Mochi + Waffles = Moffles

28Feb09

Mochi, Japanese rice cakes can be toasted, microwaved, or boiled. During the past year or two, a new way to cook mochi has become very popular in Japan: grilling mochi on (or in???) a waffle iron!

Filed under: Grilling and Pan-Frying, Japanese Food, Rice, Snacks, Yakimono   |  7 Comments
Tags: Japanese Cooking, Mochi

Mochi!

27Feb09

Mochi (餅), Japanese rice cake, is made by pounding hot, steamed mochigome (glutinous rice) into paste and molded into round or cut into square cakes. Glutinous rice, sometimes called sweet rice, is used in rice dishes where more stickiness is called for. Traditionally, the cooked rice is pounded with a wooden mallet (kine) in a mortar (usu). Two people alternate the work, one pounding and the other turning and wetting the mochi, keeping a steady rhythm lest they accidentally injure one another with the heavy kine. Most mochi these days is machine made.

Filed under: Japanese Food, Rice, Simmering   |  5 Comments
Tags: Mochi

Ozoni: New Year’s Day Soup

02Jan09

In Japan, it’s traditional to eat a soup with rice cakes on New Year’s Day. I made a very simple version, but after doing some on-line research, it’s apparent that there are many delicious variations that I’d like to try.

Filed under: Japanese Food, Soups, Suimono   |  7 Comments
Tags: Japanese Cooking, Japanese Recipes, kamaboko, Mochi, Ozoni