Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) Coloring Pages

A modern Japanese sweet with a great mix of Japanese and Western flavors Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) is a Japanese sweet with sweet bean paste and a whole fresh strawberry inside soft rice cake. Take a bite, and your mouth fills with soft rice cake, sweet bean paste, and juicy strawberry fruit juice! It is now a popular treat from winter to spring. But it is actually pretty new, and people say it was created in the late Showa period.

Types of Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake)

There are many styles of Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) depending on the area and shop.

• Chunky or smooth red bean paste: This is the most common style. The sweet red bean flavor matches the sour strawberry so well.

• White bean paste: This style is popular in western Japan. The red strawberry shows through the thin rice cake, making it look very pretty.

• With whipped cream: Some have whipped cream inside with sweet bean paste. They taste more like a Western dessert.

• Different shapes: Some hide the strawberry completely inside the rice cake. Others place the strawberry right in a cut on top so you can see its face, just like in this picture!

Here are some cool tips to make your Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) look delicious and full of spring vibes!

Make the strawberry look fresh and juicy

• Bright red shade: Color the strawberry with a bright red. If you add a tiny bit of light green or yellow near the stem, it will look super sweet and ripe!

• Little seeds and shiny light: Draw little dots using white or light yellow to make the seeds on the strawberry. If you leave a little white spot on the top for shine, it will look shiny and tasty!

Add shadows to make the rice cake look soft

• The rice cake is white, but leaving it plain white makes it look flat. Try adding soft shadows with very light gray or light blue in the folds and along the bottom. This makes it look soft, just like a baby's cheek!

Color the inside cut to make it look real

• When you color the inside of the Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake), make the center of the strawberry white and the outside red. It will look just like a real one!

• Do not forget the sweet bean paste layer between the strawberry and the rice cake! Color a thin line using dark brown (for red bean paste) or cream color (for white bean paste).

Try fun ideas for the plate and extra items

• If you color the plate under the Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) like black shiny lacquerware, the red strawberry will pop out and look fancy!

• You can draw warm green tea (light green) beside it, or add plum blossoms in the background. It will turn into a lovely picture of spring tea time!

Actually, a New Treat Born in the Showa Era

When you think of Japanese sweets, you might think they have been around for hundreds of years. But Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) was actually born in the late Showa era, in the 1980s! It is a new treat invented surprisingly recently. When it first came out, everyone was shocked that fruit was placed inside a rice cake!

Are You Team "Black Sweet Bean Paste" or Team "White Sweet Bean Paste"?

The sweet bean paste inside Ichigo Daifuku (Strawberry Rice Cake) changes depending on the shop. There is "black sweet bean paste" with a strong red bean flavor, and "white sweet bean paste" that lets the red color of the strawberry show through nicely. Western-style ones with whipped cream or chocolate inside are also popular these days!

A Miracle Mix of Sweet and Sour

Sweet bean paste and sour strawberries. At first, it was a mix that made people say, "Wait, really?" But the sour strawberry brings out the sweetness of the bean paste. It became a huge hit because it is refreshing to eat! It is a carefully planned deliciousness.

The Name Means "Big Luck"

Daifuku was originally called "Big Belly Rice Cake" because eating it made your stomach full. People say that later, lucky characters were used to write its name as "Daifuku (Big Luck) Rice Cake". If you eat it, big luck might come your way!