Mini Post: Crazy Food Pun Time!

by 56 Comments

あんバーガー While every country has its own unique foodstuffs, Japan definitely has some strange flavor combinations. Somehow, though, I think this is one of the most unappetizing ones I’ve come upon so far. Wendy’s Japan has created product with a pun-derful name: The An Burger (あんバーガー, pronounced ahn baa gaa)!

It’s basically cheese, an (sweet azuki bean paste normally used in mochi), and unidentifiable white stuff on a bun. Seriously, what is that white stuff? It kind of looks like tuna salad, but that can’t be right… can it?

It’s just… just wrong. Almost as wrong as ウルトラローライズデニムビキニパンツ. Almost.

Edit: After digging through a bunch of Japanese blogs (thanks, Google JP), the white stuff has proved to be margarine, which is not much of an improvement over the tuna salad idea D:

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  • Stacia

    I didn’t even read the post. I read the first paragraph and that was enough. I LOVE an…SO much…i love an ice cream, the pastries from Asakusa (well I had them there) and…the popsicles, the mochi…all of it. but that is SICK. sick and wrong. omg. Margarine…like, fake butter?

    Omg that…is…I going to barf..if i ever SEE that in person.

    Poor little azuki beans…poor poor….Japanese people who eat this.

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    Honestly, if I had the chance, I might actually try it, just for the sake of adventure. I might scrape off the margarine, though. In other pictures I’ve seen (check out the new links in the post), the あんバーガー doesn’t have quite so much margarine, but does have a SURPRISING amount. Ah well, at least it’s not mayo.

  • Titianna

    I dont know. Mayo might be preferable to Margarine….but man, they could have at least used REAL butter…ew. Well I’ve tried PB and butter sandwitches as well as PB and balogna. I mean I like Azuki paste but with cheese?…ew

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    The Japanese inclination to put mayonnaise on all things edible is something I don’t quite agree with. From what I’ve read, the saltiness of the margarine is a nice accent to the sweetness of the azuki, haha.

  • 9no1

    D:

    Seriously, all that margarine… is it necessary?

    Just by looking at it, my double chin weeps ~__~

  • Onimusha Nosferatu

    the burger looks fine until you look under the cheese. i kinda wanna taste it b/c i had diff. types of daifuku and the actual bean paste changed the flavor. i’m bothered by the amount of margarine. i love the special taste label that gives you a clear warning.

  • Stacia

    I didn’t even read the post. I read the first paragraph and that was enough. I LOVE an…SO much…i love an ice cream, the pastries from Asakusa (well I had them there) and…the popsicles, the mochi…all of it. but that is SICK. sick and wrong. omg. Margarine…like, fake butter?

    Omg that…is…I going to barf..if i ever SEE that in person.

    Poor little azuki beans…poor poor….Japanese people who eat this.

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    Honestly, if I had the chance, I might actually try it, just for the sake of adventure. I might scrape off the margarine, though. In other pictures I’ve seen (check out the new links in the post), the あんバーガー doesn’t have quite so much margarine, but does have a SURPRISING amount. Ah well, at least it’s not mayo.

  • Stacia

    I might try it…after removing the margarine and cheese…cuz come on, azuki bean sandwhich would be exremely awesome…just not “anbaagaa”…and I may have tried it with mayo instead…I’m a sucker for kewpie.

  • Kurisutofa

    Hmm… this doesn’t surprise me, well except the cheese and excess amount of margarine. I’ve had azuki on toast with a little butter, but not with cheese. I’m kind of curious to find out… ^_^

  • Titianna

    I dont know. Mayo might be preferable to Margarine….but man, they could have at least used REAL butter…ew. Well I’ve tried PB and butter sandwitches as well as PB and balogna. I mean I like Azuki paste but with cheese?…ew

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    The Japanese inclination to put mayonnaise on all things edible is something I don’t quite agree with. From what I’ve read, the saltiness of the margarine is a nice accent to the sweetness of the azuki, haha.

  • 9no1

    D:

    Seriously, all that margarine… is it necessary?

    Just by looking at it, my double chin weeps ~__~

  • Onimusha Nosferatu

    the burger looks fine until you look under the cheese. i kinda wanna taste it b/c i had diff. types of daifuku and the actual bean paste changed the flavor. i’m bothered by the amount of margarine. i love the special taste label that gives you a clear warning.

  • Stacia

    I might try it…after removing the margarine and cheese…cuz come on, azuki bean sandwhich would be exremely awesome…just not “anbaagaa”…and I may have tried it with mayo instead…I’m a sucker for kewpie.

  • Kurisutofa

    Hmm… this doesn’t surprise me, well except the cheese and excess amount of margarine. I’ve had azuki on toast with a little butter, but not with cheese. I’m kind of curious to find out… ^_^

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    *gags*

    Ah, sorry. I’ll try anything (food-wise, and I mean it) once, but if confronted with the sandwich you described, it would take a LOT of effort for me to get it down.

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    *gags*

    Ah, sorry. I’ll try anything (food-wise, and I mean it) once, but if confronted with the sandwich you described, it would take a LOT of effort for me to get it down.

  • koichi

    I think someone couldn’t help a NOT use this amazing pun, so they had to make it.

  • koichi

    I think someone couldn’t help a NOT use this amazing pun, so they had to make it.

  • mt97man

    hey so u noticed too (about the pun). It feels like japanese people love to play with words (since there are so many possibility) and i love how they say burger lol

  • mt97man

    oh sorry didn’t get the ‘pun-derful’ word until now i guess not i gotta learn english some more this is not my native language though..

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    Oh man.. it’s part of the 99 cents menu!

  • mt97man

    hey so u noticed too (about the pun). It feels like japanese people love to play with words (since there are so many possibility) and i love how they say burger lol

  • mt97man

    oh sorry didn’t get the ‘pun-derful’ word until now i guess not i gotta learn english some more this is not my native language though..

  • http://www.tofugu.com Viet

    Oh man.. it’s part of the 99 cents menu!

  • Stacia

    The azuki and the kewpie? Oh come on, you know that is wonderful…lol just kidding. I really like Japanese mayo…but that WITH sweet azuki…I probably wouldn’t touch it either. Probably. Maybe separate it out…

    Speaking of trying anything, when I was in Japan we had to buy breakfast once, so I decided on good ol’ onigiri. My sensei told me which was which and pointed out a spicy one, so I got it. She was very suprised, but said “I can’t describe what it is in english, but you may not like it.” It was the BEST onigiri I’ve ever had…later I found what it was called in a book…and it was just salmon roe with a spicy paste. So I told her I found out and she said “Oh, yeah…you like the food Japanese people like. Are you sure you aren’t Japanese?” it was grande. I’ll try anything at least once…even natto.

  • Stacia

    The azuki and the kewpie? Oh come on, you know that is wonderful…lol just kidding. I really like Japanese mayo…but that WITH sweet azuki…I probably wouldn’t touch it either. Probably. Maybe separate it out…

    Speaking of trying anything, when I was in Japan we had to buy breakfast once, so I decided on good ol’ onigiri. My sensei told me which was which and pointed out a spicy one, so I got it. She was very suprised, but said “I can’t describe what it is in english, but you may not like it.” It was the BEST onigiri I’ve ever had…later I found what it was called in a book…and it was just salmon roe with a spicy paste. So I told her I found out and she said “Oh, yeah…you like the food Japanese people like. Are you sure you aren’t Japanese?” it was grande. I’ll try anything at least once…even natto.

  • Sexy Beam

    Heh…well, U’ve never been much of the burger-eating type, but that does seem a little bit weird. I think I’d still try it at least once, though. It can’t be *that* bad, right? Right?

    Ha ha…the only thing I can think of that would be weirder right now is a peanut butter and natto sandwich.

  • Sexy Beam

    Heh…well, U’ve never been much of the burger-eating type, but that does seem a little bit weird. I think I’d still try it at least once, though. It can’t be *that* bad, right? Right?

    Ha ha…the only thing I can think of that would be weirder right now is a peanut butter and natto sandwich.

  • Jonathan

    Cmon guys, its bad for the heart but it melts in ur mouth! :D

  • Jonathan

    Cmon guys, its bad for the heart but it melts in ur mouth! :D

  • Titianna

    Oh no.That inspired me to do something crazy. I really gotta cross the cultural flavor borders. Try Azuki paste with Vegimite. THAT’LL get you going in the morning! lol Just make sure you do it on toast so you get the crunchy texture with it too. yum yum! :P

  • Titianna

    Oh no.That inspired me to do something crazy. I really gotta cross the cultural flavor borders. Try Azuki paste with Vegimite. THAT’LL get you going in the morning! lol Just make sure you do it on toast so you get the crunchy texture with it too. yum yum! :P

  • toaster

    Ughhhhhhhhh. Is it like a normal-sized burger? That would make me sick. I can’t eat a third of one of those slightly-smaller-than-fist-size mochi without feeling like it’s too sweet. An entire burger?! ohgodno.

  • toaster

    Ughhhhhhhhh. Is it like a normal-sized burger? That would make me sick. I can’t eat a third of one of those slightly-smaller-than-fist-size mochi without feeling like it’s too sweet. An entire burger?! ohgodno.

  • http://tofugu.com Erin

    I assume it is pretty normal-sized. I love mochi, but it’s the cheese that gets me.

  • http://tofugu.com Erin

    I assume it is pretty normal-sized. I love mochi, but it’s the cheese that gets me.

  • stupidfresh

    Ugh, my Japanese friends liked this. I don’t eat cheese so i didn’t even try it. I spent the entire time we were at Wendy’s thinking it was the grossest thing I’d ever seen.

  • stupidfresh

    Ugh, my Japanese friends liked this. I don’t eat cheese so i didn’t even try it. I spent the entire time we were at Wendy’s thinking it was the grossest thing I’d ever seen.

  • http://rocmegamanx.deviantart.com Rock Martin

    Margarine? On a Burger?! Good God…

    And what the heck IS sweet azuki bean paste? And what’s mochi for that matter?

    I’m not sure if I’d want that burger…

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    Sweet azuki bean paste pretty much sums up what it is, hehe. As for the kind of mochi I’m talking about, also known as “rice cake”; you can find out more about it here. Mochitsuki is actually pretty fun, but it’s a lot of work!

  • http://rocmegamanx.deviantart.com Rock Martin

    Margarine? On a Burger?! Good God…

    And what the heck IS sweet azuki bean paste? And what’s mochi for that matter?

    I’m not sure if I’d want that burger…

  • http://www.tofugu.com Erin

    Sweet azuki bean paste pretty much sums up what it is, hehe. As for the kind of mochi I’m talking about, also known as “rice cake”; you can find out more about it here. Mochitsuki is actually pretty fun, but it’s a lot of work!

  • http://rizkypuji.livejournal.com miya

    ew.
    gross.

    (sorry i can not put any words here.. it describes what i felt after reading the article >_

  • http://rizkypuji.livejournal.com miya

    ew.
    gross.

    (sorry i can not put any words here.. it describes what i felt after reading the article >_

  • Ryohei Kitamura

    ?wasabi
    ?teriyaki

    well at least no Ronnie mcdonnie for me. i guess i better go to a sushi-ya and get the cheapest form of sushi: toro (__ __’)

  • Ryohei Kitamura

    ?wasabi
    ?teriyaki

    well at least no Ronnie mcdonnie for me. i guess i better go to a sushi-ya and get the cheapest form of sushi: toro (__ __’)

  • lala

    it looks… plastic…

  • lala

    it looks… plastic…

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