Kokuto Jimami
黒糖ジーマーミ·(ko-ku-to jee-mah-mee)
Sata Andagi & Island Sweets: Afternoon Snacks and Rituals
At three o'clock, the kitchen smells like roasted peanuts, sweet potato starch, and melting blocks of kokuto. Unlike Kyoto's wagashi, Okinawan sweets are rustic and born of the island's sugarcane fields. These candied peanuts are defined entirely by one grandmotherly parlor trick: the rinkake method. You boil a highly concentrated syrup of mineral-rich black sugar until viscous, dump in the peanuts, and critically, rip the pan off the heat while stirring furiously. The sudden temperature drop forces the sugar to instantly crystallize, encasing every nut in a dry, sandy, smoky crust. Pull a chilled ceramic bowl from the fridge, fill it with the nuts, and eat them cold.
Before you start
Prepare your cooling station.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper before you begin cooking, as the final crystallization process moves incredibly fast.
Ingredients
- unsalted dry-roasted peanuts2 cup
- Kokuto or dark muscovado sugar1 1/2 cup
- water3 tbsp
- coarse sea salt1/2 tsp
Method
- 01
Melt the sugar into a syrup.
In a medium skillet or wide saucepan, combine the powdered black sugar, water, and sea salt over medium heat, stirring gently just until the sugar dissolves.
- 02
Boil the syrup until the bubbles become tight and viscous.
Let the dark syrup boil rapidly. After two to three minutes, watch closely as the large, loose bubbles transition into dense, thick ones. If you have a candy thermometer, it should hit 248°F (120°C).
- 03
Add the peanuts and immediately remove the pan from the heat.
This is the crucial trick to the whole dish. The second the bubbles turn dense, dump all the peanuts into the pan and pull it completely off the burner.
- 04
Stir furiously to crystallize the sugar.
Using a wooden spoon, stir the nuts rapidly and constantly. Within a minute, as the mixture cools off the heat, the glossy syrup will magically seize and turn into a dry, matte, sandy coating that clings to every peanut.
- 05
Cool and separate the clusters.
Pour the crystallized peanuts onto your prepared parchment paper, using a fork to quickly separate any large clumps. Let them cool completely for about 15 minutes to achieve their maximum crunch.
Notes
Keep humidity at bay to preserve the crunch.
Kokuto is highly hygroscopic and will absorb moisture from the air, turning sticky if left out. Store the cooled peanuts in an airtight container at room temperature, ideally dropping in a silica gel packet to keep them perfect for up to two weeks.
From Cook Okinawan in America.