The culture of Alana Satsuki Chandler’s childhood home in Chicago was a blend of two heritages — she learned to read Hebrew from the Tanakh at synagogue and speak Japanese at Saturday school. “You have these [two] identities, but you don't think of them as separate, because even if they are, they just integrate into the rhythm of your life,” they say.
Their father’s side of the family comes from Eastern Europe. Alana’s great-grandparents fled pogroms in Russia while their grandfather escaped the Warsaw Ghetto and survived the Holocaust by pretending to be Christian. Meanwhile, their mother’s Japanese relatives were rice merchants and tangerine farmers.
On Jewish holidays, their mother fused together the two traditions in the kitchen. She added vegetarian gyoza to matzah ball soup and made hybrid okonomi-latkes, a Jewish riff on savory Japanese pancakes traditionally prepared with cabbage and topped with mayo and a savory sauce. “My mom was my role model in creating delicious fusion food,” Alana says. They document their own fusion recipes on Instagram.
During college, Alana maintained their connection to Japanese culture through calls with their grandfather, music, and food like this recipe, which they created in their bustling dorm kitchen. It’s also the recipe they contributed to “Tlaim: The Patchwork Cookbook,” a project they started, which highlights the ethnic diversity of the Jewish community. Alana dedicates the doughnut recipe to their Japanese grandfather Kazuho Chikamatsu whose love of all things sweet reflects his character.
Cooking notes: This recipe calls for several Japanese ingredients, which are best sourced at a Japanese market or online. Mochiko is a sweet rice flour that gives mochi its signature chew, while kinako sugar, which is made with roasted soybean flour, lends a toasty note. The doughnuts are finished with kuromitsu (black honey) syrup. Made with black sugar from Okinawa, it offers a malty sweetness with a hint of caramel. The syrup can be prepared up to a week ahead and kept in the fridge. Dark brown sugar mixed with a bit of molasses can be used as a substitute, though the flavor won’t be quite the same
This recipe comes from “Tlaim: The Patchwork Cookbook,” a grassroots project dedicated to celebrating the ethnic and racial diversity of the Jewish community. With over 70 delicious recipes and stories, Tlaim centers underrepresented Jewish identities such as Jews of color. Follow Tlaim on Instagram and sign up to be notified of the release of the cookbook, which is made in collaboration with non-profit Be’chol Lashon. Explore more recipes from Tlaim here.
