Fukutaro Menbei Mentaiko Crackers Bonito

The name is a pun, and it is the whole point. Katsuo is bonito; katsu means to win.

Fukutaro prints the character for victory across the front of the pack in large type, and the product has become a standard gift in Japan for anyone facing something they need to win — a student sitting entrance exams, an athlete before a match, a colleague going into a difficult negotiation.

Japanese gift culture runs on this kind of wordplay. Katsu cutlets are eaten the night before exams for exactly the same reason.

Underneath the joke is the most seafood-forward Menbei in the range.

The standard version builds its base on squid and octopus; this one adds bonito in two forms — katsuo aburazuke, bonito packed in oil, and katsuobushi, the dried and smoked bonito flakes that anchor Japanese stock — along with a wafu dashi seasoning.

That is three separate sources of marine umami layered on top of the mentaiko, and the result is deeper and rounder than the plain, with a smoky note the others do not have.

Fukutaro’s own word for it is zeitaku, luxurious.

The construction is otherwise unchanged: a starch dough pressed into thin flat sheets, seasoned with mentaiko, chilli and a tare. Eight sealed packets of two, 180-day shelf life.

If the plain Menbei is the introduction and the hot version is the challenge, Katsu Menbei is the one to hand someone who already appreciates what dashi does.

About this item
Item Name : Menbei Bonito
Brand : Fukutaro
Item Form : Starch Cracker
Allergens: Wheat, squid, soybean
Number of Items : 8 Counts, 16 Counts (Box of 1)