Reasons why Muslims have to get Hato Sable when traveling to Kamakura and Tokyo.

A snack Japanese had never tried.

Have you ever thought of cooking a snack that you have never tried or seen? The founder of Toshimaya (豊島屋), one of the most famous souvenir companies in Kamakura, Japan, has done it successfully. As it was made back in the 19th century, the recipe is very simple and is made without food additives, which is the reason why it can be Halal or Muslim-friendly!

The name of the product is Hato Sable (鳩サブレー), a pigeon shape biscuit. Let’s find out the reasons why it became so popular, and why Muslims should buy this product.

More stories about Hato Sable.

In 1897, in the era of Meiji, a foreigner has visited a shop and gave a tasty snack to the founder of the shop. Of course, he had never seen the snack and could not tell what it was. He was impressed with the taste of this snack, which has motivated him to make one by himself.

After so many trials, he found the key to the taste is “butter”. Back then, butter was not common among Japanese, so it made him visit the area where foreigners lived in Yokohama. With their help, he managed to get butter, which was very precious at that moment, and finally made the recipe of the sable.

However, his sable was not that popular among children, because they had never tried western snack, especially the one which comes with butter. The founder was still sure that such western snacks would be popular, so he tried to pursue the taste of the sable. He also made the shape of the sable “pigeon”, because children liked pigeons at the temple in Kamakura, which the founder worshipped.

Time went by, and his sable was recommended as a healthy food for children by prestigious doctors. This is how sable in Kamakura gained popularity eventually, and even nowadays, it is a snack that represents Kamakura.

So, is Hato Sable halal?

Let’s see their ingredients first.

It is made from very simple, Halal ingredients, which is a great news for Muslims! As they do not have any items with animal-derived product, it is possible to say that the product is free from contamination, too.

Where can we get Hato Sable?

They are available in Kamakura. There are some limited editions in the main stores, however, because the product is very famous, so that their sable can be bought at many department stores in Kanto region, especially in Tokyo.

The product is also available at Haneda International Airport, so you do not have to worry about carrying them for a long time, if you are flying off from this airport.

Details of the main store

Please be reminded that the product we have introduced is not made as Halal or Muslim-friendly, so there is a small risk of contamination, which we cannot be responsible of.  We are here to help with you translating the label and not judging if the product is Halal or not, consume at your own risk.