Japanese peanuts are more Mexican than Burritos

Japanese peanuts are more than just a Mexican invention, Japanese peanuts are a made
in Mexico invention. Japanese peanuts have a unique combination of ingredients. The
fried foods are usually found in supermarket checkout counters, there is everything from
potatoes, pork rinds and even delicious Japanese peanuts, which have the reputation of
being more Mexican than Japanese.
Who created Japanese peanuts?
Japanese peanuts were not born in the East but in Mexico, since during World War II they
began to be made and even a film tells the story of this delicious snack.
In the 1940's it was common to see people eating a novel snack, which was sold in large
quantities and was offered in the Merced neighborhood. The snack was shelled peanuts
covered by a toasted layer of wheat and soy. The creator of this snack was Yoshihei
Nakatani Moriguchi, a short man from Japan, 33 years old, who was unemployed and saw
a great opportunity to make this recipe to earn an income. His mother-of-pearl shell button
factory, where the young Yoshihei Nakatan worked, was also closed. By that time, the
Japanese man was out of work and had just married a Mexican woman.
What are Japanese peanuts made of?
Emma was his wife, with whom he already had children and necessity works wonders, so
he began to make “muéganos”, then they invented a wheat and salt fried food which they
named "oranda" (carp) and then they created a snack with peanuts, soy and rice flour.
After several combinations, there was no precise consistency, since rice flour did not exist
in Mexico, so they replaced it with wheat flour. This is how Japanese peanuts were born,
which dozens of people would pile up outside the neighborhood of Carretones Street, La
Merced neighborhood, where Nakatani and his family lived.
Once customers tried them, the snack began to be called Japanese peanuts, and this
name is still used today. Sales were incredible, so they decided to market this snack in
other places in the CDMX and candy stores began to buy several kilos of this delicacy.
Who patented Japanese peanuts?
In 1950, Elvia, the couple's fourth daughter, drew a geisha at her father's request. This
illustration served as the first face of their Japanese peanuts and she named them 'Nipón'.
In the absence of a patent, the big snack producers in Mexico took advantage of the fact
that the Nakatani family did not make any registration and began to manufacture them en
masse.
By the 1980s there was a boom in the consumption and sale of Japanese peanuts in
Mexico, the Nakatani family was relegated to oblivion and the big brands took over the
business. This is how this snack was born, in one of the busiest neighborhoods of the
CDMX.

Alumno: Linares Navarro Ángel Aarón

Matricula: U99355842
Inglés Nivel 5