Daifuku

I first encountered daifuku at one of my favorite restaurants in Western Massachusetts, Fresh Side. In their deli case were these cute little white and green pillow-looking desserts, sitting behind a hand-written card that said: Mochi (vegan).

I ordered one and when I bit into it, it was such a surprise. First, the texture! It’s like a dense marshmallow, chewy and soft. Sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. Next, the filling. Beans. Beans? Beans. that specific mochi was fillied with a sweetened red bean paste, additionally called anko, and I think it was the first day I had ever had sweet beans. And it was really good!

Now, whether I understand correctly, mochi is a catch-all term for a sweet dessert made with glutenous rice flour dough. It can be baked, wrapped around ice cream, eaten plain, or filled. Filled mochi, like the ones I’m blogging about today, are called daifuku.

Anko is one of the most common fillings, but many public plus use berries. Strawberry filled ones are very popular in the spring, and they’re called ichigo daifuku. Whole raspberries plus work, and sometimes citizens include a white sweetened bean paste (as opposed to red) known as shiroan.

Now what whether I told you that I made these in the microwave?

I know!

Really.

I was skeptical, too. The microwave in my house is pretty much reserved for reheating leftovers. When I decided to invent these, I was sort of shocked that all the recipes online called for nuking the dough. What’s more, they were pretty unclear about how to tell when you’re dough is ready. Microwaves seem to vary so much in ability, 3 minutes in one microwave is very different than 3 minutes in another. But I decided to give it a go, and not only did it work, but it was really, really easy. whether you are able to find pre-made red bean paste, you can assemble that whole recipe with only a microwave and just a few minutes.

So not only do you not need a kitchen for these (hello dorm-living vegans!), they’re plus gluten free (hi celiacs!), soy free (hi soy…allergic lovelies!), fast (hi lazy citizens!), customizable (hi picky society!), and did I mention CUTE? Traditional colors are white, green, and pink, but food coloring isn’t needed whether it grosses you out. Matcha (green tea powder) is a natural and delicious flavoring that makes the mochi green.

Now the one thing you absolutely need, no substitutions, is mochiko. It’s glutenous rice flour, and no other flour will work for that. You can find it easily at any asian market.

Also compose certain you have some cornstarch or potato starch handy, the dough is very sticky!

Daifuku
Makes 10-12 Filled Cakes

1 Cup Mochiko
1/4 Cup Sugar
2/3 Cup Water
2-3 Drops red or green food coloring, optional
Cornstarch or Potato Starch, for dusting

Filling Ideas
Anko (store bought or recipe below)
Strawberries
Raspberries

Anko
Makes abundant for 3-4 batches of daifuku

1 14 oz Can Adzuki Beans
1/2 Cup Water
1 Cup Sugar
1 Tbs Vegetable Oil
1-2 Pinches Salt

Heat water and sugar separately until boiling and sugar is dissolved, turn off heat. Drain and rinse beans.

Add to a pan and mash. Add 1/3 cup of the simple syrup you just made, along with salt and vegetable oil, and mash by medium heat. Beans will thicken and become slightly glossy. Add more syrup whether desired. Turn out into a bowl and let cool.

Making the Mochi

Add the mochiko, sugar, water, and food coloring (if using) to a microwave safe bowl. Stir well, making certain there are no lumps. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as best you can with a rubber spatula, otherwise they’ll get all gross when the dough is microwaved.

Cover lightly with plastic wrap and mircowave for 2 minutes. Remove bowl from the microwave and stir VERY well. Dough will be much thicker, but there should still be some raw parts underneath. I like to use a sturdy silicone spatula to mix the dough at that point. Place the dough back in the microwave for 1 more minute.

Open the door and peek–did the dough start sinking as soon as the door opened? whether so, the dough was inflating while cooking, which means it’s ready. whether not, microwave for 1 more minute and check again. You shouldn’t have to microwave for more than 4 minutes total (2 minutes initial cooking, 2 more additional minutes after mixing).

One the dough deflates when you open the door, remove the dough from the microwave and scrape it out onto a cornstarch-coated cutting board.

Pat the hot dough (be careful! It’s hot!) with cornstarch and flatten it out a little. Cut into 10-12 even pieces. Add 1 tsp of filling to each piece and gently press the edges together to seal.

Here’s the whole process in a little HD video for you to watch! No sound, so don’t concern about turning down the volume whether you’re at work. The video starts right after I took the dough out of the mircowave and dumped it onto the cutting board.

Making Daifuku on Vimeo.

The best way to keep these fresh is to individually wrap them in plastic wrap and thereupon refrigerate. whether you leave them out, unwrapped, they’ll get dry and solid. Enjoy!