Symbolism of the Turtle (Kame) — Longevity, Wisdom & Protection in Muromachi Japan
Urashima Tarō carried by a turtle to the Dragon Palace (Ryūgū-jō). Image via Kyuhoshi.
Originally Published 10/22/2019 - Updated 10/20/2025
In Japan, the turtle (kame) is a joyful emblem of longevity, wisdom, protection, and steady good fortune. It appears in courtly art, shrine lore, and folktales—from the patient, long-tailed minogame to the northern guardian Genbu (Black Tortoise). For our Muromachi-period Crown Tournament feast, turtle symbolism tied neatly to the suppon hot pot we served: a nourishing dish with deep historical roots.
During Japan’s Muromachi period (1336–1573), when Zen aesthetics and courtly rituals blended with warrior culture, symbolic animals often appeared in art and ceremonial meals. The turtle (kame), long associated with immortality and wisdom, represented the enduring stability of the shogunate and the virtues of patience and loyalty — qualities praised in poetry, calligraphy, and seasonal foods alike.
Okashi – Anmitsu and Japanese Sweet Traditions (Muromachi Feast Recreation)
Jasmine green tea ice cream on agar (kanten), surrounded by red bean paste and a drizzle of black sugar syrup.
Imagine my surprise when I realized I’d never published the final tray of the feast! This course—built around Anmitsu—was my nod to banquet finales that closed with fruit and confections. My interpretation layers agar jelly, fresh fruit, shiratama mochi, sweet red bean paste (anko), black sugar syrup (kuromitsu), and jasmine green tea ice cream.
Historical Frame: Okashi in Context
In the Muromachi period (1336–1573), formal banquet cuisine (honzen ryori) treated sweets as refined, seasonal endings rather than everyday fare. Sugar was scarce and costly; sweetness often came from beans, grains, or fruit. As long-distance trade expanded, imported sugars and new tools elevated confectionery into an art closely linked with tea culture—favoring elegance and balance over intense sweetness.
Seasonal Aesthetics: Confections mirrored the time of year—spring blossoms, summer greens, autumn leaves, winter snows. Their fleeting forms encouraged contemplation of impermanence and gratitude at table.
Trade, Technique, and Evolution
Maritime trade in the 16th century brought refined sugar and new implements that influenced sweet-making. Hybrid sweets (like castella sponge) arose from cultural exchange. Meanwhile, temple kitchens and courtly households continued to favor plant-based textures and subtle flavors, keeping okashi aligned with ideals of restraint.
Cross-Cultural Parallels
Just as medieval Europe prized marchpane and sugar plate as status-laden table art, Japan refined bean- and rice-based sweets into edible miniatures of the natural world. In both traditions, confectionery served as display, diplomacy, and delight.
Muromachi: codified banquets; sweet courses as refined finales
Edo: wagashi artistry flourishes with broader sugar access
Ingredient Insights
Agar (kanten): a seaweed-derived gelling agent long valued in Buddhist vegetarian cooking and later central to clear, delicate jellies in confectionery.
Anko (red bean paste): sweetened adzuki paste that underpins many classic sweets. Texture ranges from smooth to rustic and chunky.
Kuromitsu (black sugar syrup): made from unrefined brown sugars—deeper, rounder, and more mineral than modern white sugar syrups.
Before digital scales and thermostats, cooks read their kitchens by sight, sound, and feel—“a slow oven,” “boil to the feather,” or “as much as will make it thick.” This guide bridges those centuries so you can confidently adapt recipes from Harleian MS. 279, Scappi’s Opera, Hannah Wolley, and other early sources to modern cookware and temperatures.
Originally published February 15, 2018. Updated October 20, 2025 with expanded historical notes, new images, and improved formatting.
In the Middle Ages, Lent wasn’t merely a season of self-denial — it was an entire culinary calendar. Between Lent, Advent, Ember Days, and weekly “fish days” on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, nearly one-third of the medieval year was devoted to fasting. During those times, meat, eggs, butter, and cheese were forbidden, yet cooks were expected to provide flavorful, nourishing meals that upheld both piety and hospitality. This collection explores five authentic Lenten recipes from Harleian MS. 279 and related manuscripts, revealing how creative and satisfying medieval fasting fare could be.
Rather than bland penitence, medieval Lenten cookery celebrated ingenuity. Almond milk stood in for dairy, oil and wine replaced animal fats, and fish of every sort — fresh, dried, salted, or pickled — became the centerpiece of elegant banquets. Even humble ingredients like peas or leeks were transformed through spice, color, and texture into dishes worthy of nobles and abbots alike.
