From the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
| Ingredient | Amount |
|---|---|
| Main ingredients | |
| Wheat flour | 400 g |
| Bean paste: azuki beans | 100 g |
| Seasonings and liquids | |
| Water | 200 g |
| Salt | a little |
| Bean paste: water | as needed |
| Bean paste: sugar | 100 g |
| Bean paste: salt | 1/2 teaspoon |
In Kagawa, the busy farming season runs from May, when wheat is cut, to June, when rice is planted. Around July 2, called “hangesho,” is a turning point. It is said that “if you do not finish planting by hange, you will get only half the harvest,” so farmers hurry not to be late.
It is also said, “hange no hageagari”: the rain that has kept falling stops and the rainy season ends. On this sunny day, people make and eat hage-dango and rest for about half a day to recover from their tiredness.
Dumplings made from newly harvested wheat flour are smooth and glossy and smell good. The name “hage-dango” comes from eating them at hange, and from how the bean paste clings in patches (“madara”) on the dumpling’s surface.
On hangesho there is a custom of making dumplings with the new wheat, resting, and giving thanks for nature’s gifts. The dumplings are offered to the gods and Buddha and eaten by the family.
Azuki or cowpeas are boiled soft in plenty of water, then the same weight of sugar is added and simmered down. A little salt brings out the sweetness. Wheat flour is kneaded with water, and bite-sized dumplings are dropped into boiling water. When they float, they are lifted into a basket, drained, and coated all over with the bean paste.
In some areas, bean paste is put inside the dough and grilled on an iron plate, the dumplings are steamed, or roasted soybean flour (kinako) is sprinkled on top of the paste.
They are still made at home. Wheat dumplings harden easily, so more people now use rice flour. In school lunches, around hangesho, white dumplings coated with bean paste are served as “hage-dango.”
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