Dango

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Japanese ricecake

title: "Dango" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["japanese-dumplings", "japanese-rice-dishes", "skewered-foods", "wagashi", "glutinous-rice-dishes", "rice-flour-dishes"] description: "Japanese ricecake" topic_path: "geography/japan" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dango" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Japanese ricecake ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox food"]

Field	Value
name	Dango
image	Mitarashi dango by denver935.jpg
image_size	300px
caption	Mitarashi dango
country	Japan
type	Sweets, Dumpling
main_ingredient	Rice flour
::

Dango is a Japanese dumpling made with regular rice flour and glutinous rice flour. They are usually made in round shapes, and three to five pieces are served on a skewer, which is called kushi-dango. The pieces are eaten with sugar, syrup, red bean paste, and other sweeteners. Generally, dango falls under the category of wagashi (Japanese confectionery), and is often served with green tea. It is eaten year-round, but the different varieties are traditionally eaten in given seasons. Dango is sometimes compared with mochi, but is different in that mochi is generally made only with glutinous rice.

Types

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Mitarashi_Dango_at_Kyoto.jpg" caption="''[[Mitarashi dango]]'', covered with sugar and [[soy sauce"] ::

The many different varieties of dango are usually named after the various seasonings served on or with it.

Popular dango

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Dango_(15858819741).jpg" caption="Various ''dango'' being sold at a store"] ::

Anko dango is commonly covered with sweetened red bean paste; ingredients other than azuki are used on rare occasions. Other toppings for anko include zunda made from edamame paste and kurumi (walnut) paste.
Cha dango is green tea (matcha) flavored dango.
Shoyu dango is a kind of baked dango (yaki dango) and is seasoned with soy sauce. Furthermore, the one wrapped with nori is called isobe dango.
Hanami dango also known as sanshoku dango is eaten during hanami. It has three colors (pink, white and green), and is traditionally made during sakura-viewing season, hence the name (hanami means "flower viewing"; hana meaning "flower", and mi meaning "to see"). The order of the three colored dumplings is said to represent the order in which cherry blossoms bloom. Pink represents cherry buds, white represents cherry blossoms in full bloom, and green represents leafy cherry blossoms after they have fallen. This one was chosen for the Dango Unicode emoji (🍡).
Kibi dango is made with millet flour. This variety is prominently featured in the tale of Momotarō, a folkloric Japanese hero, who offers the rounded ball (not skewered) to three talking animals in exchange for their aid in fighting demons.
Kinako dango is made with toasted soy flour.
Kusa dango or yomogi dango is mixed leaves of yomogi, like kusa mochi. It is often covered with anko.
Mitarashi dango is covered with a syrup made from shouyu (soy sauce), sugar, and starch.
Sasa dango is produced and eaten primarily in Niigata Prefecture. Sasa dango has two varieties: onna dango and otoko dango. Onna dango (literally "female dango") is filled with anko, while the otoko dango (literally "male dango") is filled with kinpira. The dango is wrapped in leaves of sasa for the purpose of preservation.
Shiratama dango is eaten in anmitsu or mitsumame.
Tsukimi dango is a white dango eaten during Tsukimi, related to the Mid-Autumn festival.

Various other dango

Botchan dango has three colors. One is colored by red beans, the second by eggs, and the third by green tea. Botchan dango is a product name of Ehime’s miyagegashi, which was named after Natsume Sōseki’s novel Botchan.
Chichi dango is a slightly sweet, light treat usually eaten as a dessert.
Denpun dango from Hokkaido is made from potato flour and baked with sweet boiled beans.
Kuri dango is coated in chestnut paste.
Niku dango is a type of Japanese meatball. Chicken niku dango is called tsukune, served on a skewer.

Derived terms

A common Japanese proverb "hana yori dango" refers to a preference for practical things rather than aesthetics.

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

Dorodango is a Japanese art form in which earth and water are molded to create a delicate, shiny sphere, resembling a billiard ball.

In Vietnam

Bánh hòn is a specialty dessert of Phan Thiet. The cake is made from tapioca flour, coconut, roasted peanuts, salt and sugar. When finished, it is rolled over shredded coconut and skewered like Japanese dango.

Unicode character

The Unicode emoji character 🍡 is used to resemble hanami dango. The character was introduced in October 2010.

References

[https://kotobank.jp/word/%E5%9B%A3%E5%AD%90-94993#E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.9E.97.20.E7.AC.AC.E4.B8.89.E7.89.88 大辞林第三版「だんご〔団子〕」]- [[コトバンク]] 2020年4月3日閲覧
Rachel. (April 14, 2008). "Dango Digest: A Thorough Look at Japanese Dumplings, Part Two".
(June 29, 2008). "Wagashi: Chadango and Minazuki".
Goldstein, Darra. (2015). "The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets". Oxford University Press.
"Niku Dango - Sumo Kitchen".
Davies, Roger J. The Book of Japanese Culture: A Guide to Tradition and Contemporary Life. Tuttle Publishing, 2019, pp. 112–115.
"Unicode Character 'DANGO' (U+1F361)".

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