What is the Japanese shaved ice dessert with flavored syrup?

The Japanese shaved ice dessert flavored with syrup is kakigōri. It is made by shaving a block of ice into delicate, fluffy flakes and covering them with fruit, tea, or other flavored syrups; condensed or evaporated milk is also common.

Kakigōri has roots in Japan’s Heian period, when ice was difficult to obtain and was reserved largely for aristocrats. Sei Shōnagon’s Pillow Book describes shaved ice served with sweet flavoring at the imperial court. The dessert became widely available in the 19th century as ice production and distribution improved, and a shop in Yokohama is believed to have opened in 1869.

Kakigōri is not the same as a typical snow cone. Its fine shavings have a soft, snow-like texture that absorbs syrup throughout the mound, whereas crushed-ice desserts usually have coarser pieces. Popular variations include matcha-and-red-bean ujikintoki and Kagoshima’s shirokuma, which features condensed milk, fruit, beans, and colorful toppings.