Such is the way of reviewing Japanese snacks is that I don't really adventure out into the totally weird and wacky products unless by force (thanks napaJapan!).
It's not something I would ever buy for myself and I didn't really know this product existed.
Nevertheless, I'm willing to give it a go, just because when I googled it, I found other people had tried it and survived, so it gives me hope it's not too bad. ;)
The name of the candy "neruneru nerune" is quite cute and is the sound of stirring in Japanese, which is quite apt because the candy has three stages, two of which involve stirring.
Inside the packet is a white plastic tray with two pockets, one big circle and a smaller circle. There is a triangle indent on the side which breaks off and is filled with water to stir into the mix in packet 1, which becomes a thick blue glob.
Next in goes packet 2, a small amount of white crystal that instantly turns the mix pink and makes it plump up so that it looks very similar to strawberry mousse. Packet 3 is filled with coloured sprinkles and that goes in the opposite round pocket.
When all the mixing is done, you grab the plastic spoon that was included and take a big scoop of the mousse-like whip candy and dip into the sprinkles then into your mouth.
An interesting concept for kids and my husband, though I wasn't too thrilled about the flavour. It's very much like sherbet, in fact if I didn't know better I would say it is sherbet. There is a slight hint of strawberry flavour but mostly a sour sherbet hit. If you eat it without the sprinkles it will be a full-on sherbet hit. If you dip it in the sprinkles there will be the sherbet hit with a sweetness.
I'm not a fan of sticky, wobbly, gooey textures, but this was ok with me. The sherbet is really good, although not quite the strawberry I was expecting. The idea of this is what sticks the wrong way with me in that it all consists of powder and water, so basically it's just chemicals mixed with water and eaten. Not really something I would want to give to my kids if you know what I mean?
Yasu really enjoyed this, in fact he had nearly the whole thing himself, and I could see that kids would probably really enjoy the mixing and making and dipping in as well. Although the packet states it is "calcium enriched", it's not really something I would give children often because the ratio of calcium to chemical would not be very even would it?
A fun treat, if not so often, I would recommend to you. My sticking point might not be yours, and the taste is quite good if you like sherbet. :)
