Ingredients
(makes 12)
Glutinous rice : 150g
Water : 180ml
Potato Starch
Dengaku miso
Saikyo miso : 40g
Fermented glutinous rice : 20g (photo 1)
Sugar : 5g
Mirin (sweet cooking sake) : 1 teaspoon
Egg yolk : 1/2
NB: Fermented glutinous rice can be found at Asian groceries for around $5 a jar. You can also put it in miso soup, or add salt and use in stir-fries or yakiniku.
Chigo mochi are a kind of sweet made only by men for the Gion Festival. It is used as an offering and as a treat for the children taking part inthe festival procession. Eating them is said to help bring back your appetite in summer and is a guard against disease. Traditionally chigo mochi is spread with miso before grilling, but in this recipe I tried using saikyo miso instead.
Method
Mochi
- Drain glutinous rice, then steam in a rice cooker with the same amount of water you would use for regular rice.
- Pound the steamed rice in a mortar and pestle until it forms a smooth mass of mochi (photos 2 & 3).
- Put the mochi on a tray dusted with potato starch, and sprinkle more potato starch on top. Divide into four and roll each into a long sausage shape (photo 4).
Form
- To make dengaku miso: mix together the saikyo miso, fermented glutinous rice, sugar, and mirin in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for 20 seconds, stir, then microwave for another 20 seconds. Add the egg yolk and stir well (photo 5).
- Cut the mochi into sections and put on skewers. Spread some dengaku mochi on each, then grill (photo 6).
