|
Mochi is a food prepared from rice and used as an ingredient in several
Japanese recipes. It is made by preparing steamed glutinous rice; pounding
it in a mortar; and forming it into various shapes (Usually a circle or
square).
Most Japanese people eat mochi on the Japanese New Year and they love
it. Mochi is very sticky, so be careful to keep it from getting stuck in
your throat.
Popular dishes with Mochi include:
- Zoni - a soup containing rice cakes. Zoni is also eaten on New
Year's Day. In addition to mochi, zoni contains vegetables like honeywort,
carrot, and red and white colored boiled fish sausage.
- Yaki-mochi - a grilled rice cake. After the rice cake is
grilled, put soy sauce and wrap a toasted laver (nori) around the cake.
- Shiruko - a sweet adzuki (red-bean) soup with pieces of rice
cake. In winter, Japanese people often eat it to warm themselves.
- Daifuku - a soft rice cake stuffed with sweetened bean jam.
- Mochi ice cream - small balls of ice cream wrapped inside a
mochi covering. This is very popular in California.
|
