[RECIPE] Ohagi (Botamochi)

Ohagi (Botamochi) is made with half-pounded glutinous rice and coated with sweet red bean paste. It's a tradition to eat during Ohigan (Buddhist holidays) in both spring and fall. This recipe offers an easy process using Kiri-mochi (packaged cut rice cake) added to regular white rice.

Recipe:

Serving: 10-12 pieces

Time: 90 minutes 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups Rice

• 2 pcs Kiri-mochi

• 400 ml Water 

Coating Ingredients

• 1 cup Red bean paste (Tanakayoshihide Shoten)

• 1/2 cup Kinako soybean powder (Nakamura Soybean Flour)

• 2 tbsp Sugar (Morika Beet Sugar) 

Instructions:

1. Wash the rice and place it in the rice cooker. Add enough water to make 2 cups of rice.

2. Add the Kiri-mochi to the rice cooker pot. And cook the rice as you would regular white rice.

3. In a bowl, mix the Kinako soybean powder and sugar.

4. Form 5-6 golf ball-sized red bean paste balls, and 5-6 ping-pong ball-sized paste balls. Set them aside.

5. Once the rice is cooked, transfer it to a bowl. Mash the rice grains using a wooden pestle or spatula. You don't need to mash all the grains to enjoy the texture of some of them in the Ohagi.

6. Divide the rice-mochi dough into 5-6 golf ball-sized mochi balls and the rest into 5-6 ping-pong ball-sized mochi balls.

7. Wet your hands to prevent sticking.

8. Flatten a golf ball-sized mochi on your palm and place a ping-pong ball-sized red bean paste in the center. Fold the mochi over the red bean paste and coat it in Kinako soybean powder.

9. Flatten a golf ball-sized red bean paste on your palm, place a ping-pong ball-sized mochi on top, and cover the mochi with the red bean paste.

RECIPE by Azusa