Let’s find out how to make mochi, the Japanese rice-based dessert

Their texture often causes unpleasant incidents, but it's impossible to resist Mochi: here's the recipe for the Japanese dessert!

Mochi is a Japanese sweet that in the land of the rising sun is consumed throughout the year (especially on New Year's Eve). It consists of a ball of rice which then, depending on the types of mochi, may or may not be stuffed .

The preparation of this dessert, like many other Japanese recipes, involves a ritual : the cooked glutinous rice is pounded by hand with a special hammer while a second person moistens it. Coordination and strength are the keywords of this operation which, in modern times, is performed by machine.

Mochi: basic recipe

The basic recipe for homemade mochi does not involve the long steps indicated above but uses glutinous rice flour . Not easy to find on the market, to buy it you can refer to ethnic shops or online shops.

1. Put the glutinous rice flour and sugar in a small pan. Add the water , mixing with a wooden spoon to obtain a sort of batter.
2. Transfer it to the heat and cook the dough until you notice it starts to thicken, forming a rather sticky ball. It will take no less than 15 minutes .
3. Sprinkle the work surface and your hands with the starch and knead the rice dough briefly to make it homogeneous. The basic mochi dough is ready to be used to prepare one of the following variations.

To get a colorful mochi, all you have to do is add a dab of food coloring to your dough. We advise you to use the gel ones.

5 types of mochi

– Daifuku . It is the most popular mochi. Once the base dough has been prepared, roll it out to form 3 mm thick discs which will be filled with azuki ( anko ) or white ( shiroan ) bean jam . The westernized version includes hazelnut cream instead of bean jam.

– Ichigo Daifuku . Similar to the previous one, except that a strawberry is added inside.

– Sakuramochi. Also filled with red bean jam, it is then wrapped in a cherry leaf which gives the dessert a particular aroma.

– Kusamoki . The particular green color of the dessert is obtained by adding mugwort leaves to the dough. Widely used in Japan, they are known for their antioxidant power.

– Yyukimi daifuku . The mochi dough contains a scoop of ice cream . It is then served cold and is highly appreciated due to its particular combination of textures.

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