The Story
Mochi is rice dough, pounded or cooked until it turns smooth, stretchy and wonderfully chewy. Daifuku are mochi with a sweet filling inside, and they have been a Japanese sweet-shop staple for a very long time.
Tucking a whole strawberry inside is a much newer idea, only a few decades old, and it caught on fast. The tart berry, the earthy bean paste and the soft dough are a perfect match. A microwave makes the dough at home in about 3 minutes.
Ingredients
- 8 small strawberries, hulled and patted dry
- About 3/4 cup (200 g) smooth sweet red bean paste (koshian)
- 3/4 cup (100 g) glutinous rice flour, such as mochiko or shiratamako
- 1/4 cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup (160 ml) water
- Cornstarch or potato starch, for dusting
Steps
- Divide the bean paste into 8 portions of about 25 g. Flatten one in your palm, set a strawberry in the middle and press the paste up around it, leaving the leafy end showing. Repeat with the rest and set them aside.
- Whisk the rice flour, sugar and water in a microwave-safe bowl until smooth. Cover loosely with plastic wrap.
- Microwave on high for 1 minute, then stir well with a wet spatula. Microwave 1 minute more and stir again. Microwave a final 30 seconds. The dough should look glossy, a little see-through and very stretchy. These times are for a 1000-watt microwave, so add a few seconds if yours is weaker.
- Dust a clean counter generously with cornstarch. Scrape the hot dough onto it and dust the top too. Let it cool for a few minutes until you can handle it.
- With starchy hands, divide the dough into 8 pieces. Stretch one into a 3-inch (8 cm) circle.
- Set a covered strawberry in the middle, pointed end down. Bring the dough up around it and pinch the edges together at the top. Turn it over, seam side down, and brush off the extra starch.
- Repeat with the rest. Eat them within a few hours, at room temperature, while the mochi is at its softest.
FAQs
Can I use regular rice flour?
No. You need glutinous rice flour, sometimes called sweet rice flour, mochiko or shiratamako. Regular rice flour will not turn stretchy and chewy.
Can I keep mochi in the fridge?
It is best the same day. In the fridge the dough turns firm and the strawberry weeps. If you must, wrap each one in plastic and let it come back to room temperature before eating.
