Tasting History with Max Miller
Published 23 Sept 2025Very bitter, very sake-flavored balls that include ginseng, coix seeds, and licorice
City/Region: Japan
Time Period: 1676Much like cowboys, pirates, and knights, ninja have been fictionalized to be a far cry from the intelligence gathering and sabotage experts of history. The term “ninja” didn’t even become popular until the mid-20th century.
Even the historical text I’m using here, the Bansenshukai, has been called into question. Because it was written over the period of several centuries, often by people who weren’t even alive during the period when ninja, or shinobi, were active, who knows if it’s an accurate portrayal of their tools and methods.
If this recipe is accurate, I feel bad for the people who had to eat them. They’re really bitter with an overwhelming sake flavor that isn’t pleasant. Really, I wouldn’t recommend making these; they’re not worth the 3 year time investment, and hyōrōgan are a much tastier ninja survival food.
Kikatsugan
10 ryō Asiatic ginseng
20 ryō Buckweat flour
20 ryō Millet Flour
20 ryō Yam
1 ryō Liquorice
10 ryō Coix seed
20 ryō Rice flour
Grind this into a powder, soak it in three shō of sake for three years until it has dried. Afterward, roll it into balls the size of peach pits.
Eating three of these daily will keep you healthy even when you have nothing else to eat.
Eating three will prevent both mental and physical fatigue.— Bansenshukai, 1676
Ingredients:
200 g Asiatic ginseng root*
20 g dried licorice root*
200 g coix seeds* (also known as Job’s tears)
400 g Japanese yam
400 g buckwheat flour
400 g millet flour
400 g rice flour
2.7 L sake, I used a cheaper cooking sake rather than a fancier one
*See notes below.Instructions:
- Grind the ginseng root, licorice root, and coix seeds into a powder. You can do this by hand in a mortar and pestle, but it’s a lot of work, so no one will judge if you use a spice grinder instead.
- Peel the yam, then chop it into small pieces. Smash and grind these up in a mortar and pestle until you get a coarse paste.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the buckwheat flour, millet, flour, and rice flour. Mix in the powdered ginseng root, licorice root, coix seeds, and yam. I used my hands to make sure everything gets evenly distributed.
- Transfer the mixture to a large jar. Earthenware is ideal, but I wanted to see the process, so I used a clear glass jar.
- Pour in the sake and stir, making sure that all of the dry ingredients get mixed in.
- Cover the jar with a piece of tightly woven material like muslin and secure it with a string tied around the jar. Make sure you get this tied on tightly so that no bugs or other critters get in.
- Give it a stir every 2 to 4 days and make sure there isn’t any mold or anything growing in it. Stir every 2 to 4 days for the first 6 months, then stir once a week for the next 2 1/2 years, for a total of 3 years.
- After 3 years, the mixture should have dried out to a paste-like consistency that will hold together. Roll it into balls about the size of a peach pit, or 3/4 inch (2 cm).
- The text gives no further instruction on how to prepare them, so I tried three different ways. The most palatable (even though it still didn’t taste good) was to steam them in a bamboo steamer for 15 minutes. You can also just leave them out to dry a bit naturally, or put them in a 200°F (95°C) oven for 2 hours to dry out.
- However you prepare them, serve them forth.
March 31, 2026
This Recipe Took 3 Years … Ninja Kikatsugan
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