With the spread of Japanese chocolate around the world, one luxury chocolate option has entered the world stage and is taking it by storm. This treat is fine, smooth and melts in your mouth, and its name is nama chocolate! Let’s learn all about this luxurious chocolate treat from its history to how to make a simple version for yourself!
What is Nama Chocolate?
A good nama chocolate is a truly luxurious experience! That's why it makes such a great gift, especially for Valentine's Day! Image via Instagram (@toyamadaiwa)
Nama chocolate, or nama choco, is a deliciously smooth, ganache-like chocolate treat that is often dusted with cocoa powder. This treat is famous for its rich (yet gentle) flavor and its texture which just melts in the mouth. Actually, it’s so ‘melty’ that it’ll quickly start to melt in you hand (which is why you shouldn’t hold more than one piece at a time).
The richness and the texture is achieved by the relatively simple recipe which includes fresh cream or whipping cream and butter. In fact, those are two of the three (technically four) ingredients that typically go into this treat.
That’s right—this treat can usually be made with just high-quality chocolate, whipping cream (also known as fresh cream in Japan) and butter, with the final product being dusted with cocoa powder. This is part of the reason ROYCE’ stands out for their nama chocolate, since they’re based in Hokkaido, an area famous for its dairy!
Why is it called Nama Chocolate?
Although it's similar to a ganache, nama chocolate actually firms up a bit more than a traditional ganache does. Image via Instagram (@chouchou_yokohama_mama)
In fact, nama means raw or fresh. And both whipping cream and whipped cream are called nama kuriimu. So the name comes from the use of whipping cream, right? Wrong! It actually comes from the soft, moist, fresh feeling that it has!
Fun Fact: This treat is very similar to the Swiss Pave de Geneva, with both being a melt-in-your-mouth ganache-ish treat.
Origin of Nama Chocolate
The original nama chocolate creator is still around and still making plenty of delicious styles of their creation, like this white chocolate strawberry version! Image via Instagram (@saika.w)
While ROYCE’ is now the representative for nama chocolate around the world, this smooth sweet treat is said to come from a specialty shop from Kanagawa called Sils Maria. The owner chef of this sweets shop, Masakazu Kobayashi, created it in 1988.
In our research, we found two different reasons for the creation of fresh chocolate. One is that it’s an homage to Pave de Geneva since Kobayashi was a huge fan of Swiss chocolate. The other reason is that
In fact, nama chocolate was invented seven years before ROYCE’ started producing it in 1995. Speaking of ROYCE’, how did they become so strongly tied to nama chocolate internationally?
Honestly, how can ROYCE' not dominate the fresh chocolate game with flavors like mango and grapefruit? Image via Instagram (@royce_jp)
While we can’t give a concrete answer, we think it might just be a combination of their strong distribution and the fact that they beat everyone else to the punch internationally. That being said, they earned their fame with their amazing quality and variety of flavors, especially with the high-quality Hokkaido dairy in their chocolate!
Ingredients & Variations
Tons of brands have created unique flavors that give this treat tons of variety. This fresh chocolate by Tsujiri incorporates their famous Uji matcha powder! Image via Instagram (@tsujiri_japan)
The funny thing about this luxurious treat is that, like we mentioned earlier, the most basic version of nama chocolate can be made with three (four) simple ingredients. Those ingredients are high-quality chocolate, heavy cream and butter, with the final product being topped with cocoa powder.
However, chocolate shops and hobby chocolatiers add tons of variety with various flavors, including ones with alcohol. Many shops will include standard versions like white chocolate and bitter chocolate, they also branch out into flavors like matcha, cherry, pink grapefruit, coffee, white chocolate strawberry and more.
The alcohol flavors also have a decently large variety as well. ROYCE’s most famous is their champagne flavor. Meanwhile, brands like Sils Maria and Maison Cacao feature flavors that include Japanese sake, whiskey and sparkling wine!
How to Make Nama Chocolate for Yourself
Time to enjoy this treat at home! Image via Instagram (@synergy73)
A basic nama chocolate is actually really easy to make. This recipe comes from the Lotte official website (but we subbed out Lotte’s Ghana chocolate bar for Meiji’s chocolate bar). You’ll just need 3 bars of Meiji milk chocolate or Meiji black chocolate finely chopped, 15 grams of unsalted butter, and 80 ml of whipping cream (70 ml for the dark chocolate).
For the milk chocolate version, you can think of having powdered sugar on hand. For the dark chocolate version, consider having 1½ teaspoons of brandy or another type of whiskey on hand.
Now onto the how-to:
- (Chop the chocolate first and put it into a good-sized bowl.) Put the whipping cream in a pot and put it over (low or medium) heat. Once it boils, turn off the heat and pour it into the chocolate. Once the mixture bubbles, stir slowly until it is fully combined. (If the chocolate doesn’t melt completely, you can heat it by putting it over hot water.)
- Add butter and stir until the butter fully melts into the mixture. If you’re making the black chocolate version, you can add the brandy here.
- Pour it into a parchment-lined pan and flatten it out. Place into a refrigerator and wait for at least an hour for it to firm up. (The time it takes will depend on the temperature of your fridge.)
- Once it’s hardened, take it out and cut it into squares.
- Top with cocoa powder and/or powdered sugar and enjoy!
Use a longer, shorter pan for the traditional version or a taller pan for larger cubes like this! Image via Instagram (@happy_gourmet0320)
Bonus Recipe: You can also make a marble nama chocolate by doing the same thing but with two bars of milk chocolate and white chocolate each and mixing them separately with 50 ml of cream each. Pour in the milk chocolate mixture, keeping a tablespoon of the mix for later, and let it harden a bit. Make the white chocolate mix and pour it over the milk chocolate one. Drizzling the remaining milk chocolate mix, refrigerate until it hardens and enjoy!
Where to Buy Nama Chocolate
If you don’t have the time or energy to make it yourself, Japan has plenty of chocolate shops and brands that will give you a luxurious experience. When looking for a Japanese nama chocolate brand, our recommendation is one of the big three: ROYCE’, Sils Maria and Maison Cacao. However, there are tons of other brands and chocolatiers out there! So where can you get these brands?
Some Japanese chocolate brands, like Bourbon, also make more affordable boxes of nama chocolate during the winter that are available at convenience stores! Image via Instagram (@qoo2175)
Nama Chocolate Online Stores
While Sils Maria and Maison Cacao don’t ship internationally, ROYCE’ does. That makes their online shop a great option to get nama chocolate. If you want a bit more instant gratification, you might be able to visit a ROYCE’ boutique in your local area! However, you may not be able to find some of the Japan-exclusive flavors.
Asian Supermarket
Nama chocolate is a very popular Japanese treat that plenty of people want to get their hands on, so some Asian supermarkets may have a small selection of this treat.
ROYCE’ Boutiques
Did you know that ROYCE’ has physical stores here in Japan as well as in countries like the US, China, Singapore, Thailand and more? So if you have one near you, it is an option! However, they only really have them in the major cities of each country.
ROYCE' boutiques also have some of their limited-edition flavors, although there are many that are limited to Japan! Image via Instagram (@royce_jp)
MiauMall (From Fall to Spring)
Yup, we carry nama chocolate products! However, we’re still working on a way to send you this delicate treat during the warmer months without it being melted. That’s why we only carry it from fall to spring—after it stops being hot and before it starts being hot. (Plus, we run plenty of sales, so you can enjoy this treat at a discount!)
Enjoying Nama Chocolate Longer
One treat similar to fresh chocolate is Melty Kiss, a treat filled with a thin chocolate coating around a nama-like chocolate center. This treat is sold in convenience stores, but only from fall to spring due to its delicateness! Image via Instagram (@sweets_navigator_akira)
Like we mentioned, nama chocolate is a delicate treat, so we have some tips on how to take care of it so you can enjoy this tasty treat for as long as possible. Like, we mentioned, this treat is super heat-sensitive, even starting to melt when it’s in your hands.
That’s why all of the chocolate brands recommend keeping it refrigerated (or at least in a cold place under 10°C or 50°F). That’s also why you need to refrigerate it as soon as possible once it’s delivered. When it’s stored this way, you can enjoy this chocolate treat for about a month.
Second, you can actually freeze nama chocolate. However, freezing it can actually change the mouthfeel creating an ice cream-like feel according to ROYCE’. Last, you can totally share this treat with your kids as long as its’s a non-alcoholic version.
And if you're watching for your caffeine intake, you may want to avoid this coffee flavor by Maison Cacao! Image via Instagram (@mkstudio_32)
With its luxurious taste, luscious texture and variety of amazing flavors, nama chocolate is a must-try treat. Whether you make it at home or buy it from the chocolate professionals, you (or any potential giftees) won’t regret trying this delicious, smooth treat!
And while we don't have nama chocolate for you in summer, we have tons of other Japanese chocolate treats and Japanese sweets that we think you'll love!
