It’s means ‘stupid’, and is not a good work and could actually offend people!
So then, why in the world is there a snack named ‘baka-uke’?!
The snack, Baka-uke, hails from Niigata prefecture, which is north of Tokyo and faces the Sea of Japan.
The province is well-known for its excellent rice, as well as products derived from rice, such as sake and rice crackers.
Doesn’t knowing that make baka-uke sound so promising?
The truth is: it’s really delicious!
In Niigata dialect, baka means ‘very’ or ‘extremely’.
Meanwhile, uke means ‘well received’.
The manufacturers must have had high hopes for their product.
Given its excellent crispy texture and taste, bakauke soon became a national hit after sales began in 1990, and was indeed very well received all across Japan.
The standard flavours are the ‘soy sauce and seaweed’, ‘cheese’ and ‘fried sesame’.
(There are regional and seasonal variants available too!)
My recommendation is the fried sesame flavour, simply because I love sesame and sesame seeds plus rice crackers are a rare combination.
Find our more for yourself at the snack corner of a local supermarket!
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