rice crackers (sembei)

is said to have been invented when a poor priest dabbed some stale rice he received from a greedy rich man and toasted it to make it palatable.

The story goes that a poor priest begged a rich man at the wayside for some of the rice balls the rich traveler was eating. The rich man refused contemptuously, but after he had eaten his fill, he left some of the stale ones he had from the previous day to the beggar. The beggar carefully collected the stale cakes, and, in order to make them palatable, dabbed them with some soy sauce and toasted them on a small fire. The resulting crispness and savory taste so delighted him, that he set up a small business making rice crackers.

rice crackers (sembei), n.All

rice crackers (sembei)