Mochi

Ingredients

Rice

• 500 gmochigome, Japanese glutinous rice
• water, for soaking

For shaping

• katakuriko, potato starch, or cornflour, for dusting

To serve, savoury

• soy sauce
• nori sheets
• grated daikon

To serve, sweet

• kinako, roasted soybean flour
• sugar
• anko, red bean paste

Equipment

• a steamer
• a heavy mortar and pestle, usu and kine, or a stand mixer

Directions

1. Cut it into small pieces, chew thoroughly, and do not serve it to anyone who has difficulty swallowing. Japanese authorities issue a warning about this every December, and it is not a superstition.
2. Wash the mochigome until the water runs clear, then soak it overnight in plenty of cold water. It must be mochigome, short-grain glutinous rice, and not ordinary Japanese rice. Drain the rice thoroughly and steam it, not boil it, for 40 minutes over a rolling boil. Steam it. Boiled glutinous rice takes on far too much water and the mochi is slack and will not hold.
3. Tip the hot rice into a heavy mortar, or into a stand mixer with a paddle. Now the pounding, and it must be done while the rice is very hot. Work fast and keep it hot. Mochi that cools mid-pounding stops coming together and no amount of further work brings it back.
4. Pound with the pestle while a second person turns and wets the mass between blows, which is why it is traditionally a two-person job. Dip the pestle in water between strokes so it does not stick, and have the helper work with wet hands.
5. Pound for 15 to 20 minutes, until every grain has disappeared and you have a smooth, glossy, elastic mass. In a stand mixer, run the paddle on medium for 8 to 10 minutes to reach the same point.
6. Dust a tray generously with potato starch and tip the mochi onto it. Use plenty of starch and keep your hands dusted, because it sticks to absolutely everything. Pull off pieces with wet or dusted hands and roll them into balls, or press the whole mass flat and cut it into squares once cool.
7. Work quickly while it is still warm, because it stiffens considerably as it cools. Fresh mochi is eaten soft on the day, wrapped around red bean paste or rolled in kinako and sugar.

Technique

• Mochitsuki, the communal pounding, is a New Year event in Japanese neighbourhoods and schools.
• Fresh mochi hardens within a day and is then grilled rather than eaten soft.
• Shiratamako or mochiko flour makes a quick microwave version, which is a different and much easier thing.

Substitutions

• Mochiko or shiratamako flour with water, steamed or microwaved, for a fast version.
• Cornflour in place of katakuriko for dusting.

Variations

• Daifuku, wrapped around red bean paste.
• Kirimochi, dried in blocks for grilling.
• Ozoni, in New Year soup.

History

A chewy cake made from glutinous rice that has been steamed and then pounded into a smooth, sticky paste, documented across Japan for well over a thousand years, with the traditional pounding process, called mochitsuki, historically performed as a significant communal activity, particularly around the New Year, when families and communities would gather to pound rice together using large wooden mallets and a stone mortar. Its preparation demands considerable physical effort and coordinated teamwork between the person pounding and another who turns and moistens the rice between strikes, reflecting mochi-making’s role as both a practical food preparation and an important seasonal social ritual within Japanese culture. Mochi remains deeply tied to Japanese New Year celebrations and broader seasonal tradition.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mochi?

Mochi is a dessert from Japan: chewy pounded glutinous rice cakes, grilled or served in New Year soup. A chewy cake made from glutinous rice that has been steamed and then pounded into a smooth, sticky paste, documented across Japan for well over a thousand years, with the traditional pounding process, called mochitsuki, historically performed as a significant communal activity, particularly around the New Year, when families and communities would gather to pound rice together using large wooden mallets and a stone mortar. Its preparation demands considerable physical effort and coordinated teamwork between the person pounding and another who turns and moistens the rice between strikes, reflecting mochi-making’s role as both a practical food preparation and an important seasonal social ritual within Japanese culture. Mochi remains deeply tied to Japanese New Year celebrations and broader seasonal tradition.

How long does Mochi take to make?

Mochi takes 30 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 40 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 20 pieces. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Mochi?

Yes, within limits. Mochiko or shiratamako flour with water, steamed or microwaved, for a fast version. Cornflour in place of katakuriko for dusting.

What is the most important thing to get right in Mochi?

Cut it into small pieces, chew thoroughly, and do not serve it to anyone who has difficulty swallowing. Japanese authorities issue a warning about this every December, and it is not a superstition.