Senbei

Senbei are crispy rice crackers from Japan, coming in a wide variety of colors, shapes, and flavors. It is believed that the crackers originated during the Tang Dynasty in 737 AD, when they were made with potatoes, glutinous rice, or wheat flour. Soy sauce-flavored senbei was the first one to be popularized, but later, other varieties of senbei were invented. Traditional types of senbei include sweet senbei and rice candy senbei (savory). Rice-based senbei can be either baked or fried. Baked senbei includes salted senbei, soy sauce senbei, chili pepper senbei, and sarame senbei, characterized by a coating of granulated sugar. Fried senbei are most often flavored with a combination of soy sauce and sugar. Today, senbei are traditionally served alongside green tea and consumed as a snack.