Mochi
Mochi is made from glutinous rice flour — not ordinary rice flour, not starch. That single difference decides everything: only glutinous rice gives the chewy, elastic texture. The rest is a battle against stickiness, won with potato starch and wet hands.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Shaping the filling 20 min
- Cooking the dough 15 min
- Working the dough 8 min
- Shaping the balls 20 min
Step by step
0 / 6 doneShape and chill the filling
Divide the bean paste into 12 balls of 20 g and refrigerate them for 20 minutes. Cold, firm filling can be wrapped in sticky dough; soft filling smears at the first touch.
Ingredients: 250 g red bean paste · 80 g potato starch · 12 pcs strawberries
TipFor daifuku, wrap each strawberry in paste leaving the tip visible, and chill the lot.
Whisk the batter smooth
Whisk the glutinous rice flour with the sugar, salt and water until not a single lump remains. The consistency should be loose, like thick cream. Lumps will not disperse during cooking.
Ingredients: 200 g glutinous rice flour · 260 ml water · 80 g sugar · 1 pinch salt
Steam or microwave it
Cover the heatproof bowl with film or a small plate and steam for 15 minutes, stirring once halfway; if white patches remain, steam another 3–5 minutes. In a microwave: 3 bursts of 60 seconds, stirring with a wet spatula between, plus another 30 seconds if needed. The dough turns from white and opaque to translucent and glossy.
Ingredients: 200 g glutinous rice flour · 260 ml water · 80 g sugar · 1 pinch salt
TipTranslucency is the only indicator of doneness. White, opaque patches mean raw starch and a hard bite.
Translucent and trailing from the spatula — the dough is cooked.Work it with a wet spatula
Work the hot dough with a wet spatula for 5 minutes, folding and stretching it. This develops the structure and makes the mochi elastic rather than brittle. The dough is very hot — do not touch it with your hands.
Ingredients: 200 g glutinous rice flour · 260 ml water · 80 g sugar · 1 pinch salt
A wet spatula does not stick where a hand has no chance.Tip onto heavily dusted starch
Scatter a thick layer of potato starch on the counter and tip the dough onto it. Dust the top and your hands too. Do not skimp on starch — excess can always be brushed off, but stuck dough cannot be rescued.
Ingredients: 250 g red bean paste · 80 g potato starch · 12 pcs strawberries
Divide and shape the balls
Once the dough is cool enough to handle, divide it into 12 pieces (about 45 g each) and flatten each into an 8 cm disc. Set a ball of filling in the centre and gather the edges upward, pinching them closed underneath. Roll the finished ball in starch and set it seam side down.
Ingredients: 250 g red bean paste · 80 g potato starch · 12 pcs strawberries
TipWork fast while the dough is warm. Cooled, it firms up and stops stretching.
The seam pinched at the base and hidden underneath.
Before you start
Eat the same day
Mochi hardens in the fridge within hours. It is a same-day dessert; at room temperature it holds until evening.
Other fillings
Black sesame paste, chocolate ganache or a small scoop of ice cream (work in gloves and freeze the finished balls).
The right flour
Shiratamako gives the best texture, mochiko is easier to find. Ordinary rice flour will not work — its starch is different (high in amylose) and it will not give the chewy, stretchy texture.
