is a Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese dumpling

Dumpling

Dumplings are cooked balls of dough. They are based on flour, potatoes or bread, and may include meat, fish, vegetables, or sweets. They may be cooked by boiling, steaming, simmering, frying, or baking. They may have a filling, or there may be other ingredients mixed into the dough. Dumplings may...

 made from mochiko (rice flour

Rice flour

Rice flour is a form of flour made from finely milled rice. It is distinct from rice starch, which is usually produced by steeping rice in lye....

), related to mochi. It is often served with green tea

Green tea

Green tea is made solely from the leaves of Camellia sinensis that have undergone minimal oxidation during processing. Green tea originates from China and has become associated with many cultures throughout Asia. It has recently become more widespread in the West, where black tea is traditionally...

.

Dango are eaten year-round, but the different varieties are traditionally eaten in given seasons. Three to four dango are often served on a skewer

Skewer

A skewer is a thin metal or wood stick used to hold pieces of food together. They are used while grilling or roasting meats, and in other culinary applications....

.

Types of dango

There are many different varieties of dango which are usually named after the various seasonings served on or with it. http://theanimeblog.com/japanese-recipes/dango-digest-a-thorough-look-at-japanese-dumplings-part-two/

• Anko
  Red bean paste
  Red bean paste or Azuki bean paste is a sweet, dark red bean paste originating from China. It is used in Chinese cuisine, Japanese confectionery, and Korean cuisine. It is prepared by boiling and mashing azuki beans and then sweetening the paste with sugar or honey...
  
  : Commonly known as (sweetened) red bean paste, while ingredients other than azuki are used on rare occasions.
• Chadango: Green-tea flavored Dango.
• Bocchan dango: Dango that has three colors. One is colored by red beans, the second by eggs, and the third by green tea.
• Denpun dango: Variety of dango from Hokkaidō
  Hokkaido
  , formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
  
   made from potato flour and baked with sweet boiled beans
• Kuri dango: Dango coated in chestnut paste
• Chichi dango: Slightly-sweet light treats usually eaten as a dessert.
• Hanami dango: Also has three colors, Hanami dango is traditionally made during Sakura-viewing season. Hence the name Hanami
  Hanami
  is the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the beauty of flowers, "flower" in this case almost always meaning cherry blossoms or ume blossoms. From the end of March to early May, sakura bloom all over Japan, and around the first of February on the island of Okinawa...
  
   (Hanami means "flower viewing"; hana meaning "flower", and mi meaning "to see").
• Goma: sesame
  Sesame
  Sesame is a flowering plant in the genus Sesamum. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for its edible seeds, which grow in pods....
  
   seeds. It is both sweet and salty.
• Kibi dango: Dango made with millet
  Millet
  The millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
  
   flour.
• Kinako
  Kinako
  , also known as soybean flour, is a product commonly used in Japanese cuisine. Kinako is produced by finely grinding roasted soybeans into powder.Kinako, being composed of soybeans, is a healthy topping and flavoring which contains B vitamins and protein....
  
  : A toasted soy flour.
• Kushi dango: Dango held by a skewer
  Skewer
  A skewer is a thin metal or wood stick used to hold pieces of food together. They are used while grilling or roasting meats, and in other culinary applications....
  
  
• Mitarashi
  Mitarashi dango
  is a type of dango skewered onto sticks in groups of 3–5 and covered with a sweet soy sauce glaze. It is characterized by its glassy glaze and burnt fragrance....
  
  : Covered with a syrup made from shouyu
  Soy sauce
  Soy sauce is a condiment produced by fermenting soybeans with Aspergillus oryzae or Aspergillus sojae molds, along with water and salt...
  
  (soy sauce), sugar
  Sugar
  Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
  
   and starch
  Starch
  Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...
  
  .
• Nikudango
  Meatball
  A meatball is made from an amount of ground meat rolled into a small ball, sometimes along with other ingredients, such as breadcrumbs, minced onion, spices, and possibly eggs...
  
  A type of meatball.http://www.sumokitchen.com/JapaneseRecipes/niku-dango/
• Teppanyaki
  Teppanyaki
  is a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food. The word teppanyaki is derived from teppan , which means iron plate, and yaki , which means grilled, broiled or pan-fried...
  
  : Dango on a skewer
  Skewer
  A skewer is a thin metal or wood stick used to hold pieces of food together. They are used while grilling or roasting meats, and in other culinary applications....
  
   with a tangy teppanyaki
  Teppanyaki
  is a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food. The word teppanyaki is derived from teppan , which means iron plate, and yaki , which means grilled, broiled or pan-fried...
  
   taste.
• Sasa dango: Dango that is produced and eaten primarily in Niigata Prefecture
  Niigata Prefecture
  is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...
  
  . Sasa dango has two varieties: "Onna Dango" and "Otoko Dango." Onna Dango (literally "Female Dango") is filled with anko
  Red bean paste
  Red bean paste or Azuki bean paste is a sweet, dark red bean paste originating from China. It is used in Chinese cuisine, Japanese confectionery, and Korean cuisine. It is prepared by boiling and mashing azuki beans and then sweetening the paste with sugar or honey...
  
  , while the otoko dango (literally "Male Dango") is filled with kinpira
  Kinpira
  is a Japanese cooking style that can be summarized as a technique of "sauté and simmer". It is commonly used to cook root vegetables such as carrot, burdock and lotus root, seaweeds such as arame and hijiki and other foods including tofu and wheat gluten ,and even meat .The dish features the use of...
  
  . The dango is wrapped in leaves of sasa
  Sasa (genus)
  Sasa is a genus of running bamboo. These species have at most one branch per node....
  
   for the purpose of preservation.

Derived terms

A common Japanese proverb

Japanese proverbs

- Kotowaza :A may take the form of:*a short saying ,*an idiomatic phrase , or*a four-character idiom ....

  refers to a preference for practical things rather than aesthetics.

Dango is used internationally amongst go

Go (board game)

Go , is an ancient board game for two players that originated in China more than 2,000 years ago...

 players as a derogatory term for an inefficient, dumpling-like cluster of stones in a go

Go (board game)

Go , is an ancient board game for two players that originated in China more than 2,000 years ago...

 game. It is also the name of a go variant invented in 1991.

A hairstyle

Hairstyle

A hairstyle, hairdo, or haircut refers to the styling of hair, usually on the human head. The fashioning of hair can be considered an aspect of personal grooming, fashion, and cosmetics, although practical, cultural, and popular considerations also influence some hairstyles.-History of...

 consisting of dango-like buns on either side of the head is sometimes known as odango.