Dango

Dango (団子^?) is a Japanese dumpling made from mochiko (rice flour), related to mochi. It is often served with green tea.  

Dango is eaten year-round, but the different varieties are traditionally eaten in given seasons.

Three to four dango are often served on a skewer.
 
There are many different varieties of dango which are usually named after the various seasonings served on or with it. [1]

• Chadango: Green-tea flavored Dango.^[1]
• Bocchan dango: Dango that has three colors. One is colored by red beans, the second by eggs, and the third by green tea.
• Hanami dango: Also has three colors, Hanami dango is traditionally made during Sakura-viewing season. Hence the name Hanami (Hanami means "flower viewing"; hana meaning "flower", and mi meaning "to see").
• Kibi dango: Dango made with millet flour.
• Kushi dango: Dango held by a skewer
• Mitarashi: Covered with a syrup made from shouyu (soy sauce), sugar and starch.

More dango types

A common Japanese proverb “Hana yori dango” (花より団子^?, literally, “dumplings rather than flowers”) refers to a preference for practical things rather than aesthetics.

Dango is used internationally amongst Go players as a derogatory term for an inefficient, dumpling-like cluster of stones in a Go game. It is also the name of a go variant invented in 1991.

A hairstyle consisting of dango-like buns on either side of the head is sometimes known as odango.