How To Make Warabi Mochi At Home
Warabi mochi is a Japanese confection made of warabi or bracken starch. It is a type of fern, and the starch comes from the rhizomes or the underground stem of the plant.
Warabi mochi is chewy but also has a jelly-like texture at the same time. It is covered in a nutty soybean powder, what is known as Kinako, and served with Kuromitsu, brown sugar syrup. It’s usually served chilled, meaning that it’s the perfect dessert to enjoy during the hot summer months, or when you want to cool off.
It is a traditional confection that has been enjoyed since the 8th century in Japan. Originally, warabi mochi was a sweet that only those with high status could enjoy, because it was an expensive dessert.
Strictly speaking, warabi mochi is not really mochi, because it is not made from rice. However, Warabi, bracken has a sticky and chewy texture like mochi, so that’s why Japanese people refer to it as mochi.
While warabi mochi can usually be found year-round in grocery stores, Japanese confection shops usually only sell them during the summer. It can also easily be made at home too. Just mix the three ingredients of warabi starch, sugar, and water together, and cook them in a pot until they form a sticky mixture.
Warabi starch is not an ingredient that is common overseas, so you might want to know more about it. There are two kinds of Warabi Starch that you can find.
1. 100% Warabi starch
2. Warabi starch mixed with potato starch (contains less than 5% of warabi starch)
100% Warabi starch is very sticky and has a brown or black dark color. The latter still has the aroma of Warabi, and the consistency of the starch is more firm.
However, 100% warabi starch is quite expensive and hard to get, even in Japan. For this reason, we are using the second option or the mixed warabi and potato starch mixture for our warabi mochi recipe. If you cannot find either of these starches in your local supermarket, you can also use Kudzu starch which can easily be purchased from the Japanese Taste website.
Dust the warabi mochi in kinako powder, and then drizzle kuromitsu sugar syrup on top for a sweet and refreshing Japanese dessert. Enjoy the hot season with Warabi Mochi!
Overview
Prep time: 20 mins
Cook time: 15 mins
Total time: 35 mins
Total servings: 4
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
- 50g Warabi Mochiko (bracken starch)
- 40g Sugar
- 260ml Water
- 3-4 Tbsp Kinako Powder
- 3-4 Tbsp Kuromitsu (Brown sugar syrup)
Expert's Tip
Kinako is tasty, gluten-free, and contains more than 13 grams of edible fiber per 100 grams. Soybeans, which are used to make kinako, are known as the “meat of the field” in Japan. This Kanazawa Daichi Kinako is made from 100% Japanese organic roasted soybeans. It is perfect for making warabi mochi, but you can also use it in other Japanese sweets or even add it to smoothies. It is healthy and delicious, so why not give it a try?
Instructions
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1) Gathering the Ingredients
Gather all the ingredients together.
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2) Making the Warabi Mochi Mixture
Add Warabi Mochiko, sugar, and water into a saucepan then mix well with a whisk until it becomes smooth.
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3) Heating the Warabi Mochi Mixture
Heat the mixture over low-medium heat.
Stir continuously with a wooden spatula. Once the mixture becomes thicker, turn down the heat to low and mix continuously for another 4-5 minutes. You know the mixture is ready when it becomes shiny and firm.
Tip: A wooden spatula is recommended as you need to stir the mixture thoroughly.
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4) Transfering the Warabi Mochi into a Container
Sprinkle Kinako powder onto a container to avoid the mochi mixture from sticking to the tray.
Remove the mochi from the heat and transfer it to the tray sprinkled with kinako powder.
Sprinkle more Kinako onto the surface of the mochi and leave it for 5-10 minutes to cool down.
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5) Cutting into Pieces and Dusting with More Kinako Powder
Once the warabi mochi is cool enough to touch, flatten its surface with your fingers.
Using a bench scraper, cut the warabi mochi into bite-sized, square pieces. Dust them in kinako powder, making sure to cover all surfaces of the mochi, to prevent them from sticking to each other.
Chill the warabi mochi in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour before consuming.
Serve it with Kuromitsu syrup. Enjoy!
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6) Tips for Storing Warabi Mochi
When making warabi mochi at home, you can keep it in a cool, dark place for 1-2 days. For optimal texture, it is recommended to refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour before eating. It is better not to leave it in the refrigerator for too long because the texture will become harder.
Tip: We also have a recipe for Matcha Warabi Mochi on our blog too. Be sure to check it out!
About the author
Ayako Kidokoro
Ayako is a recipe writer based in Frankfurt, Germany. Though she is originally from Japan, she has lived across five countries both in America and Europe. She loves writing dessert-related recipes and sharing them with Japanese Taste readers, but she also loves educating people about Japanese tradition, culture, and language. She loves exploring and making new recipes from scratch, but other than food, she also loves doing yoga to help her stay in shape and relax.
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