Must-Buy Japanese Candies

Japan has many products that are worth buying from clothes to food to cosmetics and medicine, but if you’re a person with a sweet tooth like me, you definitely shouldn’t pass up shopping for candies as well. Japan has some seriously addicting candies that will make you want to eat them non-stop like a kid. Here is a list of some of the most delicious candies that can be found in Japanese stores.

Hi-Chew Premium

Hi-Chew is a popular Japanese candy. It’s not a hard candy but it’s the chewy type. I have tasted the normal version of Hi-Chew and it was ok for me but after a while, my jaw would get tired of chewing it. When I tasted Hi-Chew Premium, I didn’t know at first that it was Hi-Chew. My boyfriend’s mom had a bowl full of candies and I just randomly picked a gold wrapper and to my suprise, it was really really good. It had a grape flavor, which is really one of my favorite candy flavors. The sweetness was ample and it was really soft compared to the regular Hi-Chew. Hi-Chew Premium is so easy to chew that if you just let it sit inside your mouth, it would probably melt after a few minutes. This one is a little difficult to find. Me and my boyfriend couldn’t find it even though we checked so many grocery stores around his area. Luckily, his mom has one pack left and decided to give it to us as a souvenir and maybe because she pitied us because my boyfriend sounded a little desperate to find it. If I only knew where to buy it, I would have bought at least 10 packs of this perfect grape, chewy candy.

Morinaga Milk Caramel Candy

Aside from the Hi-Chew Premium, the Morinaga Milk Caramel Candy is one of my top faves. I wish I had not carelessly given these away to my friends. It’s so delicious that you’d just want to have some of these sitting in your bag for “emergency”. The caramel and milk mix gives it a really creamy flavour that would come bursting out of each chew.It may seem hard at first but when you put it inside your mouth, it just starts melting and becomes so easy to chew. I would definitely buy more of these when I get the chance to no matter where and how much the price is. That’s how much I love this caramel candy.

Mini Cola

The first time I bought a Mini Cola was just out of curiosity. See, whenever I’m inside japanese conbinis, I’d like to buy something that looks promising and that I’d never tried before. I bought it, forgot about it until after I left Japan then when I remember I had it, I opened it and immediately regret why I didn’t buy more of these. At that time I only bought one so when I came back to Japan, I tried to find the Mini Cola again but when I checked several convenience stores, they didn’t have it. So when I went to the grocery store and spotted some, I bought 15 pieces in one go. Yes, I am a candy hoarder.

Chelsea Assorted Candies

I have actually tasted these Chelsea candies before when I was a kid. My mom would bring some home from her trips to Japan and it just stuck with me throughout all these years that these candies were one of the best-tasting in the world. I haven’t had a Chelsea candy in a long time but now we actually have them in Japanese grocery stores in my country. I would stare at these candies for a long time, contemplating if it’s worth the price because these are a little expensive here. almost triple the price in Japan. I always end up not buying it so when I saw a pack of assorted Chelsea candies in a local grocery store in Japan, I grabbed it immediately. When I ate it again after years of not being able to, the flavor tasted nostalgic. It brought back so many memories but the flavor maintained its taste throughout a really long time. You can see that the packaging has 3 colors, 1 color for each flavor respectively. The green pack is the Yogurt, the pink one is Butter and the brown one is Coffee.  I’m not much of a coffee fan so the coffee flavor just tastes like coffee to me. The yogurt has a mild but pleasant sourness that I really like and the butter tastes a little like caramel so I really like it as well. I can’t decide which of the flavors I like best but it’s just between either Yogurt or Butter.

Little Happy Paw Gummy

To be honest, I just bought the Little Happy Paw Gummy because of it’s packaging. I really love cats so this one caught my attention. They have a dog version of the packaging which I also bought for my friend. I didn’t think much of it at first but me and my boyfriend really enjoyed it. In addition, They have grape and orange flavor and the gummies come in paw form. It’s so cute and feels almost like a real cat’s paw. And if you’re a cat lover like me, I know there are times when you just think your cat’s too cute that you just wanna bite their soft and bouncy paws. Don’t do that though, you can get these instead.

6. Purunto Konnyaku Jelly

The Purunto Konnyaku Jelly is just like your typical jelly snack but it comes in a much safer pack that will prevent you from choking on this jelly. The typical jelly candy pack looks like a small cup. You have to squeeze it to get the whole thing out of the container and into your mouth. It can be a little dangerous specially to kids that can easily choke on it. Good thing Orihiro made a their own version that’s easier and safer to eat. Just tear off the top part and squeeze it little by little until the jelly comes out. It also comes in different flavors like Apple, Peach, Lychee, Melon and many more, but I chose my favorite flavor, Grape.

Hokkaido Soft Premium

I’ve actually made a blog post before about the Hokkaido Soft Premium Milk Candy but I just needed to add this to the list of candies worth buying in Japan. It is THAT good. It’s so soft, chewy and milky and it melts in your mouth. If you’re really into milk candies, trust me, this will turn you into a selfish hoarder. It’s a little hard to spot this in regular stores in Japan so be sure to grab lots of these if ever you see one.

Nodo Sukkiri Ame

The literal translation of Nodo Sukkiri Ame is “Throat Clear Candy”. It’s actually a candy with a purpose. It helps clear and relieve dry or sore throat. It comes in many flavors as well but the ones I’ve tried are the regular mint flavor and the blueberry flavor. I must say, the blueberry flavor is really delicious. It’s so yummy that I eat it even if I don’t suffer from any kind of uneasiness in my throat. I just bring it along with me and pop one every once in a while. It’s another candy I hope I should’ve bought more. If you ever suffer from sore throat while in Japan, don’t forget to get one of these.

Of course there are plenty of other Japanese candies that are worth buying, but here are 8 for now. I’ll make another list as soon as I get and taste a bunch more candies to choose from.