ジャムパン (jam-filled bun)


【 ジャムパン・jamupan 】jam-filled bun

ジャムパン is another classic 菓子パン (kashipan; sweet bread) favorite. The original ジャムパン is believed to have been created by 木村屋 (Kimuraya, same inventor as the あんぱん) in 1900; the original filling was あんずジャム (anzu jamu) apricot jam.

For this, apricot jam was the most common filling in the beginning, but soon other fillings like strawberry and apple jam became more popular. Today, most ジャムパン are いちご (ichigo) strawberry, which seems to be the ultimate favorite.

There are different types of いちごジャムパン — some may have ホイップ (hoippu) whipped cream in them; some may have つぶつぶジャム (tsubutsubu jamu) lumpy jam in them for those who prefer the thick-type over the smooth jelly-type. The word つぶつぶ means lumpy (small lumps and grains) but it is also an onomatopoeia used to describe the strawberry seeds.

Speaking of jams, sometimes the packaging may say 果肉入り (kanikuiri), which means that the jam has lumps of fruit or 果肉 (kaniku) flesh of the fruit in them. *果物 (くだもの kudamono) is fruit; 肉 (にく niku) is flesh.