0:26:16.880 lemon if you have to. I was taken aback. It's 0:26:16.960 --> 0:26:20.400 not that different than black tea right. Also, this wasn't 0:26:20.440 --> 0:26:23.000 coming from some posh snob. My friend was a gutter 0:26:23.119 --> 0:26:26.200 punk with a foot high mohawk and he was being sincere. 0:26:26.920 --> 0:26:29.840