The season is drawing near when the Chinese steamed meat-stuffed buns, dubbed Chukaman in Japan, are as tasty as ever. But just how are those round buns made with that fluffy look and hearty filling?
I visited the Chukaman Museum, which opened in January. Nakamuraya Co., a long-established food manufacturer that has sold Chinese steamed buns since 1927, operates the museum.
The facility is so popular it gets booked solid soon after it starts taking reservations, which are accepted 60 days before the day of the desired tour.
The exhibits are designed to ensure even young children can understand.
Participants first learn about the history of Chukaman through an animated video. According to the company, the founding couple of Nakamuraya developed Chukaman based on Chinese steamed buns, which they had enjoyed in China.
At a factory near the museum, a tour guide leads a group with quizzes, saying, "Let's all go and discover the secret behind the wonderful flavor!"
The factory tour covers a distance of 400 meters. Visitors can view the manufacturing process of buns through a large glass window as the guide explains the process.
One of the standard Chukaman items, nikuman, is made by kneading dough that mainly features flour and yeast. After the fermentation process, the dough is cut into large, individual pieces roughly the same size and wrapped with ingredients, including pork, onions and shiitake mushrooms.
The factory produces about 400,000 of the steamed buns per day and uses about 15 tons of flour.
It is a spectacular sight to see chukaman rolled into small pieces and lined up neatly along an inorganic production line. Visitors cheered, commenting, "they look cute" and "There's so many of them."
In the next area of the tour, visitors can play with items such as steam-bun-themed puzzles. The last area is where taste testing takes place.
"It was yummy," said 3-year-old Ryotaro Takagi from Toshima Ward, Tokyo, after a second helping.
His mother Ayaka, 31, also said, "The material here was user-friendly and enjoyable."
Although it is a full-scale factory tour, families can have a fun worry-free time. That seems to be the secret to its popularity.
-- Chukaman Museum
Reservations are required for two or more people. Tours are at 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., and last for 90 minutes, with 20 participants each time.
Reservation site: https://www.nakamuraya.co.jp/factory/access.html.
Reservations can be made 60 days in advance.
Ten minutes by car from Metropolitan Inter-City Expressway's Iruma IC.
Address: 234 Sayamadai, Iruma, Saitama Prefecture
Open: Closed on Wednesdays, Thursdays, during year-end and New Year periods, and around May to August when the factory is closed.
Admission: Free
Information: (04) 2935-1592
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
