# Japanese (I think) snack question **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 16, 2004, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703 "2004-06-16T18:07:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/1 "2004-06-16T18:07:50Z")
A few years back I had a friend who was a native Hawaiian. His grandparents were always sending him little treats and snacks that couldn’t be found in rural Oregon where we both were. One of the things that they would send him were something that my friend claimed to be Japanese in origin. They were heavily salted, dried plums. They had been dried to about the size of the pit, which remained inside, so there wasn’t much really on them. I really want some of these things, does anyone know what they’re called? I must have known at one point, but I cannot for the life of me remember. ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/2 "2004-06-16T18:37:06Z")
Is it somewhere here? [http://www.cybersnacks.net/seeds\_dried\_fruit.html](http://www.cybersnacks.net/seeds_dried_fruit.html) ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/3 "2004-06-16T18:42:09Z")
Sounds like these: [http://www.qualitynaturalfoods.com/shopnew/umeboshi.html](http://www.qualitynaturalfoods.com/shopnew/umeboshi.html) ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/4 "2004-06-16T18:52:02Z")
> [@Vision of Love](#): > > Is it somewhere here? > [http://www.cybersnacks.net/seeds\_dried\_fruit.html](http://www.cybersnacks.net/seeds_dried_fruit.html) Oh Vision of Love, so aptly are you named! Yes! They are listed there as Li Hing Mui Red! Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/5 "2004-06-16T19:50:38Z")
Oh [those](http://www.cybersnacks.net/product360.html)… My mom and grandpa love those. I haven’t seen them in a while but I remember their curious flavour. ---
**Author:** ![kushiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bbce88/32.png) [@kushiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kushiel)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/6 "2004-06-16T20:57:33Z")
Okay, I was 99.9% sure this thread was going to be about Pocky. My bad. ---
**Author:** ![Vision\_of\_Love](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Vision\_of\_Love](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vision_of_Love)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/7 "2004-06-16T21:05:10Z")
Have you seen [Men’s Pocky](http://www.google.ca/search?q=cache:hHUQFQ57p6kJ:www.engrish.com/detail.php%3Fimagename%3Dmenspocky.jpg%26category%3DChocolate%26date%3D1996-10-04+men%27s+pocky&hl=en)? I love the strawberry flavoured ones. I can go through a pack in less than five minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/8 "2004-06-16T21:28:35Z")
Another Pocky-lover! 🙂 Er, let me rephrase that… ---
**Author:** ![stately\_plump\_buck\_mulligan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@stately\_plump\_buck\_mulligan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stately_plump_buck_mulligan)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/9 "2004-06-16T21:35:52Z")
At my friend’s bachelorette party, one of the groomsmen called one of the bridesmaids from the bachelor party (which was happening concurrently) to announce that the groom had just received _ **Pocky flavoured condoms** _ as a gift. :eek: Those salted plum things look like they may have been reviewed on [bad-candy.com](http://bad-candy.com), which is just as well 'cause I _love_ just about everything trashed on that site. ---
**Author:** ![kath94](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/67e7ee/32.png) [@kath94](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kath94)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/10 "2004-06-16T22:20:09Z")
Are they really dried plums, or could they be tamarinds? I’ve had dried, salted tamarinds before and they’re yummy. They were given to me by a Cambodian co-worker, but sure sound like the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![Nightsong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nightsong/32/3083_2.png) [@Nightsong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightsong)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2004, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/11 "2004-06-17T01:26:47Z")
**kath94** , they’re actual dried plums (I guess that means we could techincally call 'em prunes!), but I don’t know what variety of plums are used. One thing that is really good: get the li hing mui powder, and put it into Chex Mix. Or on gummy bears. Or on dried cranberries. Or… I think everyone gets the picutre. 🙂 * * * \<\< Come on, people–I can only do six things at once, and one of them HAS to be breathing! \>\> ---
**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2004, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/12 "2004-06-17T03:17:25Z")
I had completely forgotten these things existed until I read the OP, and thought… waiiiit a minute, I know those things! I love those things! And now I know what they are. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2004, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/japanese-i-think-snack-question/250703/13 "2004-06-17T16:48:30Z")
I have ume vinegar, shiso leaves in ume vinegar, umeboshi in vinegar with shiso leaves, umeboshi plum paste, and tiny balls made of concentrated ume paste and mountain yam [good for upset tummies] I got mine from Gold Mine Natural Foods. mmmmmm, an ume plum chopped up and added to my khichri sounds great. I think I will rearrange my menu for today to allow for tice with lunch=)