Shredding Through Shirokuma

Summer has more or less left and autumn is coming in gently (at least from my perspective.) That hasn’t stopped me from binging on frozen treats though. Even though it’s a summer treat, I spent the last week or so gathering every variation of shirokuma I could find.

But what is shirokuma?

It’s a shaved ice dessert with a condensed milk base, topped with beans and fruits, usually mikan and pineapple. The dessert is generally believed to be from Kagoshima, where a store owner made the condensed milk shaved ice and topped it off with cherries and raisins, which made it look like its namesake, the polar bear. (Link to source)

And I’ve tried a lot of these things.

They come in bar form and cup form, though you’ll see them most commonly in cup form. Of these, my favourite is probably the one from FamilyMart. The kiwi they include fits in so well with the condensed milk, and the whole thing just works for me. On the other hand, the most underwhelming one is probably the popsicle shirokuma I got at MyBasket, though they seem to be available at most supermarkets.

It’s not that hot anymore so I don’t think I’ll be getting these more often, but I certainly gained some weight with the extra calories these things added to my daily diet. Thankfully I couldn’t find the cereal version anymore. That would have given me even more calories, starting in the morning!