I love me some Japanese candy, and usually the Asian markets in my area have a good supply. But lamentably, I have never been able to locate the Puccho brand of chews. A unique texture combining the soft chew of Starburst with tiny balls of gummi and, sometimes, fizzy candy bits? Sign me up! And the flavors sound great – melon, cola, and especially ramune. (Ramune is a Japanese soft drink that’s a lot like 7-up or Sprite. It has an indescribable flavor that’s almost lemon/lime… only not. The flavor is totally addictive, whether in candy or drink form, and there’s nothing quite like it outside of the Japanese candy market.)
So on a recent trip to my local Asian mega-grocery store, the T&T, I was elated to encounter the elusive chew at last. Sort of. Instead of a paper-wrapped “stick†or an awesome plastic tube thing, they came in a small bag. Very small. They were also expensive – $2.99 for the tiny bag. On sale. The regular price was nearly five bucks. (Oh, T&T – I love you so, but come on, what’s with your prices?) Instead of “Puccho,†these were called “Pucchoco†– that’s right, they’re chocolate-covered. And rather than being fruit or soda-flavored, they were almond-flavored – a new one on me.
It wasn’t ramune… but it would do.
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Puccho and Ramune are two iconic summer treats in Japan. Puccho is a chewy candy (think Starburst) that is known for the gummi pieces worked into it for extra chew. This particular variety is flavored like melon Ramune, an extremely popular Japanese soft drink.
The bottle is very cool. It’s a blue plastic tube that stands upright, and it’s curvy, like four bubbles that have been stacked upon one another. The illustrations on the packaging show the Puccho characters smiling and winking at you as they balance deftly on clouds of Ramune fizz. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Ramune is a very popular soda brand in Japan and is a quintessential drink for the hot summer months. What would be better to make into a gummi candy that can’t melt in the summer heat?
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(from the Puccho website)
I love trying foreign candy that I’m not even sure what it is. I had no idea what “Shuwa Puccho Gummy Stick (Cola)” was when I got it. All I knew is that it might be gummi and might taste like cola. My wife bought it for my birthday in March from
Play-Asia with another larger videogame gift, but the candy just arrived last week (yes, it took that long).
So, I look at the wrapper and there is a handy sticker on the back with an ingredient list in English. Some of the ingredients are a bit scary. Here are the weird/scary ones:
- Lactic acid bacteria drink (lactic acid is in milk, right? but bacteria drink? That doesn’t sound appetizing)
- Glycerol esters of fatty acids (what the heck is an ester?)
- Tartaric acid (ok, I have heard of tartar as in “cream of tartar”)
- Sucrose esters of fatty acids (more esters, but from sugar this time?)
- Bee’s wax (Bee’s wax? In a gummi candy?)
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