Made with Sweet-Tart Kogyoku Apples
Tawawa uses Kogyoku apples (Jonathan apples) grown in Aomori Prefecture. Known for their well-balanced sweetness and tartness, Kogyoku apples are considered particularly suitable for making sweets.
The apples are carefully prepared as an apple glacé by soaking them in a sweet syrup together with liqueur. This process gives the apples a mellow sweetness and rich flavor while preserving the characteristic sweet-tart taste of Kogyoku apples.
A Mellow Apple Filling with a Japanese Touch
The apple glacé is the heart of Tawawa. Rather than simply filling the pastry with ordinary stewed apples, the apples are prepared with a delicate sweetness and a smooth, mellow flavor, giving the finished pie a distinctly Japanese character.
The apple filling is then sandwiched between generous layers of homemade pastry made with plenty of butter and baked until beautifully browned.
Thick, Layered Pastry with a Distinctive Texture
One of the most unusual features of Tawawa is its pastry. The dough is repeatedly folded into many layers, creating a substantial structure. After the pastry has been baked until beautifully puffed, it is gently pressed down.
This process produces a pastry that is noticeably thick and firm, rather than light and delicate like some Western-style apple pies. The substantial texture pairs especially well with the soft, mellow apple glacé inside.
Aomori Apple Pie from a Long-Established Confectionery
Tawawa is made by Okina-ya (Okinaya), a long-established Japanese confectionery shop founded in 1918, during the Taisho era. With its combination of Aomori-grown Kogyoku apples, apple glacé, and rich homemade pastry, the sweet reflects both the region’s apple-growing heritage and Japan’s traditional confectionery culture.
Its deep, rich flavor and substantial texture make Tawawa an original Aomori apple pie with a character all its own. For visitors exploring Aomori’s food culture, it is an appealing example of how locally grown apples can be transformed into a distinctly Japanese confectionery.