Bakauke Cream Cheese Sembei

I didn't realize this, but both of the snacks that I'm reviewing this week are white. I guess that is a reflection of the seasonal change, or perhaps I'm just turning into some freaky snack racist. It's a good thing that my next review isn't the "White Boyfriend Cat's Tongue" cookies or I'd start to feel acutely uncomfortable with my choices.

I haven't reviewed sembei (rice crackers) for awhile because there haven't been much in the way of new flavor combinations. I've actually tried quite a few new things including new kinako and wasabi crackers, but the truth is that I don't know that my readers are served well by hearing about every iteration of these types of flavors. Yes, each is a little different, but not markedly so. This is the first time I've seen cream cheese flavor sembei, so I figured it was a good time to spotlight a long neglected category of Japanese snacks.

I found these at Okashi no Machioka snack shop for about 160 yen ($2.07). The package, which has illustrations of red leaves on it to let you know this is an autumn release, says that this is a product of Niigata. Based on the Wikipedia entry about Niigata, I don't see how cream cheese relates to that area, but rice is their principle agricultural product. I'm guessing it's the cracker that is from that area, not the cream cheese.

The crackers smell a bit cheesy which shouldn't be surprising, but somehow it is. As I've said before, I've lived in Japan long enough to have no confidence in naming. If it says "cream cheese", I know that there is a broad range of tastes outside of cheese that could be on hand. These do, however, have a nice cream cheese flavor. What is better though is that they taste like a cream-cheese based dip which is flavored with other savory elements like vinegar, onion powder, and meat flavoring. It's like the dip is conveniently included in the cracker.

I really enjoyed these, and I am also pleased with the number of calories since each packet of two  crackers is only 35.5 calories. Since the crackers are fairly big, one or two packets is a pretty satisfying serving. My guess is that these will only be around for about 4 months. The Bakauke brand seems to be slowing down a bit in Japan as I see more releases from Befco (the company that makes this line) which are fairly generic-looking crackers rather than the distinctive banana-shaped Bakauke style. I'm not sure why this is, or how it relates to the seasonal nature of this flavor, but there it is. At any rate, I'd say give these a shot if you're a fan of savory flavors and cream cheese. They're very tasty.

Bakauke Tomato Curry Sembei

Much to my surprise, tomato is coming on as one of the summer's hottest flavors. Tomato gelatin is on offer in convenience stores, for instance. I'm not sure who decided it would be the fruit du jour in the summer of 2010,  but I think they made a good choice. I love tomato. When I was a kid, I used to eat them as a hand fruit. Yes, I was a strange kid. I wonder if tomato may be touted as the flavor for summer because it contains lycopene and that is supposed to help your skin handle UV rays. Of course, I'm probably giving the food manufacturers too much credit.

Given my love of tomato, I snapped up this bag of Bakauke (Befco) tomato curry sembei when I saw it for a mere 139 yen ($1.58) at Okashi no Machioka. The bag has 15 medium-size crackers at 34.4 calories each. These are the sort of super crispy, deep fried sembei which are meant to help a person drink more alcohol by putting more fat in the stomach (and on it, most likely). Frankly, I don't favor this variety in general because the frying oil is often a bit overbearing in the flavor profile, but you never know until you try.

The front of the bag tells us that there are 29 spices in these. A list of all of the spices is not given in the ingredients. I'm sure it's a trade secret or something, but tomato powder, chicken extract, wheat germ, Sucralose, and sugar are included.

The crackers are pebbly and crisp. They do smell like frying oil and baked rice with the barest hint of some sort of spicy smell. The first taste didn't reveal much of anything except the usual oil and sembei flavor. The second hinted more strongly at tomato with a whisper of curry. I was really disappointed that these were so bland when there is such promise in a stronger flavor from both tomato and curry.

I think this is the sort of thing where eating a lot at once might intensify your ability to perceive the flavors, but two crackers at once is my general limit. I was really disappointed that these were only a little better than plain sembei. That doesn't make them bad at all. They're still crispy and salty and good quality crackers. They just aren't very flavorful for something which promises 29 spices. I enjoyed finishing the bag, but I wouldn't buy another.

Bakauke Super Grilled Sweet Corn Sembei

Bakauke is rapidly becoming my favorite band for sembei. They have the most immensely bold and flavorful flavors on a consistent basis and that's pretty much what I want in a salted snack food. I have long been told that Japanese people prefer weak or subtle flavors, but I wonder if the emergence of these types of flavors on a more regular basis means that tastes are changing, or if the alcohol that people tend to drink with very spicy snacks is getting weaker and they want to offset the loss of quality of experience.

I found these alongside the previously reviewed sea salt wasabi sembei at Okashi no Machioka. They were also for about 180 yen ($1.97) for a bag of 9 2-packs of crackers. Each serving of two sembei is 40.5 calories. I'm always impressed by the way they offer calorie information out to a decimal place.

As soon as I tore open a packet, I could smell the sweet corn seasoning. The cracker is generously coated with what must be tiny granules of miniature sweet corn cobs. These have all of the flavor of the best corn without any of the part where you have to actually eat the corn and get its fibery bits caught in your teeth. The flavor profile has added depth because of the addition of various flavor powders including soy sauce.

I'm pretty sure that this sembei is yet another step in the master plan for world domination by corn. It's irresistibly good, and I recommend it to any lovers of corn, and don't we all love corn?

Bakauke Sea Salt Wasabi Sembei

The company that makes "Bakauke" brand products is now called "Befco". Hearing that name reminds me of Back to the Future 2 and the "Biffco Enterprises" in that movie. I think the name change is the result of the brands growing market penetration and popularity. Their web site has also seen some improvements since I last looked in on it.

This is actually the second Bakauke wasabi sembei that I've reviewed. The other one was a limited edition that was sold only in convenience stores and is no longer available. This version is a combined effort with a company that produces a brand of salt called Shimamaasu. This one also differs compared to the former wasabi sembei in that it includes nori in the dough.

The addition of nori changes the taste profile of this cracker by adding a grassiness to the flavor. It mainly comes through on the first bite and settles in as an aftertaste on the tongue after that. I can't say if the sea salt is adding much, but these are pleasantly salty and savory. The addition of soy sauce flavoring is probably helping that along.

The thing I can definitely say about these sembei is that they are for hardcore consumers of wasabi. Even one serving (2 crackers - 38.7 calories) provides a big wasabi punch. Unless I pause for a long time between crackers and drink between each bite, my nasal passages really burned from eating these. It was like someone sprayed the inside of my nose with lemon juice. It burns! It burns!

I found these at Okashi no Machioka snack shop for about 180 yen ($1.97). Each bag contains nine packets of two crackers. If you're a fan of wasabi, I can recommend these without reservation, but with the warning that they're not for the weak-tongued. These are a summer release, so I expect that they'll eventually disappear, so grab a bag while you can.

If you'd like to download a calendar for June featuring the bakauke cartoon mascots, you can get it here.

Bakauke 40-piece Sembei Assortment

In Japan, variety packs are called "asooto" (アソート) which is the Japanized version of "assortment". This Bakauke pack of 40 sembei in 5 flavors has been in my line of sight for some time. I resisted it because of the hassle associated with reviewing such packs (more pictures, more writing, same number of posts), but also because I think it'll take me a very long time to eat all of this myself and my husband doesn't eat sembei.

In the end though, the price and the fact that I could sample a lot of flavors that I've been considering purchasing individually made me take the plunge. I found this at a discount snack shop for 269 yen ($3.12). I'd also seen it for a somewhat higher price at Peacock supermarket, but it's not the sort of thing that tends to show up in just any old market. I think this would be a good thing to have on hand if you tend to have a lot of visitors to your home or have a family and can eat it quicker than the likes of me can consume 40 sembei.

Like all bakauke sembei, these come in a banana shape. The package doesn't offer nutrition information for each flavor, but I'd guess that they are similar to the other flavors I've reviewed and are about 20-35 calories each per cracker. My guess is the black sesame one is higher in calories than the other varieties.

Spicy Soy Sauce:


The strange thing about this soy sauce cracker is that it neither looks nor smells like the typical "shoyu" variety. It's not covered with a semi-sticky veneer of soy sauce. This does small very faintly of soy, but also vinegar. In fact, the predominant taste is a mild vinegar one, not a soy sauce flavor. This reminded me more of a very subdued version of the "Happy Turn 200%" sembei. That's not a bad thing at all, but I think this could have been a bit more intense in flavor. Nonetheless, this was perfectly enjoyable despite its lack of strong spice.

Black Sesame and Soy Sauce:


For some reason, this cracker is wrapped individually while the others come two to a pack. This is the most "fried" one and is bumpy and super crunchy. It smells lightly of sesame and of soy sauce. The exterior is very shiny and quite appealing to look at. These have a mixture of sweet and savory flavors including honey. All of the components come together well to present a multi-layered taste experience with all of the flavors complimenting each other well. I really enjoyed this.

Seaweed and Soy Sauce:


This was the flavor that I had the lowest expectations for because I'm not a huge fan of nori (seaweed). It's not that I can't eat it or find it gross. I can certainly consume it, but if I have a choice, I'd prefer not to have it included in foods that I eat. That being said, this is the sembei for those like me who are indifferent toward nori. The base soy flavor is deep, savory, and complex. The amount of small flakes of nori are enough to make the flavor present, but not overwhelming. The only bad point about this one is that the outside is a bit sticky so you need to eat it with the wrapper on or be prepared to wash your hands after touching it.

Spicy Curry:


This smells lightly of Japanese curry roux blocks, which is to say that the scent is somewhat different from actual curry powder and miles away from real Indian curry. The flavor is mild at first, but builds up a bit on your tongue by the end of a second cracker. There is no heat whatsoever in these and they're mildly salty. I get the sense that these were designed for people who have what is called a "cat's tongue" in Japanese. That is, they are sensitive to foods that are hot in a spicy way. While certainly a nice enough and completely enjoyable cracker, I have more of a "dragon's tongue" (I made that up, it's not Japanese) and would have liked some heat.

Cheese:


I'm going to be a bit lazy on this one and tell you that this is exactly the same as the Bakauke cheese sembei that I reviewed previously. There is no difference between what you get in the bag devoted to "5 cheese" sembei. This is a good thing because I gave those a "happy" rating and thought they were like a higher quality Cheeto cheese flavor.

This was a great value and full of high quality, flavorful, fresh, and crispy rice crackers. If you like sembei, or are going to buy some to send home to people who enjoy it, this is one of the best choices you can make. Despite my initial reservations about buying so much at once, I wouldn't hesitate to buy this assortment again, particularly if I wanted to serve some to guests or keep a stash on hand for late-night T.V. viewing accompaniment.

Bakauke Cocoa Sembei

I've had wonderful experiences with Bakauke sembei and was drawn to this cocoa sembei the minute I saw it. If nothing else, I love the package design. The mascots in black look beautiful against the sea of dark cocoa powder and the gold lettering adds a sense that these are going to be rich and chocoaltey. All in all, one expects a pretty high class experience.

I found these at the discount snack shop, Okashi no Machioka. They were 178 yen ($1.95) for a bag of 18 crackers (9 packs of 2 rice crackers). I was further intrigued by these because each 2-pack is only 33.6 calories (yes, it actually says "point six" in the nutritional information). Chocolate treats for a low calorie cost has convinced more than one woman to sample a food hoping to find the holy grail of chocolate; that is, the enjoyment without the high price of cocoa-based goodness.


Each cracker is fairly generously sized, and smells faintly of cocoa powder. They don't have any of the telltale smells one associates with rice crackers or baked rice products. The taste is relatively mild in some ways, and somewhat blunt in others. The cocoa flavor is pure, like cocoa powder, but there is relatively little sweetness and salt. This makes the experience feel somewhat flat when you aren't hitting on a pocket of salt on the exterior of the cracker. Both sugar and salt enhance flavor, and I think this really could have benefited from a bit more of one, the other or both.

I wanted to like these. They have a great texture and aroma. They're low in calories and sugar (they're made with Sucralose artificial sweetener) and they have lots of cocoa. Despite having all the components one might want, it just didn't come together to please my taste buds. The flavor was just too thin. I'll certainly finish the bag, but I won't buy them again.

If you're interested in downloading desktop pictures of each calendar month from Bakauke featuring their mascots, you can get one here.

Bakauke Five Cheese Sembei

The Bakauke brand seems to be exploding. I hadn't seen it in most markets when I started this blog, and now I'm seeing varieties of its banana-shaped rice crackers everywhere. This cheese flavor was at Seiyu supermarket and cost about $1.45 (about 140 yen), and it caught my eye amongst the see of fish and seaweed types.


Bakauke sembei has very good brand imagery and I think that's why it's catching on fast. Besides having a distinctive cracker shape, it also has a couple of distinctive mascots (as mentioned in my review of their wasabi sembei). Like many mascots for food products in Japan, they're rather crudely drawn and not really very attractive, but seem to help make the product more noticeable. For this particular bag of sembei, one of the little blurbs on the back mentions that every cracker packet inside has a mascot in a different get-up.


When I opened up the package, even before I breached one of the individual packets, I could smell the cheese powder used in these. The first whiff is highly reminiscent of Cheetos cheese puffs seasoning. The flavor is also rather similar, but these have more depth and variety to them. I'm guessing that's because of the five flavors of cheese that have been included - Edam, Swiss, cheddar, Camembert, and Gouda. You can detect the Swiss notes distinct from the cheddar in particular.

These are nicely cheesy, but not extreme. They have a bit of the typical rice cracker flavor, but not the heavily cooked flavor with soy that you sometimes get. The crackers are crisp and fresh and only about 45 calories per packet of two. If you're not a big fan of sembei, these may be a good stepping stone for you to transition from the "light" stuff to the heavy stuff. They're not quite as accessible as the garlic butter sembei (which I would call the non-sembei-tasting rice cracker), but they're a good second.

Bakauke Wasabi Sembei

When I was a kid, my parents used to go on and on about horseradish and how much they loved it. They'd keep jars of white pasty gunk in the refrigerator which smelled awful to me and tasted so overwhelmingly hot that I couldn't bear it.

After growing up, I grew to love really hot food, but I've lived in Japan for 20 years and have never eaten anything with Japanese horseradish (wasabi). I'm guessing part of the reason for this is that I haven't eaten much sushi and another part is that my husband can't bear super hot foods so anything we eat together can't be likely to leave scorch marks on his tongue.


This may come as a shock to many out there, but I just sort of forgot about the existence of wasabi in Japan. It's sold in root form or paste form here, but I am not big on condiments and I never notice the actual roots in produce sections (or they're not there). When I saw this packet of sembei at my local Family Mart, I remembered that 1) wasabi exists 2) I like hot foods and 3) I might like wasabi if I tried it.

This is a relatively small bag at 27 grams (.95 oz.). It has 122 calories and contains a nice amount of smallish (5.5 cm/2 in. x 2 cm./.8 in.) rice crackers liberally studded with wasabi. The portion is just about right for snacking without eating too many calories. I paid about 130 yen ($1.25) for it.

The first bite was intensely hot. The heat really seemed to hit near the front of my tongue. This is rather different from eating salsa which seems to affect the back, sides and center of my tongue. The heat mellows rather rapidly. It doesn't have the tendency to build up like capsicum-based heat does. It hits and passes. There's a hint of the vegetable flavor of wasabi root. It's hard to describe, but it's just the barest sense of chlorophyll or grassiness. It adds depth to the flavor along with the familiar taste of rice crackers.

The crackers themselves are fresh, crispy, and don't have the roasted or overcooked taste that some sembei does. These taste lighter. I ate the first half bag of these without a drink and it started to send the heat up the back of my nose. Once I started drinking between bites, that effect mellowed out. By the way, they're supposedly banana-shaped in order to make them easy to eat with one hand, though I've never had sembei which was so huge that I had to use both hands to eat it.

I really enjoyed these, and I wouldn't hesitate to have them again. They're quite hot, but that's to be expected. If you like wasabi, I wholeheartedly recommend trying these. If you just like hot foods, I think they're worth a one-time sample at the very least.

Incidentally, the two characters at the top of the bag that serve as the mascots are supposed to be a female named "Valine" (in red) and a male named "Borine" (in blue). The company's web site has peculiarly detailed bios for each character including hobbies, birth dates, dislikes, and family structure. Valine is a Virgo born on September 10 and Borine is an Aries born on April 15. I now know more about these characters's lives than I know about some of my friends.