The Imagawa-yaki Name Wars—That stuffed, griddled pancake with endless nicknames
You know the round cake with sweet red bean or custard inside—fluffy but crisp on the outside. I call it Imagawa-yaki.
Same shape, same taste across Japan, yet the names spark instant arguments online. Oban-yaki, Kaiten-yaki, Gozasoro, Futatsu-yaki, Taiko Manju, Disk Yaki… so many aliases.
Now a company stepped into this “naming war.” Nichirei Foods surveyed 14,057 people nationwide and mapped the most common name in each prefecture.
Image: By Ocdp - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24421294
Nichirei’s press release
Nichirei is the frozen-food giant that saves many parents’ lunchboxes. We buy their frozen Imagawa-yaki sometimes, too. Their survey results became the “power map” linked above.
Name distribution
- Imagawa-yaki: 19 areas
- Oban-yaki: 15 areas
- Kaiten-yaki: 9 areas
- Oyaki: 2 areas
- Gozasoro: 1 area (Hyogo)
- Ajiman: 1 area (Yamagata)
Roughly, Kanto says Imagawa-yaki, Kansai says Oban-yaki, Osaka and Kyushu say Kaiten-yaki. There are interesting enclaves—Imagawa-yaki pockets in Wakayama and Hiroshima, Oban-yaki up into Iwate and Akita—probably old business ties with Kansai companies.
Speaking of Iwate, Morioka has a Tokyo-Station-lookalike red-brick bank building whose brick origin is a small mystery—were they shipped from Tokyo or fired locally? The records are unclear.
Ocdp - 投稿者自身による著作物, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=112885072
Back to “oyaki.” In Nagano, oyaki means the savory stuffed bun (nozawana greens, eggplant, miso/soy flavors). In Hokkaido, oyaki means Imagawa-yaki. Confusing!
Nagano oyaki usually has savory fillings, so travelers sometimes expect sweets and get salty nozawana instead—been there. Nowadays menus list sweet “anko” and “apple” first, so fewer people are surprised. I love the sweet ones.
I’ve only heard of Gozasoro by name—it’s from Hyogo. Looks and tastes are easy to picture; I want to try it someday.
How I reheat at home
Nichirei says ~60% microwave only, 4% toaster only, 25% microwave + toaster.
From frozen, just microwaving makes it soggy. I do microwave 20 sec → toaster 2–3 min. You want that toasty wheat flavor; otherwise it’s a damp dorayaki.
Toaster-only folks might hope 3 minutes warms the bean paste, but with frozen cakes the center often stays cold—unless you want “fried ice cream” vibes, I’d stick to microwave then toast.
Toppings
Nichirei’s doc shows people add butter, ice cream, or whipped cream. I’ve tried whipped cream.
I sometimes keep this can whipped cream in the fridge and top it. Butter sounds good too—like a pancake upgrade.
Flavors we want
Anko and custard are the basics. Nichirei’s survey had cream cheese next—sounds like answers from lunchbox-making parents, not kids 😅. Then matcha, chocolate, caramel, etc.
Imagawa-yaki is basically taiyaki, so taiyaki flavors are a hint: apple, cinnamon apple, choco banana, matcha & cream. Cream-puff flavors could work too: zunda, mitarashi, Setouchi lemon, milk vanilla (Beard Papa vibes).
Since frozen SKUs can’t explode into endless flavors, an assorted box—anko + custard + chocolate + matcha cream—would make snack time more fun.
