The four tea ceremony documents, Matsuyakaiki, Tennoujiyakaiki, Kamiya Soutan Nikki and Imai Soukyu Chanoyu Nikki Nukigaki, were examined to investigate the early-stage of kaiseki from the end of the medieval period to the beginning of the modern period.
Twenty-five percent of kashi in kaiseki consisted of confectionery (rice cake, steamed bun, candy, sweetened and jellied bean paste, etc.) and 75% consisted of other food, which means that confectionery was still at an early stage of development. Among the other food were nuts, seeds and fruits, as well as various vegetables, potatoes and other starch, fungi, algae, etc.
The kinds of food and recipes of that age suggest that the concept of kashi was not clear; there was not a definite distinction between kashi and sai.
The recipes used for kashi changed later; for example, nishime continued to be used as a recipe for kashi, while frying fell out of fashion.